Set Your Watch to Big Ben in Parliament Square
Excerpt from the book On a Tall Budget and Short Attention Span from the Teresa the Traveler Series. When it became apparent that Mr. Sandman was too busy for a visit, I decided to go for a walk thinking a little exercise might convince him to drop by later that evening. Much to my surprise, I discovered a sign pointing to Buckingham Palace. Could I be that close?
Sure enough, a ten-minute walk led me to the front gates of the Queen’s London abode. A giant square sprawled out in front of the palace gates and in the middle stood a beautiful statue of an angel standing atop a fountain conducting an invisible orchestra. Floodlights gave her a heavenly glow while the sound of trickling water created a peaceful ambiance. I sat on the fountain and basked in its beauty before moving along.
As I continued my stroll, I spotted what appeared to be a huge clock tower in the distance. I followed the golden beacon through parks, streets, past statues and magnificent buildings before finally arriving at the foot of what I immediately recognized as Big Ben the symbol of London. I could not believe it. My first night in London and I had already seen Buckingham Palace and Big Ben and it was only - I rummaged through my backpack until I found my watch- 10pm.
Sure enough, a ten-minute walk led me to the front gates of the Queen’s London abode. A giant square sprawled out in front of the palace gates and in the middle stood a beautiful statue of an angel standing atop a fountain conducting an invisible orchestra. Floodlights gave her a heavenly glow while the sound of trickling water created a peaceful ambiance. I sat on the fountain and basked in its beauty before moving along.
As I continued my stroll, I spotted what appeared to be a huge clock tower in the distance. I followed the golden beacon through parks, streets, past statues and magnificent buildings before finally arriving at the foot of what I immediately recognized as Big Ben the symbol of London. I could not believe it. My first night in London and I had already seen Buckingham Palace and Big Ben and it was only - I rummaged through my backpack until I found my watch- 10pm.
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What the…? Here I was in front of the largest four-faced chiming clock in the world and I was looking for my watch. I am such an idiot!
Formerly known as the Great Bell, Big Ben is actually the name of the largest bell housed inside the tower. Since it first started ticking it has only stopped a handful of times due to malfunctions and maintenance. During WWI, the bells were silenced and the clock faces were darkened at night to prevent German attack and during WWII the clock faces were darkened at night for the same reason. The third largest free-standing clock tower in the world was constructed as part of the design for the new parliament (also known as the Palace of Westminster) after the old parliament was destroyed by fire on October 22nd 1834. Situated on the banks of the Thames River, the Palace of Westminster contains the UK’s two houses of the Parliament: the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The massive building contains 1,100 rooms, 100 staircases and 3 miles of corridors. It was originally the monarch’s principle residence before the monarch moved to a different palace and it became the House of Parliament. Fire destroyed most of the original structure but elements still remain such as Westminster Hall (which houses the three most important courts of England: the Court of King`s Bench, the Court of Common Pleas and the Court of Chancery) and the Jewel Tower, originally built to house the treasures of Edward III and now home to an exhibition called Parliament Past andPresent. The burning of the parliament was, in my opinion, a classic example of karmic justice. Simply put, the guys in charge did the wrong thing and paid the price. Sticks of carved notched wood called tally sticks were once used by Parliament to record financial transactions. As the sticks were replaced by paper records, the cellars began to fill up with old wood. Rather than donate the obsolete tally sticks to the poor for firewood, the fearful politicians decided they represented top secret transactions and needed to be disposed of in a top secret manner. So they burned the sticks in the under-floor coal furnaces used to heat the House of Lords. Unbeknownst to them the burning sticks would overheat the copper-lined brick flues causing the exposed brickwork to heat up and ignite the woodenfloor joists. Most of the poor people were illiterate and had little interest in using the sticks for anything other than fuel and could have disposed of them in a much safer manner. I think the lesson here is: Don’t let fear talk you into making bad decisions. |
For tips on visiting England CLICK HERE
For tips on visiting Europe CLICK HERE For general travel tips on what to pack and how to plan ahead CLICK HERE For tips on travelling on a budget CLICK HERE |
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Where I Stayed...
Easton Hotel 36-40 Belgrave Road, Victoria London, England Tel: 020 7834 5938 Fax: 020 7976 6560 hoteleaston@aol.com 
To book this hotel CLICK HERE
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How to Get There: Fly into Heathrow Airport and take the train into London
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