At 8 a.m. we walked to St. Paul's Cathedral.
The outside of the Cathedral is incredible, but the inside is even more impressive. When entering St. Paul's, almost everyone purchased a self guided tour which is a recording that will lead you through the Cathedral while providing important facts and information on every element of the building. We started in the Nave where you can look up and appreciate the Cathedral's massive dome.
Then we climbed 391 steps at a height of 365 feet to the whispering gallery which is a small platform that runs the inside perimeter of the dome. From the gallery we climbed a few more stairs to reach the outside walkway at the top of the cathedral. From this point you can see the entire city of London.
After this, we walked down to the basement of the cathedral called the crypt. This area is where the tombs of those who have made an outstanding contribution to the life of the nation and to the world are found.
Millennium Bridge:
At 11:30 a.m. we exited St. Paul's and walked South to the Millennium Bridge. This bridge was built as a pedestrian only bridge to cross the Thames River, and directly connects the Millennium Bridge with the Tate Modern art museum.
Tate Modern:
After crossing the Millennium Bridge, we ate lunch in the front yard of Tate Modern which is the home to many international modern and contemporary art exhibits.
Thames River Walk:
We left the Tate Modern museum at 1:00 p.m. to start our walk East along the Thames River in London to the Tower Bridge.
Tower Bridge:
We reached Tower Bridge at 3:00 p.m. and took a tour of the towers, elevated walkways, and engine rooms which held the mechanics for raising and lowering the draw bridge.
30 St. Mary Axe:
At 5:00 p.m. after the Tower Bridge tour, we crossed back over the Thames River on the bridge heading North towards the St. Mary Axe building which is also known as "the Gherkin." This was London's first environmentally progressive buildings, and is the second tallest building in the City of London and the sixth tallest in London.
After taking pictures of the building and talking about some of its energy efficient elements, we walked back to the John Dodgson house.
Royal Albert Hall:
At 7:30 p.m. some of us (Dr. Burt, Anoop, Kay, Mallory, Clinton, Nick, Drew) left for the Jackson Browne concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Since the concert did not begin until 9:00 p.m. we ate dinner at the Royal College of Music's student pub and watched some of the soccer match for that night. After dinner, we went to the concert.
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