Tower of London

Had it not been included in my program, I probably would not have gone, which would have been a shame. The Tower of London was strangely beautiful, considering its past. The architecture was a hodgepodge of different eras and greenery. From the outside, I hadn't realized how big it was, let alone how much it housed.

We started with a tour from a Yeoman Warden, whose voice reminded me of my grandfather's (who was a Marine Drill Sargent in his younger days). He gave some insight into the history of the Tower, its prisoners, and its construction. He explained who died where, where they were buried, and who we were standing on top of (when we were in the chapel).

After that, we went to see the Crown Jewels. Luckily, the queue wasn't very long. First, they usher you by a couple of staged videos about coronation. Then, you get to a couple of cases of jewels and scepters and crowns, before they put you on a moving walkway to see the CROWN JEWELS, which were magnificent (if you're into sparkles). I have never seen so many glittery things one one object before. I feel like, if anyone actually wore one of those crowns in my presence, I would start laughing. I wouldn't be able to take them seriously with a literal pile of money sitting on their head. Best I never meet the Queen.

After that, we saw the armory, which was my favorite part. I have always been a fan of knights with armor and lances and swords. They had rows of ornate swords and royal suits of armor. They even had a dragon made of different plates of armor and weapons. Some of it seemed straight out of the show Merlin. I wanted to spend more time there, but everyone else wanted to see the torture chambers.

The ravens were hanging out by their cages, so we saw them from afar on our way to the torture chambers. The tiny underground area was disappointing. I was expecting more information about torture, given the Tower's reputation. Instead, there was a replica of the rack, used to stretch people to induce unbearable pain, and some shackles. There were a couple plaques about different forms of torture used. That was it though. We were in and out of there in about five minutes.

The Tower of London was a very educational experience, to say the least. I was intrigued enough by my visit to want to research more about medieval life when I got back to my dorm. It may have even inspired a new writing project, if I have time, even though I do not usually venture into historical fiction.