If you are going to go on the escorted tour of the Tower of London, be sure to get Bob…
Sure, any Yeoman Warder will do in a pinch. They were all noncommissioned officers in the Queen’s military for at least 22 years and were awarded the good conduct ribbon. They can all answer your questions. But Bob was awesome!!!
Remember, as you walk around, that the Tower was originally built as a stronghold to intimidate the local populace. (Look it up, it is your history too). It towered over the other buildings in the area… pun intended. It has been added to quite a bit over the 1,000 some-odd years it has stood there.
Mollie must have taken that picture of the cobblestones in the courtyard… what an artistic kid.
This is still a working military installation.
It is still a fortress.
They feel safe leaving the crown jewels there, including the largest diamond on the planet.
The uniforms may look quaint to some of you, but unlike the artillery pieces, which, I believe, were captured from Napoleon’s troops, the guns those guards are carrying are not just for show.
I hope you all have a chance to experience this historic site someday if you haven’t yet.
And if you do…
I hope you get to meet Bob. He will make the ghosts come alive. And there are a lot of ghosts there.
Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!… oh… wait… that isn’t a ghost.
Pouring My Art Out 
Thanks for the memories — I’ve gone a bunch of times. But the best was when my now husband and i went in 1986, just after the bombing of Lockerbee. There was nobody there. It’s the only time I’ve seen the crown jewels because the line is always too long. We got right in, stayed as long as we wanted…. Not that I recommend terrorism as a way to avoid lines at tourist destinations, mind you, but it worked well for us!
I found out that the square by our hotel was the site of a bus bombing.