Playing in the Queens backyard

Yesterday we were up, had our breakfast then headed off for our tour of Buckingham Palace.

We thought our visit to the palace would likely take 45 minutes to maybe an hour.  We were wrong.  We would recommend to anyone who is in London to try to get tickets to tour the palace.

Beginning at the Royal Muse which is the stable area where the royal horses are and also the many carriages used by the royal family for their celebrations, weddings and official business travels. These carriages up close are amazing and to see them and know that this one is one the queen used for this event, or this one is the carriage for that wedding is a treat.

 

 

The insignia on the carriages are painted by hand, no stencil or guide, but hand painted.

 



 

There are many families who live and work at the palace, those who have irregular hours get to live here and usually all family members end up working here. In this picture below you can see the balconies of those families who live at the Royal Muse.

My son Ryan has toured Buckingham Palace, but this year the entrance into the palace is through the main entrance from the rotunda and up the grand staircase. Apparently this year is the first time they have allowed the public to enter this way and it is spectacular. We were not allowed to take pictures inside but trust us, this was well worth it. We spent an hour touring the mews and another two hours in the palace, and when we were done, the tour ends at the back of the palace where there are over 39 acres of grounds.

I asked the young lady in the picture above what it was like to work at the palace. She told us that when she was in training, she saw Kate and Prince George out on the grounds playing. There is a sand area that they take him to that apparently he loves. She seemed quite happy to be working there.

Of course we had to have a cup of tea at the café looking out over these grounds. It was just wonderful sitting here in the Queen's backyard.

We have had another memorable day.  This was officially day 1 of our tour, but for many it was a travel day to get here to London.  Tomorrow we have a local tourist bus tour of the sites in London, which we will go on and hopefully we will meet many of our travelling companions who will be with us in Europe.

We also found out that on Thursday we will be up at 3:30 am for our trip to Dover to get a ferry and cross the English Channel heading to Amsterdam. So one more full day in London today and in bed early.  Our updates may not be as regular since we don't know our daily schedule, but we will stay in touch through this blog as much as we can to keep everyone updated of our travels, We know through your comments that you are enjoying it!