by Brian Smith
The Houses of Parliament and Big Ben
They went for a short ride through the inner city which took them past Trafalgar Square.
“Who’s that up there?” Anthony asked pointing to the top of the column in the middle of Trafalgar Square.
“That’s Lord Nelson,” Edward exclaimed. “He defeated the French and Spanish fleets at the battle of Trafalgar during the war against Napoleon.”
“Oh,” Anthony said. “And who’s Napoleon?”
Edward explained that Napoleon was the Emperor of France some two hundred years ago which led to a number of other questions from Anthony which Edward answered with some help from his father.
Trafalgar Square
The next day their mother went shopping while the boys and their father visited HMS Belfast which the children were excited to explore. There were the huge guns of the cruiser which saw action during the Second World War and on the ship’s bridge the boys took turns pretending to be the captain.
“Hard to starboard!” Captain Anthony commanded.
HMS Belfast
After visiting the huge ship they took the tube to the RAF Museum which is a bit out of town. There they admired many planes and helicopters, from the first plane that flew across the English Channel to the latest Typhoon fighter jet.
A Vulcan bomber in the RAF Museum
Edward immediately recognized the largest aircraft in the museum.
“It’s a Vulcan,” he said feeling thrilled.
“Do you know that we’ve got a special connection to it?” his father asked.
Edward shook his head.
“Our Uncle Ken was an aircraft engineer who worked on this plane.”
The children were impressed.
“Where’s Uncle Ken now?” Anthony asked.
“He’s in the USA,” his father replied. “Uncle Ken went to work on other aircraft there in the late 1960s.”
After they left the RAF Museum they took a train back into the city. On the way they heard a loud whistle and were amazed to see Mallard steaming past them.
Mallard
“A steam train,” Anthony cheered.
“It’s Mallard,” Edward said knowledgeably. “It’s the fastest steam locomotive that was ever built. In 1938 it reached a speed of 125 miles per hour.”
Anthony was impressed. “It’s very beautiful,” he said.
When they all got off the train they walked to Tower Bridge where they met their mother again.
“We’re lucky,” their mother said. “Look, the bridge is going up.”
“Why does it do that?” Anthony asked.
“So large ships can pass through,” Edward said.
“That’s right,” their father said. “It was completed in 1894 when London was the world’s largest port, so many ships passed through it. It’s also raised as a mark of respect when the Queen sails through.”
Tower Bridge
The boys and their parents enjoyed their stay in London very much. The wonderful sunny weather and the many attractions in one of the most exciting cities on Earth made for a great stay.
