Memorial Day...

It is the Soldier

by Charles M. Province

It is the Soldier, not the minister

Who has given us freedom of religion.

It is the Soldier, not the reporter

Who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the Soldier, not the poet

Who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer

Who has given us freedom to protest.

It is the Soldier, not the lawyer

Who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the Soldier, not the politician

Who has given us the right to vote.

It is the Soldier who salutes the flag,

Who serves beneath the flag,

And whose coffin is draped by the flag,

Who allows the protester to burn the flag.

Today may be Memorial Day in the US but following in my theme of the last few days I'm going to end with two pictures taken during my recent trip to London.

Women of World War II

monument on Downing Street

London - Abbey Road

Another stop in my tour of London was to visit Abbey Road Studio's in Westminster.

Abbey Road Studios, established in November of 1931 by EMI in London, England, is an iconic recording studio located at Abbey Road, in St John's Wood in the City of Westminster.

Abbey Road Sign

Zebra Crossing made famous on the cover

of the Beatles 1969 album, Abbey Road
Sign Above Studio Door
London Symphony Equipment Truck

London - Westminster Abbey

One of the places on my must see list this trip to London was to go into Westminster Abbey. I have been by the Abbey before and seen the outside but this is the first time I have been inside the Abbey. I must admit having traveled around a lot of Europe I was a bit shocked at the having to pay so much to go into the Abbey. I have been in many a church in Europe that yes you did have the option of leaving a donation but it was not required to pay to go in and visit. While I love the architecture outside the Abbey I found it to be very cramped and gaudy in areas in places inside.

Westminster Abbey is steeped in more than a thousand years of history. Benedictine monks first came to this site in the middle of the tenth century, establishing a tradition of daily worship which continues to this day.

The Abbey has been the coronation church since 1066 and is the final resting place of seventeen monarchs.

They do not allow the taking of pictures inside the Abbey but I did take a number of shots outside the Abbey.

London - Buckingham Palace

One of the things at the top of my list to do this time in London was to be at Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard. I figured there would be a crowd for this but I did not expect the large crowd that was in attendance.

According to the UK Royal website "Buckingham Palace has served as the official London residence of Britain's sovereigns since 1837."

Couple of kids watching for the changing of the guard
Statue out front
A look at one part of the crowd gathered out front

Traffic stopped for the band Yep he is loving the rainy weather
How about this paint job?
Band warming-up
Here they come marching down the street





Gates to the Palace
Waiting for the changing of the guard

Then there was one!

London - Parliament

London Day Two:

Took the bus from the hotel to the airport so we could catch the Piccadilly line into London. The first stop was to the city of Westminster to see Parliament and Big Ben.

Where Parliament now stands has been a centre of authority for over a thousand years. Once the home of the royal family, and still officially a royal palace, the buildings that now make up the modern Houses of Parliament have developed through design, accident and attack.

Heathrow Airport

Piccadilly line trains First look at Big Ben

Statue in front of Parliament Building
A look down the street at Parliment

Statue of Cromwell

Parliament Security