Today we spent the day in London to see the completed installation the Poppies at the Tower of London sadly for us there were huge crowds so it was hard to get photos While we were there we also did some of the Paddington Bear Trail and discovered some really cool buses as well.

Once again it was a beautiful day so we decided to take a run into London to see the poppies in the moat at the Tower of London. The art installation called Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red, which marks the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, was created by ceramic artist Paul Cummins, and stage designer Tom Piper. There’s 888,246 ceramic poppies representing every British combatant killed during the war. We caught the train to Bank station and walked down to the Tower. The crowds were unbelievable. We thought we’d duck into a local pub for a bite to eat but it was shoulder to shoulder with to a seat to be found. Thousands of people had descended on the centre for the last days before remembrance day on the 11th, when the poppies will be removed as they’ve been sold to raise money for the eight charities.

There were crowds six deep stretching back a city block waiting to cross the road, as policemen with loud hailers desperately tried to control the traffic. We pushed our way through the edge of the crowd and headed for The Minorities Pub, which is underneath one of the railway arches not far from the Tower. Back in 2009 we were staying just around the corner from it, so popped in quite often for meals and the occasional drink. Since then, whenever we go to the Tower area we pop in for a meal. Today however, was a forgettable experience. Trying to order a meal took forever and it seemed like there was confusion delivering meals. Although the tables have numbers they’ve changed the system so that the bar staff give out numbered spoons. When the wait staff deliver orders they’re running all over the pub trying to match up orders with spoons. The meals were ok but the service was woeful so we might have to find another favourite pub.
At the Tower Bridge end of the Tower of London, the crowds had thinned out so we slipped in took a few photos. It’s quite amazing comparing the photos from when we first went until now. The whole moat is full of red poppies like a sea of blood.

Six of the fifty Paddington Bears on Display. You can see the rest here

The buses have been put into place for year of the bus some of them are quite stunning our favourite was the Punked one what about you?

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