When we arrived in London the first thing we did (after checking into the hotel) was a very the typical touristy thing — we did the double decker bus tour. Upper deck. Open. Cold. With intermittent rain. A true London experience.

Anyway, it DID give us all a feel for the city and helped us to narrow down things to do for our upcoming two full days in the city.

High on the list was the Tower of London. It would be completely negligent to visit London and not tour this symbol of medieval power and oppression! It was a fort, a prison and the monarch’s home.  It has tales of murder, torture and executions. It houses regal relics from the 11th century through present day.

This is the White Tower. I believe it is the largest structure in the Tower of London compound. It houses military and royal artifacts dating back to the beginning of the monarchy. Pretty cool.

The Tower of London property is very friendly to photographers. Photography is allowed in just about every area except the Crown Jewels exhibit and St John’s Chapel (which is inside the White Tower). I saw several people with tripods. I did not bring one along. I decided to travel light that day. Just my D700 and my 20mm f2.8 lens.