I've been to London to visit the Queen...

Wednesday was no quieter for us - so much to fit into 5 days.  So here's what happened today. First stop was a walk through Green Park on our way to visit the Queen. We had a really wonderful tour of Buckinglamb palace (if you're Finbarr) or Buckingham Palace for everyone else - we visited the Queen's Portrait Gallery (any doctors would have loved to have seen the anatomical sketches by Leonardo Da Vinci - not only a great artist, but an explorer and keen documenter of the workings of the human body - amazingly accurate considering they were done over 400 years ago).  We then moved to the Royal Mews and saw up close the carriages used for coronations, weddings, jubilee celebrations and other occasions as well as the horses themselves in the stables. If you ever see a coach led by Windsor grey horses (not their breed name, but the name given by the queen), you'll know the queen is in the carriage as she prefers those horses to the other chestnut coloured horses.  We moved next to the state rooms - we saw where balls are held, important dinners, official photography rooms, music rooms and most importantly, we saw the Queen's 60th anniversary diamond exhibition.  I have a few new ideas for birthday presents in case Damian is looking for gifts for me. Diamonds aside, I have to say Buckinglamb palace made even Versailles look positively old and shabby, from the beautiful artwork to silk wallpapers, 11 foot chandeliers and gold leaved plaster and timber mouldings - just amazing and extravagant and extraordinarily decorative and beautiful. I'd love to see the private rooms of the royal family to see if they are a little more relaxed - it would be hard to live in such precious surroundings! We weren't allowed to take photos inside the palace, but we were allowed to in the mews, and the gardens, where we walked afterwards.  I had actually been through the front gates, grand entrance and gardens of Buckingham Palace in 1992, when I was lucky enough to be invited to the Queen's royal garden party (one of only 3 held each year, for award winners, community volunteers, business representatives and Australians who put their name down at Australia house and get picked out of a hat). We weren't even allowed to bring a camera in, let alone take photos, so it was nice to be able to get some this time.