Sights of London: Big Ben and National Gallery

Note 1: High resolution images of some of the following photos are available. These photos are marked with [HiRes] tags in their captions. Click on the photos to view their higher resolution images.

Note 2: Various facts obtained from Wikipedia. All external text-links lead to the related Wikipedia articles.

One of the must-sees of London is the Big Ben. It is just a short walk away from the Buckingham Palace, whose photos I put up not long ago.

[HiRes] The "Big Ben". The non-Tower portion of the Houses of Parliament seen here was under maintenance.

It is actually not 100% accurate to call the Clock Tower Big Ben. Big Ben is the name of the bell which chimes every quarter of an hour at the Palace of Westminster. Similarly, the clock in Nottingham's Council House is called "Little John", an obvious reference to Nottingham's connection to the tales of Robin Hood.

[HiRes] Who's taller?

Anyway, the Clock Tower is actually part of the Palace of Westminster. The Clock Tower itself, being so famous, has been mistakenly referred to as Big Ben for so long now, the name for the bell has been extended to mean the Clock Tower.

[HiRes] The Big Ben isn't too far away from the London Eye.

The Palace of Westminster (more commonly known as the Houses of Parliament) itself is simply breathtaking. Unfortunately, I have returned from London without any satisfying images of the Palace. Maintenance works were under way when I visited, which made things worse. Check out images available at Wikipedia here.

[HiRes] Details of the face of the Clock.

[HiRes] Opposite the Big Ben.

Just across the River Thames is the London Eye. I never knew that so many high-profile London landmarks are within sight of one another.

[HiRes] Thames from the Westminster Bridge.

Also close by is the Westminster Abbey.

[HiRes] A turret of the Westminster Abbey.

It is easily one of the most famous churches in the world today and was featured in the Dan Brown novel Da Vinci Code. Da Vinci Code film makers were unable to shoot at Westminster Abbey though, and Westminster scenes were shot in Lincoln Cathedral instead. More photos of both Westminster Abbey and Lincoln Cathedral to come in the future.

Then there's Trafalgar Square, with the National Gallery overseeing it.

[HiRes] The National Gallery, seen from Trafalgar Square.

[HiRes] The National Gallery.

The National Gallery is an art gallery, housing a good number of paintings and some sculptures.

[HiRes] Façade of National Gallery.

[HiRes] Pillars.

I spent a good hour in the gallery but didn't catch any photos, as photography is generally prohibited in art museums.

The Cavalry Museum was also nearby.