Banqueting House and Whitehall
There were 26 of us and we decided to take a slightly less direct route so that we could take in more of the sights rather than going directly on the underground. Our walk across London Bridge was further enhanced by the bright blue sky above us. We were afforded a spectacular view of Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, London City Hall, the Walkie Talkie building, the Gherkin, Hays Galleria and HMS Belfast to the east and St Paul's, Southwark Bridge, Southwark Cathedral, and the Millennium Bridge next to the Globe and Tate Modern to the west. A glance behind us gave us the best close-up view of The Shard, the tallest building in Europe and shooting above other buildings ahead of us was The Monument to the great Fire of London. It all served to remind us of how many iconic buildings we have in our capital city and how tourists from all over the world flock to see them (despite terrorist attacks in the area)
A coffee break next to Monument Underground was the first stop and, after a short tube ride to Embankment, we headed south again on the North Bank, spotting the Millennium Wheel and through Whitehall Gardens with its beautiful architecture and on to the Banqueting House just ahead of the Ministry of Defence and immediately opposite Horse Guards Parade.
We met our guide who gave us a 1 3/4 hour tour of the Banqueting House and the local area. He was extremely knowledgeable and able to answer all of our questions as well as giving us an insight into this fascinating building.The Banqueting House, Whitehall, is the grandest and best known survivor of the Palace of Whitehall, in its time the largest palace in Europe. The building is important in the history of English architecture as the first structure to be completed in the neo-classical style, which was to transform English architecture.
Our tour outside took in the New Scotland Yard, the Thames, County Hall and 10 Downing Street. We finished with a pleasant lunch in the Cafe in the Crypt of St Martin in the Fields in Trafalgar Square.