London Evening Cruise

As the cruise boat sailed down the Thames River, the sun slowly slide below the horizon. With the passing of the sun, the buildings that lined the banks of the river began to transform themselves into golden palaces as their lights flickered to life.

The clocks on Big Ben became illuminated, as flood lights lit up the House of Parliament.

Once the seat of London's government, the County Hall has now been transformed into a Marriott hotel. The floodlights highlight the curved, colonnaded central section of the building.

The dome of St Paul's Cathedral can be seen beyond the area known as the Inn of Courts.

St. Paul's lit up in white lights. The Courts bathed in gold.

St Paul's Dome peeks between the buildings along the waterfront.

At 360 ft high, the dome is the world's second largest after St. Peter's in Rome.

The Golden Hinde, Sir Francis Drake's ship, tucked between the building at Pickford's Wharf.

With the sunset now completely gone, the temperature drops as a chill wind blows up river. Coats are zipped up, as the boat begins to make a long turn towards the Tower Pier.

As the boat turns we are treated to a view of the tower bridge with its pinnacled towers and linking catwalk alight. The catwalk helps support the mechanism for raising the roadway when big ships wish to pass.

Completed in 1984, the Tower Bridge quickly a symbol of London. This masterpiece of Victorian engineering has a pair of drawbridges that are powered by steam driven winding machinery concealed within the base of the towers.
Having completed the Thames Cruise, our first day in London draws to an end. We board our tour bus and head back to our hotel exhausted yet at the same time excited. Tomorrow we will meet up with the rest of our tour group and begin our tour around great Britain.