Monumental

Before getting to see Tower Bridge open up to let a Navy ship pass through, Mel, her cousin Shane and I climbed all the way to the top of the Monument. My gosh, that was A GIGANTIC AMOUNT OF STEPS. My legs were shaking by the top. Halfway through the climb Melissa and I looked at each other, silently asking "Seriously, how many more steps can there be?". There was a lot more. It was worth the climb though for the view. One can see all over the City, from Tower Bridge to the Shard and over to the Gherkin. 


A little bit of background: The Monument was built to commemorate the Great Fire of 1666, which started in a baker's home on Pudding Lane exactly 61 metres from the column. That is also the exact height of The Monument, which was built by Christopher Wren. 


It was a good start to our day exploring the City, as we were able to gain our bearings (though after 311 steps, our legs weren't quite up to taking us anywhere).