They're changing guard at Buckingham Palace-Christopher Robin went down with Alice. We saw a guard in a sentry-box. ‘One of the sergeants looks after their socks,' says Alice.
It's not everyday that a man wearing highly polished black jack boots, a red jacket with shiny buttons, a helmet with a plume and carrying a sword marches into your life, but this was no ordinary day.
Taking my niece and nephew to meet the guards of Buckingham Palace was as big a deal for me as it was for them. At five and eight, a visit to London is a special treat. The sun shone, Big Ben sparkled and the Houses of Parliament glistened like a fairytale castle.
As we watched Lance Corporal Tariq Baksh change his guards at Horse guards parade ground I had a feeling we were in for an exciting afternoon.
Christopher Robin would not have been given a better tour. We met Colossus, the horse who carries the Royal standard, in his stable, and were given a tour of the stalls.
All the tack was examined and the history of it revealed to gasps of amazement from the assembled audience. Helmets were worn, swords wielded and the gauntlet gloves tried for size. As we got into a taxi for the last leg of the adventure-a night camping on the sofa bed-I could just imagine Alice whisking Christopher Robin back home in time for tea...
They're changing guard at Buckingham Palace-Christopher Robin went down with Alice. 'Do you think the King knows all about me?' ‘Sure to, dear, but it's time for tea,' says Alice
The Household Cavalry Museum Horse Guards, Whitehall, London, SW1A 2AX
Nearest underground stations - Charing Cross, Westminster and Embankment
Opening times: Open daily (except December 24-26) 10am - 6pm (March - September) 10am - 5pm (October - February)
Admission: Adults: £6 Children (aged 5-16) and Concessions: £4 Family ticket (2 adults & 3 children): £15
Daily Ceremony The Changing of the Queen's Life Guard takes place daily on Horse Guards Parade at 11am.
The daily inspection takes place at 4pm
(020 79303070; www.householdcavalrymuseum.co.uk)
-
Claws for thought: The world leading crustacean conservation charity that is saving our lobstersThe National Lobster Hatchery in Cornwall is fighting for the species' survival. But it could do with some help.
-
West Wycombe Park: The neo-classical mansion of the man smeared as a convenor of orgies, satanic rites, and a leading light of the notorious Hellfire ClubTim Richardson offers a surprising perspective on West Wycombe Park, Buckinghamshire, that's one of the most celebrated landscapes of late-18th-century England. Photographs by Paul Highnam.
