Ah Imperial London. Bloody wars, jewels and swords and religious fanatics and 100 lb pieces of armor. All that jazz. When it comes to the history, I had honestly forgotten how much of this stuff I already knew (Thanks Cal Poly!) I went on one tour today - the Tower of London - and the entire time I kept thinking, "Oh Yeah - I remember that Richard II/Oliver Cromwell/Charles I guy."

England has such a bloody history, which I was reminded of at several points on the tour, but I was more impressed by the sheer length of time England has had power - and money. I saw the Crown Jewels today . . . wow. Behind 2 foot thick steel doors in the most tightly guarded chamber of the Tower of London lies an insane amount of treasure.

Highlights included a 538 carat diamond (no pics allowed) atop a bejeweled scepter and an ornately carved solid gold punch bowl that holds 144 bottles of wine. All I could think was - I want to be at THAT party.

The Crown Jewels was almost worth the Tower of London's 17lb admission price, and it really impressed upon me the incredible wealth of the English Empire. I was of two minds on all of this. Part of me thought that the whole over-the-top pointless finery was a little ridiculous - I mean, if you want to end poverty in the world, just pawn some of this crap. The crown alone could feed Africa. It would be one thing if the Queen was having giant parties with her giant gold punch bowl, but it's all just sitting in a museum. On the other hand, I have to say I was very awed by the collection, and it really put London's place as an Old World power in perspective.

The other benefit of this trip - I started remembering some of the beautiful and interesting things I had learned while pursuing my degree. I focus so much on the practical application now-a-days - the "what can you do with this degree" - but there is so much worth in understanding how the world has become what it is today, and tracing back

English history, language, and art. Knowledge for knowledge's sake. What a concept.