Walks and Wax

A huge thank-you to Brianne's amazing bridal team for their scrapbook of London attractions. This week we managed to take a Jack the Ripper Walk AND see Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum!

Our Ripper walk left from Tower Hill tube station, and we were guided by Donald Rumbelow, one of the foremost Ripper-ologists in the world. He's written two books on the case and is highly knowledgable and very professional. We strolled through the East End of London viewing the different murder scenes and other points of interest such as The Ten Bells, the pub at which every single Ripper victim drank. We've made a mental note to return there for a pint. All in all it was an interesting trip, though we actors could've used a little more theatricality, such as one gets on the ghost walks in Ottawa. There are, in point of fact, at least half a dozen different ghost walks that we intend to visit. London is considered by some to be the most haunted city in the world, after all.

Today was spent at Madame Tussaud's, and it is very fun and entertaining place. It's set up with waxworks of numerous celebrities - from movie stars to politicians, athletes to ancient royalty - arranged standing around large themed rooms, to make picture taking easy and up-close. Take a look at our album on Facebook to see the full account famous people we bumped into, but enjoy a sample of pics below. There is also the famous Chamber of Horrors, which specializes in depictions of torture and mass murderes such as Vlad the Impaler and Dr. Crippen. There's even an interactive "Chamber Live!" which is basically a walk-through haunted house with actors that jump out at you. A jolly good scare - we both jumped more than once. Another fave exhibit of ours was The Spirit of London, a brief Disney-style animatronic ride in the middle of the museum which takes you through a brief history of London. Highlights include Shakespeare, the London Fire, the building of St. Paul's, and the Swinging 60's. A wonderful experience all around.