This is old news now, but if you don't regularly read world news and such, you may have missed the annual opening of British Parliament on December 3rd. Queen Elizabeth II opened Parliament for the 56th time in her reign, leading a ceremony with over 500 years of tradition and history. Admittedly I am a bit of an Anglophile and have always enjoyed all the pomp and circumstance, so this is stuff I enjoy sharing. The videos below are a little long, but I find them both interesting. If nothing else, its a nice diversion from all the nonsense in the news of late.
above left: The procession leading to the Palace of Westminster is quite extensive. Her Majesty arrives in the State Coach, drawn by four grey horses. Above right: The Queen reads the speech to the Lords and members of the House of Commons.
above: even in her advanced age, The Queen still looks great. Of course, all the diamonds do help. above right: The Queen's jewels, including the Imperial State Crown (which she wears to open Parliament), are priceless and are stored in a heavily guarded room in the Tower of London. Check out this (long but) interesting video about the opening of Parliament:
And here below is Queen Elizabeth delivering her speech to open Parliament. It's a bit of a yawn-fest, but check it out for a spell:
Well, I hope you weren't too bored by all this. I'll post The Queen's Christmas message on December 25th, so she'll make another appearance here again soon. Have a great Thursday.
-Rick Rockhill
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