Big BEN, the Clock Tower

Thursday (20/08/2009)

a) Big BEN
Just nearby Tower Bridge is the world’s biggest chiming Clock Tower. It is attached to the Westminster Palace and Bridge.
It has 4 faces and 4 different bells. It chimes every quarter hour. The hour needle is 2.7m while the minute needle is 4.3m. The tower is 16 storeys tall and is 150 years old. It is famous for its accuracy. It is made of bricks and sand and it’s brown colour.
The kids marched down to see video clips of Big BEN. They listened to its lovely chime. In the tower, the clock caretakers work there. They maintain the machine in it. Although popular, it has no elevators and one has to climb the 334 stair flights…….wow! Only VIPs are allowed to enter Big BEN. The top view is magnificent. One can see the Thames River, Tower Bridge and also London Eye.
But is the time in every country the same? No,…..why? How do people of the past measure time? Song Chuan said using the sun while the others are unsure. I asked them to check with their parents.

b) The Westminster Palace and Bridge.
It was burnt in 1834. Before that, it was a place for criminals. It was rebuilt and today, it is Britain’s Parliament. The kids learnt that Malaysia too has got a Parliament. It is a place where the governments ministers meet up for meetings and discussions.
The kids saw the seats and the structure of the Westminster roof and ceiling.

c) A glimpse on Australia.
We took a quick tour on Australia. The reason was to gaged the kids to Mrs. Lu’s experience there. I understood that she studied there.
Among famous spots are The Sydney Opera House, The Ayers Rock and its famous Great Barrier Reef.
The Reef has got very clean natural water which encourage the breeding of it. Many endangered sea animals are seen here such as dugongs and the humpback whales.