Corvid Cheek
I have been to London several times, enough times that I can navigate myself around some areas without always needing a map - and can even be of help to resident Londoners who find themselves confused on the Tube (read one Londoner and technically it was the Overground - but I knew which train she needed and she didn't!). Until last Friday I had never been to the Tower of London.
I have been *this close* to the Tower of London, I have photographed it from the outside and I have even considered the length of the queue for tickets but I have never combined all of these things with an arrival time of 9am and the prospect of a full day to take advantage of my seventeen pounds down payment. I love history and I love buildings with stories in the walls, but if it's going to cost me seventeen pounds then I need to get more than a sweaty hour crammed in with the afternoon tourist mob. On Friday we were at the gates before they opened and I wondered whether any ghosts watched from the towers and marvelled at the keenness of folk to get in...
When we did pass under the gates, were too early for the first guided walk and so we decided to explore a bit in the meantime. A beeline was made for the Ravens, this blogger having somewhat of an affinity with the corvid ones.
I have mixed feelings about what I saw. Later, the first (only?) female Yeoman Warder would tell us that the Ravens are very happy and live much longer in the Tower than they do in the wild but I couldn't quite decide if it is better to have a long life with clipped wings or a shorter life with the freedom to choose... It seemed somehow cruel to watch a Raven try to take off as it interacted with its corvid cousins, the many Crows who also populated the area. As intelligent as corvids are, these birds never seem to have figured out that for them flight is curtailed.
We had the luxury of beating the rush and getting some time alone with the birds and were treated to some close-up action as two of the Ravens strutted up to us to investigate our worthiness. We are not sure of their collective conclusion, but we were excited to get so close to these wonderful creatures.
Later in the day we returned to the spot for another look, but by then there was a throng of people chattering and shouting. We were somewhat amused as they all aimed their cameras at a bird strutting along the fence who stopped to pose for them - a Crow taking up the slack as the Ravens watched from the hill.
I would have paid seventeen pounds for that alone 
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Tags: corvids, crows, ravens, tourists, tower of london
It was indeed excellent. I think the ravens let the crows take the spotlight now and again, just so they can all laugh at the unknowing.