The Queen commenced her Diamond Jubilee Tour almost four months back which reached the West Midlands over the past two days as it moved towards its culmination in the coming week. As part of the celebrations she, as well as other members of the Royal family, will be visiting numerous places all around the world during the remainder of the year.
While in the West Midlands, HM The Queen along with HRH The Duke of Edinburg visited Birmingham's Victoria Square at 10:10 (on the dot) on 12th July 2012.
The presence of the Queen can be felt throughout the nation all year round, every year, but there are a few chances to actually see her up close. A number of locals spend their entire lives not having seen her in real, so we were not going to miss out on this opportunity of a lifetime.
Aware of the
popularity of the Queen, it was only obvious that we made our way to the event
location a good 2 hours before her arrival to get front row standing space. It
was a quick breakfast standing behind the barricade as we "protected"
our hotly desired territory. The weather, after a few days of gloom, seemed to
have opened up in anticipation of the Queen's arrival with the sun shining and
pure white clouds drifting amongst the clear blue sky.
Special jubilee flags swayed in the gentle cool wind with the chitter-chatter between the audiences raising the levels of excitement with each passing minute. The security was extremely efficient with members of the local Birmingham Police working along with spotters high up on the buildings, and police dogs checking even the portholes. Still, there was a certain calm to all the activities and preparations.
The Lord Mayor of
Birmingham and the Mayoress came along to chat with the waiting public and we
were one of the few they stopped to talk with. In fact the Mayoress was rather
impressed with my four-year-old-daughter's pink sunglasses.
The Queen arrived to
deafening sounds of cheering. She met with all the officials and was presented
with a bouquet and a locally produced "plaque" by the city. She then
walked around meeting the assembled crowd and passed by our standing space. As
you can see from the photographs, we were literarily a few inches away from
her. Had it not been for her security and my love for my life and hand, I could
have even touched her.
Always smiling there
was a glowing calm on her face as she went about performing her duties and
talking to a select few individuals. Her entire stay at Victoria Square lasted
about 15-20 minutes, but it was a memorable moment for the people who were
present, as it sure was for us. Needless to say, I love these little surprises
that get thrown in our paths when we travel.
