Happy 300th Anniversary St. Paul's Cathedral

Church history buffs might want to consider a tour of St Paul's Cathedral during their next trip to London as this Cathedral is celebrating its 300th anniversary this year. To commemorate this event, the Cathedral is undergoing a massive restoration that is slated to be completed by 2011.

While a Cathedral dedicated to St. Paul has been present in the city of London since 604AD, this current cathedral was designed by Christopher Wren from 1675 to 1710. Many people will remember this cathedral as the site for the royal wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana. St. Paul's has the largest crypt in Western Europe, which has become the resting home for such luminaries as Nelson, Wellington, Joseph Turner and Sir Alexander Fleming.

Among the exhibits planned to celebrate this anniversary include a series of films documenting the history of St. Paul's Cathedral that enable one to actually pretend they're present during the WWII Blitz or the Great Fire. Also, virtual tours of the Cathedral allow visitors to experience features like the Great Dome up close and personal.. Even though one sees a single dome, St Paul's actually has three domes: an inner dome, a brick cone that supports the lantern, and the outer dome that is the golden exterior that glistens even on a foggy London day. The inner dome is 225ft high with a diameter of 102 ft. The whole structure weighs 64,000 tonnes. The golden ball that sits on top of the dome is six feet in diameter.

In addition to being an international historic landmark, St. Paul's Cathedral is also a working church. Tourists are welcome to join in the daily services which are 7:30am Matins and Litany, 8:00am Holy Communion, 12:30pm Holy Communion and 5pm Evensong. On Sunday, there's a full range of services starting with Holy Communion at 8am and concluding with Eucharist at 6pm. A listing of organ recitals and other programs open to the public can be found on the Cathedral website.

Sightseers are welcome Monday-Saturday from 8;30am to 4pm. Admission prices are £12.50 adults, £11.50 seniors, £9.50 students and £4.50 children. Tours are offered of the Cathedral and Crypt for an additional fee. During the summer of 2010, free audio guides will be included in the price of admission. These guides are available in 10 languages (French, German, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Japanese, Russian, Portuguese, Korean and Mandarin Chinese), as well as BSL.