There's No Place Like London

This will be a long one. Bare with me. Lots to write about. (Author's note: Since I enjoy organizing, I have done so to this blog.)

Kate, Anna, and I had our first official European mini-break (American translation: "long weekend") this weekend. I asked for a holiday (American translation: a "day off from work") on Friday and on Monday morning so that we could fly into London on Thursday 23 October and fly back on Monday 27 October.

Thursday 23 October

Tired, weary, and extremely excited, we arrived at our hostel with just enough time to make our beds and to perform the necessary preparing for sleep rituals before hitting the sack.

Friday 24 October

• Tower of London: Since we pay UK taxes, we were able to make a "Gift Aid Donation" (the taxes go back to the Tower of London instead of to the government), earning us unlimited free entry to the Tower for a year. (Anyone interested in going to the Tower?) We took a guided tour led by a retired Beef Eater who actually lives inside the fortress. William the Conqueror built the first structure in 1066, and kings throughout the ages have built additions to make the fortress stronger and more impenetrable. While the Tower is still one of the official palaces of the English monarch, Elizabeth does not lay her head to rest inside these walls. Instead, the buildings have been converted to museums. You have to get there early to avoid the long line at the crown jewels exhibit; it’s worth the early morning to see the 2 largest uncut diamonds in the world! The Tower was also the site for private executions; if you were a friend of the monarch-in-power (ie: Henry VIII's 2^nd wife, Anne Boelyn), you may have been extended the privilege of not being executed in front of a crowd that paid to see your spilled blood. I must also admit that I cast a vote for thinking Richard III killed his 2 young nephews. (I’m a Shakespeare dork; I’ll admit it.)

• Walking Tour: The same company who gives the really good walking tour in Edinburgh also has a walking tour in London, so we caught the afternoon one. We started outside the Tower of London; viewed the Tower Bridge and the London Bridge; heard about the great fire in 1666; saw The Monument, erected as 1) a symbol of London’s ability to rise again after the fire’s destruction and 2) a warning to the Catholics who were surely the cause of the massacre; learned about the Knights Templar and saw their church; and ended with a trip to the WW2 bomb-damaged RAF church.
• China Town: We walked to SoHo for a family-style dinner at The Crispy Duck Chinese restaurant. Yum! On our walk there, an old black-and-white movie was playing in Trafalgar Square. How picturesque!

Saturday 25 October

• National Portrait Gallery: The best ₤11 I spent was to see the Annie Liebowitz exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery. Seeing her work here and there in magazines and hearing her on talk shows in no way does justice to her talent. I got to see her exhibit as she designed it, complete with photographs of Nicole Kidman, Brad Pitt, Jamie Fox, Robert Dinero, Annie’s family (mom, dad, sisters, nieces, and children), and the documentation of Annie Liebowitz’s best friend’s battle with cancer and death. I couldn’t have cared less about the stale photographs of England’s royalty of past.
• Tate Museum of Modern Art: I can now claim to have seen original works by Monet, Picasso, and Pollock, as well as a disturbing video by Paul McCartney. The main exhibit was a 4-story spider standing over 25-30 metal frame bunk-beds sprinkled with political thought books. Explain that one to me. My favorite part about this museum was leaving it. I appreciate modern art’s right to exist, but I appreciate it more easily while not trapped in a 5-story building full to the brim of such artwork.
• The Millennium Bridge (“Wobbly Bridge”): Along with Bridget Jones, we walked on it. Alas, it did not wobble
• Avenue Q: The second best purchase of the trip was a ticket to see Avenue Q in the West End. A personal review: an incredibly witty and entertaining musical not for the young or the easily offended; two thumbs up!
• Picadilly Circus- We walked through Picadilly Circus after the show to see the sights and lights at night.

Sunday 26 October

There was an NFL game in Lodon on Sunday: the Saints v. the Chargers. I still don’t fully understand why two American football teams flew across the pond to play each other, but the Brits decked out in baggy jerseys seemed to appreciate it…

• St. Paul’s Cathedral- We missed the notice to change our clocks back Saturday night, so when we thought we were rushed on our way into the city, we really had an extra hour to kill. After breakfast at the neighboring Starbucks, we went to worship at St. Paul’s, the only Anglican cathedral. History note: After the great fire, architect Sir Christopher Wren designed a new cathedral and a completely new layout for the city reminiscent of Paris. The designs were turned down by King Charles II because it was too Catholic. Wren redesigned a simple church and began to build. In the process, Wren got permission to make alterations to the cathedral, alterations that changed a simple Anglican church into the most beautiful building in the city. King James did not realize the drastic changes until travelling around the city one day. Disgusted, he ordered the cathedral to be demolished; as fate would have it, James lost his crown before his command was carried out.
• Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and Buckingham Palace: We saw them and took pictures.
• Lunch with Lynn: Kate’s step-sister, Lynn, and her family live in London, and we met them for lunch in trendy Camden. They showed us around my new favorite bit of London, walked us through the market and down to the Loch. They also took us for ice cream at the best ice cream parlor this side of the Atlantic Ocean. Kate, Anna, and I liked Camden so much, we I roamed the streets all afternoon.
• Westminster Abbey: When we visited the Abbey earlier in the day, we saw there was an organ concert that evening. We came back to attend the concert as a peaceful closure to three busy days in London. Note to all travelers: Learn to play the game. Many churches in Europe charge entry; while paying an entry fee is never top on a backpacker’s wish list, these churches and cathedrals really are worth a viewing. The solution is to join worship services on Sunday. You get a little sight-seeing and a little Jesus all in one.

Monday 27 October

We set our alarms for 3am so that we could leave our hostel by 3:25am to be at the bus stop by 3:50 am for the 4:00am bus to take us to the airport. I finished off today with a half-day at work. I’m fighting to keep my eyes open now.

London Backpackers Hostel

From experience at Brodie's Backpacking Hostel in Edinburgh, we learned that large co-ed dorms are the cheapest and are rather tolerable, so our room at London Backpackers was of such description. The room was choc-a-puck with 5 3-tiered bunk beds, but since we beat the weekend rush, these 3 lucky American girls all called dibs on bottom bunks. Our fifteen European backpackers smelled something fierce, leaving us gasping for fresh air by the time our alarms went off in the mornings. Stench aside,the hostel was very large and very nice. The kitchen was always crowded with a fun crowd and the internet was free (if you were willing to stand in a long line to use it). There were board games in the kitchen as well. We took advantage of Trivial Pursuit every night (oh the London night life…My co-workers did give me a hard time for not “going out” at night); our Genus Edition Trivial Pursuit of choice was of the British Persuasion, and answers to questions involved East and West Germany as well as the USSR. Entertaining.

Friday is my last day at the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations. I will be excited to start a new job (hopefully very soon), but I will be very sad to leave my SCVO friends.

Cheers.