Woke up at an hour uncommon for my summer break self. I thought we were very fast about getting dressed and having our luggage on the bus before the 7:00 deadline, but we were by no means the first in line for breakfast even in our rush. Speaking of breakfast, it was incredible. We breakfasted (I love that word) on scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon (which is like very salty ham--and delicious!) yogurt, cereal, baguettes, croissants, jam, and coffee or tea. Being the traditionalist of the pair, Sara stuck with her English tea while I tried the coffee. Let me say that nothing I ingested in England was less than fantastic. People often travel to Paris for the fine dining, but my simple (breads and meats!) tastes were very much satisfied right there in London.
Due to our limited time in London, it was decided that only one of two "attractions" could be properly toured that day. We were to choose between Westminster Abbey and the Tower. A rather short discussion over the remnants of breakfast had the majority of us settled on Westminster. (Sara and Angie were of the same mind as me and that's all that really mattered. Well, that and someone willing to get us there and back.) Helen guided us on the comparatively short walk to the Tube which spit us out at Westminster Station, from whence we walked some more towards the Abbey, enjoying the gorgeous structures of London town, and me doing my best to capture the images of native Brits as we passed them by.
As we neared the Abbey, my excitement began to grow. I felt the significance of the place as we approached. In my journal during the plane ride home I wrote:
We've seen so many churches, chapels, and cathedrals by now that most have blended in my memory as one dark blur of icons and columns. So when one of them stands out, it's special. One is Westminster Abbey. Beautiful stony place with vines growing outside, and gorgeous Gothic architecture.
Before going inside, we were instructed to put our cameras away and were handed "secret sect" pins to wear as a group. (That is not what they were officially called, but what of it?) As historical as the site was, I couldn't help feeling like a first year student at Hogwarts. The well tended lawn we viewed from the hall we waited in was reminiscent of a Quidditch practice field, and the robed woman who let us in could have easily passed for a young Tonks or Madame Hooch. That wonderful courtyard made me long to live there as a groundskeepers daughter in a little room in the abbey like Cosette in Les Miserables. Yes, I realize that's French literature and not British, but I can dream. Of all the tourists there that day, I must say Sara was looking the most like she belonged there.
As for myself, the camera was not so kind in capturing the essence of Westminster, and I was forced to edit for the sake of a more interesting picture.
There is gold everywhere, and vivid colors in banners and tapestries, but the best part is seeing so many tombs of people who figured in history. Not just of the prominent names, but of those honored for their sacrifices and contribution to our sister country. A header of one such resting place read:
An unknown fallen soldier
He is buried here because he has done honor to God and his home.
I found the resting places of recognizable figures (William Wilberforce, Edward the Confessor, Henry V, Queen Elizabeth, Mary Queen of Scots, Lewis Carroll, Lord Byron, George Eliot) and took down names in a notebook for the sole reason of liking the way they sounded, whether I remembered their significance to history or not. (Edward Hyde, Edward Lear, Anthony Trollope)
After passing through The Poet's Corner, The High Altar, and the tomb of Edward the Confessor, (I admit to having visions of a male Confessor from the Legend of the Seeker series) I found my favorite room to gawk at. It's called The Lady Chapel, right beyond which is the Royal Air Force Chapel. Although part of me is sad I didn't get to capture the magnificence of it with my own camera, it allowed me to absorb everything I saw without hastily fiddling with buttons to get a good shot.
And what I saw of The Lady Chapel was gorgeous.
...there were many flags, impressive chairs on either side like an assembly room or court; carvings of animals, coats of arms, and the most magnificent ceiling.
As the Westminster site says, "The outstanding feature of the chapel is the spectacular fan-vaulted roof with its carved pendants." Behold it below.
Coming just around the tomb of Henry VII and his queen Elizabeth of York, the bells tolled and a booming voice hushed the lot of us and prayed. It felt... somehow... perfect to be in Westminster Abbey with a British accented authority figure joining everyone in prayer. It was something I'm not likely to forget.
The windows and stained glass are breathtaking, but the doors with their wooden old-world feel and intriguing locks are marvelous as well.
I bought my first traveling trinkets in the Westminster gift shop. Postcards for myself--but to send to others, of course--and for mother, a "Rulers of England" ruler. :) No stamps, though. I believe my train of thought was that I should get postcards in England, stamps in France, and mail the postcards from Italy.
From Westminster we walked some streets (note my gift for geography) to make our path toward the bus that would bring us to the Tower of London. Along the way, I was relentless with my camera. I did so want to capture the wonders of London from my own (little) point of view!
Helen took the time while we waited for a bus (one that never came, and if it did, it was full; we had to walk on a stretch further before boarding) to continue her lesson in architectural differences during certain historical periods. She called upon the men-folk in our group to demonstrate the levels of solidity in flat roofs, arches, and the winner, flying buttresses.
And on we walked...
A word--actually quite a few--about the EF Tours backpack:
These brightly colored backpacks were given to us travelers by the wonderful EF Tours (Hullo, product placement!) for using them as our tour company of choice. They were fantastic for spotting a fellow traveler in a sea of people. Unfortunately for the backpacks, my closest friends and I preferred blending in with the natives of each country as best we could, and we staunchly refused to be seen with one of those garish backpacks anywhere on our bodies. We all had our necessary strap bags, of course, but they were not so conspicuous, nor could they be spotted from space. ;) Example of my full traveler's attire shown here, in a photograph I stole from bestest friend...
We arrived at the bus stop--the real one this time--and had time to stand about and exercise our cameras while Helen worked out how her group was going to get aboard. I documented the looks of a real bus ticket which were not the ones we ended up using. So I'm quite glad I took the picture.
And before we knew it, we were ushered onto the bus and urged to climb, climb, climb up to the top section where everything was wonderful!
The one to get us to the Tower was quite a special person in our tales of traveling. Rob Marks of the Big Bus Company kept us well informed and entertained during our lovely double-decker tour of London. I also decided to marry him.One does not travel to London on their maiden voyage across countries without deciding on a future husband to come back to.
The passion he had for his city was incontestable as he described monuments and buildings as though they were each a testament to something wonderful in the past, and not just archaic structures with outdated significance. We were told about the dragons whose positions declare whether you're coming into London or out of it while we came and went ourselves. We heard the story of brave souls who were heartened by the seeming indestructibility of St. Paul's Cathedral. We were shown the best place to take a picture of the clock tower as a backdrop of the Eye--although I admit, my favorite shot of the Eye was from a more unique point of view.
Rob Marks is the new love of my life. (Yes, I have a lot of those.) He was very passionate about his homeland, especially in recounting the story of St. Paul's under fire. When Hitler invaded, he told his men, "If you can destroy St. Paul's, you will break the heart of this city." And they could not. For twelve straight days the British volunteers kept the Germans at bay.
Besides the great history, Rob kept us laughing with his friendly humor, and analogies between marriage and the local guide/tourist relationship. Apparently, he was apt to bashing his head against the floor of the bus if not duly encouraged, which was, "unreal."
I have lots of pictures of him. I also got a shot of Fleet Street as we passed!
We saw the Eye but didn't have time or enough people interested to go on it. Only mildly disappointed. Passed over Tower Bridge, which--little known fact--is actually more eye-catching than London Bridge.
We all gathered at the Tower for a half hour and had lunch. Fish and chips is fantastic! I never dreamed I'd even like fish, but I loved it! I had ice cream, too. I bought it late, so Sara had to be extra encouraging about my finishing it before we piled back onto the bus.
I don't remember walking to the bus, or the ride to the station. My memory recalls a general panic; is that my luggage...? do I see my bag...? don't lose sight of Sara...! follow that line to wherever it's going...! am I here...? did we make it...? sit down and take pictures...! ope... still moving... find food vendor... don't lose luggage... follow line again... and so on and so forth. In my mind we went straight from the Tower of London to sitting in the Eurostar station--waiting.
