What a day! Today was literally amazing. I know that I have used this word more than any other in my blog, but it was truly “incredible.” There are so many words to describe my experiences here, but somehow I am always drawn back to “incredible.” And that it is.
Today I got an earlier start than planned as Roger called me at 8:45 to tell me he was going to get tickets for King Lear. It was fine, though, because I enjoy talking to Roger and I was delighted to hear that he was going to pick up the tickets for us, saving us a trip to the Globe. We arranged a meeting time for the theatre, and I lay back down. I’m not sure if I went back to sleep or not, but in about an hour I got up and got ready. We left shortly after eleven and took the tube to St. James’ Park. Today was an absolutely gorgeous day. The temperature was in the sixties, the sun was shining brilliantly, and EVERYONE was out. The park was full of families, couples, runners, children, and tourists. It was still a great park, and one I had yet to really explore.
We came out of St. James’ Park and went to Buckingham Palace to the Royal Mews. This is where all of the State Carriages and cars used to transport the royal family are kept. We got to see several carriages, including the Golden Carriage that has carried the sovereign for over 250 years. We also learned that the Queen takes a great interest in her horses and gives each one of them a name. (There were probably 30 or so).
We left the Mews and walked through the Green Park to the tube. At this point I was about to break a sweat and decided that I was going to have to ditch the denim jacket. I am the only person in London with a denim jacket, by the way. It’s okay—I wear it proudly. However, on this day, the sun was coming through the jacket and making me hot, so I took it off. Anyways, that is entirely irrelevant to the rest of my day. We got on the tube at Green Park and rode to Baker Street where we walked to Regent’s Park. I’ve read that 1/3 of London is grass, and I believe it. There are so many great parks for it to be such a huge city! The Regent’s Park was beautiful too, and there were many people there as well. We had lunch at the Garden Café in the center of the park, walked around exploring and taking pictures, and then got back on the tube and took it to High Street Kensington.
On High Street, Gena, Claire, and Hayley were going to go to H&M, and I decided to go on to Kensington Gardens and meet Hayley there afterward. One problem: on the way to the park I passed H&M and changed my mind. Let’s just say I never made it to the park. We stayed at H&M until it was time to get back to the house in time to change for the play, grab a very quick dinner, and leave to meet Roger.
We went to the Globe theatre and got in line for the Groundling section. Tickets are just 5 pounds for groundlings, but you have to stand the whole time. That's the way the poorest people would have done it in Shakespeare's day, and likewise, it is the way the college students do it today! It was really neat. Grandmother had given me some study material on Lear, so while we were waiting, we were all reading up on the characters and plot summary. A few of the others in line read them, as well, so we made some new friends.
The play was great. It was a bloody story, and everything was so realistic. Of course I never attended an actual Shakespearean drama at the real Globe, but I imagine this was very authentic. They played the music on old instruments and the costumes were very old looking. It was a great experience, and I am so glad I went! After the play is over, we went to Cafe Forum with our new friends-- two American study abroad students who had been in Jerusalem for the semester. It was cool "showing" people around. It's become clear to me over the past few days how comfortable I have become in London and how well I have gotten to know the city in the short time that I have been here. I can't believe I will be leaving so soon.
TEN DAYS AND COUNTING...
