Monday evening we had a very special fireside at the center. George Chittock, the president of the Hyde Park Stake, came to speak to us about his experience as a young boy living in London during World War II and the Blitz.
The Blitz was 76 consecutive nights of wave after wave of German bombs dropped in London. President Chittock, like many other Londoners, spent every night in a small bomb shelter behind their house. Since these were just deep holes in the dirt, covered with a metal roof, they were usually standing in a few inches of water and there was always the risk that if a bomb landed too close, you would be helplessly buried. I can’t imagine what that must have been like, listening to those planes flying overhead all night! He also talked about the rationing that every Londoner had to endure during the war. For example, one person was given one egg every two months. Each person was given a small, fun-sized piece of chocolate once a week.
These were not easy times in London. Conditions were miserable, many homes were destroyed, and it was a constant struggle to protect the precious monuments in the city. I’m amazes me to see the people’s resiliency! Even after 76 straight nights of continual bombing, they continued to fight.
St. Paul's during the Blitz
During the fireside, I couldn’t help but think back to when Brother Klaus Lassig, our family’s home teacher, told us about his experiences as a young boy in Germany. He told us about the nightly bombings, bomb shelters, and being hungry. There are so many similarities between the two stories, yet they were on opposite sides. There were so many victims in this war! It’s sobering to think of the damage that a few evil men can do.
Tuesday afternoon our group had High Tea at Kensington Palace. How English is that?! It was so fun – we all dressed up, so it felt like a grown-up tea party! We sipped HERBAL tea (hello, it’s BYU) and ate delicious cucumber sandwiches and scones with jam and clotted cream. I wonder what our waiters thought about our group – 45 adults who had no idea what they were doing with the tea bags. (As a side note, yahoo.com told me this week that Will and Kate are planning on moving into Kensington Palace (the former home of Princess Diana). Since Kensington Palace is literally down the street from 27 Palace Court, Will and Kate and I are practically neighbors!)
That night everyone went to see The Mousetrap, the longest running play in London. It’s an Agatha Christie murder mystery that has played every night for the last 59 years. I went in to the play with zero expectations, and was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it! It’s a very entertaining whodunit that keeps you guessing up until the last moment. At intermission, we all guessed who we thought the murderer was, and not to brag or anything, but I totally guessed right! Here’s my secret tip for guessing who the murderer is in a mystery: think of the least likely person it would be, and that’s who it is.
Wednesday, everyone woke up bright and early to make the two-hour trek out to the London temple. And it was completely worth the journey! Every temple is just a little different, inside and out, so it’s fun to have a new experience. No matter where you are though, the Spirit in the temple is the same. It was so nice to have those quiet two hours.
The missionaries in my ward told me on Sunday that the London South missionaries were all going to be at the temple on Wednesday too, so I was on the lookout for Elder Folkerson and Elder White! No luck, though. The missionaries were starting to gather in the visiting center when we got there, but those two weren’t there yet.
Thursday night we went to a cricket match! Cricket is somewhat comparable to baseball – except even more boring (if that’s possible :) ). Just kidding, I had a lot of fun! It all felt very English. 90% of the people there were men dressed in their business suits. Classiest sports event I’ve ever been to.
Here are the basics of cricket (I’m leaving out a lot of rules!): The bowler (pitcher) is trying to knock off the wicket, which is a stick balanced on three poles. To do so, however, he has to get the ball past the batter. The batter protects the wicket, and also bats the ball away so that he can run and switch places with his teammate (another batter who stands opposite him) as many times as possible before the ball is thrown back. Every time they switch places they get a point. If they bat the ball outside the white lines, they get four points. The bowling team will try and throw the ball back so they can knock off the wicket before the runners get back. There are only two innings in cricket – each team bats and bowls only once. I found that this reeeally brings down the suspense. Basically the first batting team just tries to rack up as many points as possible, and then the last batting team does the same, hoping they catch up/get more than the other team. Since there can be over 150 points in an inning, it’s really difficult to see if a team is behind, ahead, or making a dramatic comeback.
That probably makes no sense to anyone who hasn’t seen cricket in action before, but I think I do a better job explaining than the Brits! This is “Cricket: As explained to a Foreigner…” (As seen on a souvenir towel in the gift shop):
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side thats been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have been out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game!
So that clear it all up for you? Anyway, I had a really good time at the match – even though it was more because of the experience and the atmosphere than the actual game. I think I’ll remember the cheerleaders more than anything else - hands down the worst dancers I’ve ever seen in my life.
On Friday our group finally had our much-anticipated tour of the Tower of the London, the former castle turned prison, and the sight of many high-profile executions. The highlight of this visit was definitely the crown jewels – which have been kept at the Tower since the 1200s. (Yes, they kept the crown jewels and the criminals in the same place for hundreds of years. Makes perfect sense.) So many jewels! I can’t even fathom how many millions of dollars were in that room with me. My favorite was the scepter, which holds the Great Star of Africa, a 530-carat diamond.
After the Tower of London, we walked across the Tower Bridge over to Borough Market for one last lunch there. It was just as delicious as the last time we ate there! After this, we went to finish our tenth and final walk for the London walks class (Soho to Trafalgar Square). However, what had once been a sunny day had turned rainy and windy in the twenty minutes we were on the Tube. The incredible weather we have enjoyed throughout our trip has lulled me into a false sense of security - I had left the center that morning without a jacket, despite Hillary’s advice to grab one. Also, after carrying around my umbrella in my bag for weeks without using it, I had taken it out just a few days before. (The irony!) We wanted to get the walk over with, though, so I suffered through it! I have never been so happy to be done with a walk.
On Friday we also visited the Saatchi Gallery, the last museum we needed to visit for the Fine Arts class. This museum displays contemporary art, which can often be strange, unsettling, and seemingly pointless, and requires a lot of patience and thought in order to figure out its interpretation. It’s exactly the kind of art I would have hated a few months ago. But I actually had a really good experience here! I discovered how much I’ve learned about appreciating art as I discussed the pieces with Alison and Hillary. It’s so easy to write something off just because it isn’t pretty, but sometimes you just need to take the time to look a little deeper in order to find something’s beauty! Just because something’s different doesn’t mean it doesn’t have value. (Mom and Dad: this paragraph is proof that I’m learning things and not just playing over here! :) )
We had our final group tour on Saturday morning, and it was a good one to end on: Houses of Parliament. After admiring the building so much from the outside, it was really fun to be able to see it on the inside. It was so interesting to learn a little bit more about British government and compare it to our own! The British have so much history and tradition – it just isn’t the same in the U.S. It’s also interesting to see how the royalty fits in. I have to admit, the House of Lords and the House of Commons (where Parliament meets) are smaller than I would have expected. I have no idea how they fit 600 people in there!
After the tour, we went up to Camden Market for lunch and one last visit. I had a delicious Turkish wrap and the best doughnut ever. Also, we had a little bit more time during this visit, so we got to look around all of the stalls. There are so many fun, unique things to buy, and it’s all so cheap! I had such a good time looking at everything. I was amazed by how huge Camden is! We barely even scratched the surface last time. You would turn down an alley, thinking you were almost at the end, and it would open up to a whole new square full of stalls to explore. Markets are definitely one thing I am going to miss about London!
After all of this, we still had a little bit of afternoon left, so we went to see the Special Collections at the British Library. Here they have original works by Shakespeare, Jane Austen, and Da Vinci, music by Handel and Schubert, and handwritten lyrics by the Beatles. They also have a Gutenberg Bible and a copy of the Magna Carta.
I can’t believe I only have three more days! I know it’s going to be hard to leave, but I can’t wait to finally be home!
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