November 11

Today was Armistice Day to commemorate and remember those who have given their lives in past wars. At 11 o'clock the whole country had a two minute moment of silence. We were at Hampton Court and everything was shut down and everyone gathered in the courtyard and together we remembered those who gave their lives for liberty and the freedom of many nations. I realized as I stood there and reflected, two minutes is really not that long of time but in America we only do a one minute moment of silence. I do not think that this fully does justice for the occasions.

What is it with America and our failure to remember history? Last September 11th I remember that the Jerusalem Center students had to be reminded by our Israeli Hebrew professor to take a minute and think of those who lost their lives. In High school I always thought Veteran's Day was important but it was not until the spirit of Great Britain was shown to me, being displayed through poppies, that I felt guilty for my lack of enthusiasm and remembrance. For those who are not aware, poppies are Great Britain's national symbol for the fallen veterans and for any amount of a donation you can get a poppy pin. For the whole first part of the month of November and even in October you could see poppies all around London and Great Britain. This gesture is quite touching when you see the great unifying affect it has on the people of England. I just wanted to express my appreciation for those who have died for our freedoms and to say that I am proud to be wearing a poppy today.

Similarities Betwixt England and New England

• Remembrance of a certain Tea Party
• The colorful doors on houses
• Our unique way of saying names
• Peabody, Leicester, Worcester, et cetera
• Beautiful overgrown cemeteries with gravestones dating to the 1700s
• A great history of emigration and immigration
• Liverpool as a religious port of significance, the Mayflower as a vessel for my ancestors
• A period of darker history in connection with witch trials
• Lancaster, England and Salem, Massachusetts
• The industry and exploitation of mill workers and their importance in economy
• Leaves changing colors so brilliantly in Autumn and the general feeling of Fall
• And so on…

The Churches of Spain

Sagrada Familia

This is the craziest church I have seen. Started in 1882 it has been in progress for 127 years and is not even projected to be completed until 2026. Every angle of the Church seems to be in a different style. There is the more modern currently being built style that seems completely out of place with even different color building materials, the classic Cathedral gothic style, a more grotto look, and more. It was interesting to walk around and see the salamanders and frogs in the place of gargoyles on one side.

Example of the crazy facade

Constant Construction

Esglesia Sant Pere de les Puel.les

This small church had a much warmer feel than grand Cathedrals which I really appreciated. The smell of incense while present was a duller candle smell which was also a nice change. One thing that I thought was interesting was that there were timelines along the walls which hit the highlights of world events - political, social, et cetera - by Pope. It is a Catholic Church but very sedate and minimalistic. There was a large metal statue of Peter in the center of the church with smaller frescos of Christ on either side which I thought was interesting.

The Church of the San Francis of Sales

This was a gothic style Catholic church that we wandered into. Although the gothic style architecture was similar to the gothic style of England, the church was quite different. Because there was no great political movement to destroy original decoration the original ornamentation was there and very grand. There was a lot of ornate tiling on the floor and the whole church was decorated with geometric patterns (the Muslim moor influence?). There was a fresco'd angel which was portrayed very fairy-like and palm trees were present behind Jesus. The music in the church was very Spanish and the whole church felt very Mediterranean.

The War Cabinet Rooms and the Churchill Museum

So I had been excited about this museum even since before I came to London because Jen Thomas had recommended it as one of her favourite things. The War Cabinet Rooms was the area underneath the City of London that during WWII controlled basically the Prime Minister’s cabinet as well as most of the government and war effort headquarters. I loved hearing the stories of Churchill butting heads with his cabinet but still respecting their opinions and not running a dictatorship.

My favourite area was the loo that always said “occupied” and people just believed that it was a special loo for the Prime Minister but rather it was a secret telephone room. Then we went to the Churchill Museum and I learned all sorts of interesting things about Winston Churchill that I had never known. It was a very multimedia exhibit and I enjoyed learning more about the man behind all those powerful and great words. Definitely gave me a desire to read a biography on him.

Stratford-upon-Avon

The Fool from As You Like It

Being in Stratford-upon-Avon I was given an opportunity to understand Shakespeare’s context better and thus understand his plays better.

Our first stop was Mary Arden’s farm and it was the first time that I made the connection between As You Like It’s Forest of Arden and his mother’s maiden name. He must have loved her very much to name such a significant setting based upon her. The farm was very spacious and a good deal nicer than some of the farmers I have been to in my life. Mary Arden was definitely from that middle class gentry. Attached to her farm was the PALMER FARM. My relatives owned it? I loved walking around because I could sense the approaching Autumn season and I love it!


Next we went to Anne Hathaway’s house which is an original thatched-roof, half-timbered house so that was neat to see but honestly I was a little disappointed with the actual house as it was just ridden with lore concerning Shakespeare and not actual fact. The grounds were pretty extensive.

Finally before heading off to the Courtyard Theatre to catch a viewing of The Winter’s Tale we went to Shakespeare’s birthplace. My comment on that was wow, that is a lot of kids in not a lot of space!

Westminster Abbey

We were given the money and the assignment to go to Westminster on our own and so this Friday Melissa and I left to go (blissfully at our own pace) through the famed Cathedral. Sneakily before I realized that I could not take photos I snapped a few of the Cathedral so haha beat that guards!

Anyway, the voice of our narration was the actor who played Scar in Disney’s The Lion King so it was a little distracting at first and hard to get over the sinister nature of his character but do not worry, I was able to work through it. I was most excited to see Poet’s Corner so I am ashamed to say that I went through the rest of the church not on cruise mode but faster than maybe appropriate for such a hallowed hall. I definitely want to go back to Evensong some Sunday and enjoy the acoustics and spirit there.

I was surprised with all the political figures and Kings and Queens that had been buried there but then again it is part of the political tradition of the Kingdom so I understand. Poet’s Corner was amazing and I loved seeing all my favourite poets and writers but my favourite in the entire Cathedral was the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from 1920 and reading the inscription. Secondly, I thought it was interesting that the tomb of Elizabeth I was on top of Bloody Mary’s (next to innocent’s corner) with the inscription inferring that they followed Christ in their own way according to their consciences.

Seats of Power Walk

Melissa, Andy, and I went on this walk along the Thames and the district that houses England’s political power – Houses of Parliament, Cabinet War Rooms, et cetera. We walked along the Thames looking at every single statue in the Victoria Embankment Garden and I was impressed with the range of national heroes that they displayed.

The statues displayed the variety of English pride with war heroes, religious figures, social activists, and even a shout out to Psychology with John Stuart Mills! We continued on through the area and found many statues commemorating the women of WWII, cavalry, parachuters, and many other groups of people. I think it is a little scary to have all that power concentrated in one area – I am surprised that it was all not destroyed during the Blitz.