Holy moly. This isn't high tourist season? It is quite busy and teeming with folks around every corner. When did I become less than keen on crowds??
On Saturday we ventured down to the Eye. The large ferris wheelt hat was construced for the Olympics, yet has becomea part of the skyline. Anyways, some of you may know that I enjoy heights and ferris wheels. England is compelling-ly gracious regarding those in wheelchairs, so we were wisked to the front of the 'Que'. The wheel only stops when operating for the ramp into the little egg cells. It might not have been as big of a hit before digital photography.It is made for that adventure.
You might notice the amazing sunny and clear photos. This is a consistent pattern for me lately. I am thinking about letting myself out for blessings towards sunny weather..so far this year I have found sunny and temperate in San Francisco, Seattle and now London. I actually managed to achieve a spot of sunburn on Saturday.
We had planned to go to St. Paul's however it was closed for a service commemorating the anniversary of the CoE ordination of women to the priesthood. Hmm. Another time.
We headed up to the Camden Market, which as quite the crowd of vendors and folks out for the sunny day. We might of gotten a bit lost for a moment on the way back, but made it back to the station. Which was good because at the very same moment an owl flew by with my letter for admittance to Hogwarts. A few years late, but I shall not complain. Truth be told the half-cart is not near platform 9 at all, it might be adjacent to the toilets instead. It is free for you to take your own photo, they have an assortment of house scarves (most choose Gryfndor) and a fella whose job it is to hold and wave the scarf. Actually quite worth the wait in line (frequently much longer than my wait).
Sunday morning began with a lovely church service in a thousand year old congregation (St. Bene't's, which is short for Benedict), which makes the 150 of Walla Walla seem like a drop in the bucket. It greatly resembles the Cathedral nave in Albuquerque. The service was both full and friendly.
Then I spent parts of the day wandering through the shopping district. In some ways the grocer was the most intriguing part, I could have studied the packages and choices for much longer than I did.
The evening was completed by Evensong at Pembroke College and then dinner. At long tables in a great hall, with a head table. And dress robes on students and staff. And talking portraits (just kidding). A lovely dinner with nice students and a fine setting.
Somewhere in the imagination of my heart I was expecting more of an 'otherness'. It is of course unlike anything in my experience, yet it is still not as intensely different as I expected. A daily journey of discovery. Discovery of places and ways, but also of an alternate use of language to share information. I see the words, I can read them, but it may take a ssecond to realize what the instruction intends. I also find myself using many localisms, it must be in the water. Crisps and loo and blokes. Or perhaps it is all that Masterpiece and novel reading that has such phrases falling out of my lips.
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