Today is Tuesday. Bill, Caroline and I tour Westminster Abbey.
I think Westminster is top on Bill's list. I have been once, Caroline twice. Even then, Westminster Abbey is enjoyed.
A little longer underground ride than our previous visit. Hammersmith section is different than Notting Hill and Keningston/Chelsea area. Those city areas are gentrified. Hammersmith is in the process. London is unbelievable expensive, crowded and difficult. I like the city a lot as a visitation for a short duration.
We cross the street carefully to a waiting line. There is a church service going on and entry is delayed. A short wait, we enter the "q" (not certain, if it is "Q" or "q" or queue) for tickets.
Westminster Abbey has changed. Stephen Hawking's ashes are now buried next to Newton and Darwin. Things have not changed, Mary I still lies under Elizabeth I. All remains as it should be.
We miss so much. Jeremy Irons remains assured on the hand held audio tour. He is authoritative, but lost. The exhibit signs are small and unobtrusive. Invisible was the goal and achieved.
You are forever looking for station 9 and can only find Station 14 the tomb of Edward the Confessor. I wanted to see Livingstone (his heart is in Zambia). There are over 3,300 burials or memorials in Westminster. The last monarch buried is George II.
Again, I am reminded that preparation the night before solves a great deal of the confusion. Download maps or take a screen shot - works.
The tour ends at Poets' Corner. I finish slightly sooner than Caroline and Bill. I fall into conversation with one of the service people. She is new to the job - only a few weeks. She is a very intelligent young lady. She is excited about this opportunity with a degree in Art. Like another young person I met working in a coffee shop who has a University degree in bio-something, these young people are excited and confident about their future. I know I would hire them.
We walk to Trafalgar Square along St James Park. We purchase sandwiches at Pret a Manger and picnic on the steps of the National Gallery of Art. It is sunny and warm. The steps are full of families and students. The neon pink lion is still there.
Finishing, we cross again to the edge of St James Park and cross the parade grounds for Queen's Household Guard. On the way to lunch, the guard had two dismounted guards at the front gate. The horses were remarkable. Children and adults crowding them. petting and taking photos. The horses remained calm. Very impressive.
As we walk up to the Churchill War Rooms, we are surprised by the length of the line. Apparently, there is a rush for touring the museum.
A young museum employee tells us and others that it will an hour from this point. He seems confident.
I decide that I need to find a toilet. With an hour wait, I have expectations that I can find a men's toilet within an hour. I am wrong. A quarter of mile, I find a men's public toilet. There is a turnstile and a charge of 50 schillings. The turnstile neither makes change nor accepts credit card. I now have to enter the Underground Station and purchase a coke to get the correct amount.
As I enter washroom, there are five young men in front of me. The washroom smells. It is old, dirty and one does not linger. On the way out, the turnstile does not turn and I do not wait. I know what do you expect for 50 pence.
I am now forty minutes into what should have a ten minute sojourn.
There is no line. Caroline and Bill are waiting for me at the entrance. They have stepped out of line twice waiting for me. Apparently, the young man was wrong. It was a twenty minute line.
Caroline and Bill are gracious. Their patience is thinner when although at the front of the line, it takes another five minutes for us to enter - as VIP's and advance ticket holders have preference.
Of course, the washrooms are handy and immaculate.
The Churchill War Rooms are better known now because of recent movies "Dunkirk" and "Darkest Hour'. They have improved the exhibits and the experience. The free hand held self guide tour is excellent.
The big chance is that the portion of the tour that focuses on Churchill's life and career is now in the middle instead of the end of the exhibit.
It makes a little more sense - and, I am sure that the reason is to assure that the public learn more about the man than simply look at rooms.
The exhibit remains honest about Churchill. Churchill is a complex person. As I said before, in this period of history, his weaknesses were his strength. His greatest strength was the ability to fail and rise again.
The staff of the War Rooms were remarkable. Difficult living conditions. I am sure that there was pettiness, harassment and discrimination. Brutality. Love. Hate. Injustice. All suffered in a common cause to defeat an evil that would have consumed and destroyed a world that might be better.
Caroline and I decide that Bill needs to enjoy Honest Burger. Caroline finds that there is an Honest Burger near the Hammersmith Station - one stop past our station. It is definitely within walking distance of the apartment.
As we exit the station, Caroline has this great app that works off Google Map without using an Internet connection. We are all limited to 512 MB for 30 days. We are constantly looking for WIFI.
Honest Burger is around the corner in a small two story building with the kitchen. I doubt think Bill understands the attraction - it is a very good burger, but...
Caroline orders a cocktail. Bill and I order a local beer. My burger is a spicy and very good. Bill orders an Honest Burger.
The waitress is not impressed that we are from the US and made a special trip to Honest Burger. I think it has to do with the stairs and a crowded room and only two servers.
We finish. Caroline has ordered takeaway for Betty. We begin our walk back to the apartment. There is still evening light. We know the way well. As it gets darker, we can look into living rooms. The television is on. The lights are on. Apparently, everyone feels safe. Pubs, Coffee shops and ethnic restaurants are the scenery.
At the apartment, I repeat my ritual -wallet, phone, glasses and money.
Britain changed the 5 and 10 Pound Notes - They are plastic and smaller. The problem is that they are slippery and can come out of your pockets. I have to be careful. Also, the feel in your pocket is similar to receipt paper. So you think that five pound note is safe - until you pull out a slick paper receipt. Best advice - all paper money in wallet immediately.
Tomorrow is British Museum.
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