Waking up

Jet lag hit me Friday morning, but not how I would've expected it to. I popping out of bed at 5 in the morning, so there was plenty of time for me to get ready and start my day. Most of the museums didn't open until 10, so I decided I wanted to wander around a bit. I seem to have developed a knack for being in the right place at the right time. I started the day on the Thames, wandering around and peeking at the Eye of London, Big Ben, and Westminster Abby. The sun was out and the city was just starting to wake up, and it was great seeing everything bustle to life, granted most of the people were tourists.

Somehow I managed to jump on the tube and get lost. The tube system itself is incredibly convenient and well labelled, everything is color coded and arrows are plastered everywhere so that even a kindergardener could find his or her way around. I just had no idea where I wanted to go. After wandering some more, I stumbled onto another huge festival. Somehow I had managed to wander my way into the huge Canada Day celebration in Trafalgar square. I spent some time there, watching a street hockey tournament and other random events going on. Everyone was walking around with ice hockey jerseys and beer and there was even a huge old fashion "Wild Wild West" style wagon that sold curly fries. It was amusing to see how Canadians had a whole image to themselves and got me wondering on what America Day would be like.

After sitting in Trafalgar for a while I headed to the National Gallery and wandered the exhibits. To be honest, I am not a huge art person and while I appreciated the paintings, I didn't recognize any of them except for Van Eyck's Arnolfini Portrait. It was fun though.

Changing of the Guard

I continued to wander in search of the Buckingham Palace and ended up at White Hall just in time to see the changing of the Queen's Life Guards, guards in fancy uniforms and on horseback. The ceremony that goes into everything here is both intriguing and slightly ridiculous. I made my way towards Buckingham Palace and got distracted by what I thought was 76 trombones. Thinking that the changing of the guards was over by then, I decided to just follow the music and voila popped out right next to Buckingham Palace, where the Trumpeters were playing snippets of various songs. The plaza was packed with tourists waiting to see the Changing of the Guard. I squeezed my way to the front and was able to see them march in and out. Again, the ceremony... After the whole process was over, I sprawled out on the lawn in front of the palace and fell asleep in the sun.

When I woke up, I was slightly chilly and so naturally I headed to the Tube. The Tube here is air-conditioned at a few stops, but for the most part the tunnels are filled with warm air. At times it was a little too stuffy, but at that time I was cold, without a jacket, and in need of new scenery.

I wound up jumping off at South Kensington, a tube stop nearby a number of cool and free museums.
I spent next few hours in the Natural History Museum. In general, I prefer the New York Museum of Natural History, but London had a very interesting exhibit on the sexual behavior of animals.  I learned about sadomasochist snails and cannibal praying mantises. Another great part of the London Museum is a project they have is the Darwin Center's Cocoon.  The entire exhibit focuses on the life of researchers and takes you through the work that they do. In addition to being a exhibit, it also is a work place. Huge windows showed the offices and different lab places of people cataloging hundreds of species.

That night I met up with my friend Kevin from school. He's interning with RIBA in London and is one of the best tour guides I know. Everywhere we walked he would spout out facts about the statues, or the materials used, or basic history. It was excellent. He cooked us pasta at his apartment and then we went to the British Museum for a short bit and revisited Canada Day celebrations- now complete with live music by the Blue Rodeo. After that Kevin showed me around some of London's flashy night life.

A fellow stripe-head and kindred spirit at the Parade

Saturday and Sunday were both amazing days. Shirley had the weekend free so we were able to go to some of her favorite spots, including Dim Sum in ChinaTown and Covent Gardens. We booked tickets to see the Lion King in the same private box that the Obamas sat in when they visited. London had a huge parade going on that day, so we also spent time at Trafalgar Square watching the parade and its festivities.

My two new dream roles are Rafiki and  Grass

The Lion King that night was incredible. I had been wanting to see the musical for years, and had only heard great things about it. I came in with high expectations, but those were met and surpassed. The artistry that went into the show was astounding. From every aspect of the makeup to the puppetry and movement, the show was impeccably done. The singing of course blew me away and Shadowland nearly had me in tears. Mixed Company has Shadowland in our repertoire, but I never really understood the context until seeing Nala belt it out after watching the waterholes dry up.

Our "seats". We were leaning on the stage for three hours.

Sunday started with a picnic in Regent's Park, one of the most manicured and well maintained gardens I've seen. I edited pictures in the shade while listening to snippets of Shakespeare from the Open Air Theater. The evening we were able to score some tickets in the standing area for Dr. Faustus at the Globe Theater. It was another wonderfully done piece of art. The director chose to add music that added a whole different dimension to the show. Subtle changes in costuming and makeup and hair were incredibly well thought out and then there was the fact that Shirley and I were literally standing at the edge of the stage with our faces [sometimes literally] in the actor's cloaks... in the GLOBE THEATER.

Overall this past weekend in London was incredible. After this past year, my zeal for theater had waned, just because I didn't have much time for it at school, but these two performances reignited my love for all things theatrical. The detail and the artistry that was presented reminded me how theater is such a powerful tool. I was enraptured by all of it, and I have to start seeing more shows in New York.


After the show I met up with my friend Varoon, who is doing a program at London School of Economics, for a short bit and then had dinner with Shirley before heading home. We got caught in a tangle of closed tube stops and ended up getting back pretty late. I had to leave the next/this morning at 3am, so I ended up just staying up all night.

This post is already horribly long so I'll stop it there, but I am now in Istanbul!! The streets are narrow and the weather is surprisingly temperate. A prayer alarm just went off and I'm so excited to start exploring this city. More stories/pictures here.

"I stare and stare. It seems I was called for this: To glorify things just because they are." 

- An excerpt from a Blacksmith Shop- A translated Polish Poem on a wall in the Underground.