London Calling

It's our final day of the trip, and we're spending it in London. We arrived at our hotel -- a very fancy joint not far from Buckingham Palace -- yesterday afternoon after a bus tour of the city, and we had the rest of the day and all day today to explore.

At dinner on our last night on the cruise ship, I had a very interesting conversation with an older woman who was a teenager in London during World War II and who talked quite a bit about the four- or five-year period when London was subjected to constant bombing attacks. Many children and teenagers were sent off to towns in the countryside so they could continue to go to school and be away from the worst danger. This woman talked about sleeping in the bomb shelters -- if she slept at all -- and hoping for the "all clear" signal each morning around 6:00 so she could go to school. She also described her father lying atop her and her mother to protect her during one bombing raid. The tales she told were quite impressive.

Here in London, World War II is big on people's minds this week, as the city is commemorating the 60th anniversary of the end of the war. The biggest celebration is today, falling in between V-E Day and V-J Day -- though all of us are having trouble remembering the exact dates of each. The Mall, which is a wide street that connects Buckingham Palace and Trafalgar Square, is given over to WW II exhibits, and the Queen yesterday dedicated a memorial somewhere (I haven't managed to find it yet) to the women who served in the war. She also attended special services at Westminster Abbey this morning, and as result that building has been closed to tourists yesterday and today. Some of us are hoping it might re-open later this afternoon. I walked by Westminster Abbey this morning on a sightseeing and picture-taking stroll, and you would not believe how many police there were on every corner in that neighborhood.

It's been interesting to walk around town and see all of the WW II veterans walking to the events in their military uniforms, with their medals proudly displayed on their chests. Heck, if I had served and 60 years had gone by since then, I'd be proud just to be able to still *fit* into my uniform.

Yesterday as part of our bus tour we visited St. Paul's Cathedral, which will be 300 years old in 2008. This is where Prince Charles and Princes Diana were married, and where Winston Churchill's funeral was held. The cathedral was built between 1675-1710 (I guess it must have actually *opened* in 1708 while still under construction, if you're wondering how 2008 could be its 300th anniversary), and was the work of the architect Sir Christopher Wren, who was responsible for designing 51 different churches in a one-square-mile area of London.

Lots of famous and not-so-famous people are buried in St. Paul's Cathedral, including Lord Nelson, the hero of the Battle of Trafalgar (don't ask me what the significance of that battle was -- I can't remember!); Florence Nightingale; and Christopher Wren himself. Also buried here is the Duke of Wellington, who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo and who has an immense -- I mean immense -- sarcophagus in the cathedral's crypt area.

Even more cool people are buried at Westminster Abbey, apparently.

St. Paul's is a really tall cathedral and managed to survive the bombings of London in World War II, in large part because of a brigade of incredibly brave volunteers who camped out in its upper reaches during the raids. When the incendiary bombs would land in the cathedral, the volunteers would throw them into the street below or stuff them into buckets of sand to prevent the church from catching fire. Can you imagine positioning yourself on one of the highest points of the city during a bombing raid? That's pretty impressive. After each raid, Londoners took great pride and comfort in seeing the cathedral still standing.

There's lots more to say about London. To be continued!