London: Pilgrims and Priests and Monarchs! Oh My!

September 03, 2023

Jake here!

We successfully made it to London, and I must say we were treated better than kings. Considering most died horrible deaths of disease, battle, or execution I think we did better than most. Being an American I wanted to get up close and personal with what our ex monarchy is up too. I started by going to Buckingham Palace and looking at royal fashion followed by the Royal Mews. I saw all the royal coaches, cars, and a couple of horses who get more vacation time ( 6 weeks long twice a year) than I do. Then I got to go inside Buckingham Palace itself and walk throughout exploring the different rooms and paintings while the Royals were away. Couple key takeaways, 1 gold is on almost everything, think Trump level. 2 they have a bunch of art that they claim they want the most people to see yet keep them in their house and charge money (I’m calling bull crap). 3 The gardens are very lovely, I just wish there was less grass.

Of course London isn’t just about royalty, my next location was much less luxurious and more likely to not cheat on you or leave and move to Beverly Hills. The Churchill War Rooms, hidden under a building lies the places where Prime Minister Winston Churchill laid plans to fight the Nazis and brought Britain back from the brink of total invasion. These rooms were narrow, shallow, and hardly furnished yet played such an important role in stopping some the greatest evil the world had ever seen. It showed the resolve of the British People through some of the worst times in their history. Speaking of British People my favorite memory of London is when I went to the Mayflower Pub and got to eat where the Mayflower embarked for America. The coolest thing was because my 12th Great Grandfather was Governor William Bradford I got to sign the book of Mayflower Descendants and I celebrated by eating Sticky English Toffee which was absolutely delicious.

Now that’s something that I would never revolt against.

Josh here!

I often find a sense of comfort in returning to a familiar place where landmarks and roads and restaurants are recognizable. I first briefly visited London in 2012 on a guided tour around the UK and Ireland but came to know the city well in 2019 when visiting for a three week college trip. Familiar visits from this time through included walks through Borough and Portobello Road markets, grabbing a bite and a pint at the “Kings Head,” sketching in Hyde Park, and attending a Sung Eucharist service at St. Paul’s Cathedral.

But as is the case in any big city, theres always something new to see! One, for example, can always count on London for some good theater! We caught Shakespeare’s As You Like It at The Globe—an open air theater with a large standing room only section on the floor. Another play, Agatha Christie’s Mousetrap at St. Martins theater, has stood the test of time in running continuously since 1974. I’ve always enjoyed Christie’s “Whodunit” style, and this performance did not disappoint. Another highlight I can’t leave off with mentioning was a happenstance visit to La Porchetta Pollo Bar, an Italian restaurant in the west end theater district. Jake and I were looking for a cheap dinner spot before catching Mousetrap, and thanks to high reviews on Google, we decided to stop in. From the first moment of being greeted by a jolly Italian speaking host, our dinner was one of laughter (and some excellent food)!