Abbey Lane

[kaitou]

April 24th...

Today we went to Westminster Abbey! Flidget also wanted to take me to a show because my childhood was culturally deprived of live musicals vs. movie musicals. We went down to Leicester Square, but there wasn't anything cheap, and we gave up on that plan. But we did spot a Haggen Daz restaurant that looked like it had fabulous concoctions.

But, off to the Abbey! So we jumped on the tube and the next thing I knew....Woah! Big Ben! Parliament! Big Ben is well named. It is really really big. And Parliament is much more ornate than I would have expected. I thought that it would be one of the many white Grecian revival type buildings that seem to be everywhere. (I probably thought that that's what it would look like because that's what all of our government buildings look like) But it's almost like it's made of lace.

There were tents across the street from Parliament with all the requisite government protesters. The protesters were all very polite and waved at a tourbus shaped like a giant boat going by. We crossed the street over to Westminster Abbey which was just gorgeous.

Instead of headphones for a tour, you get something that is a lot like a cell phone on a stick. You punch in the numbers for different parts of the tour so you can hear all of it at your own pace. It was really amazing to walk around and see "Oh, that's Edward Longshanks, and over there is Richard III." And there was a really beautiful little section set aside for pilots from WWII. It was also pretty mind blowing to walk over to Poets Corner where all of the famous writers are buried. Chaucer was there...amazing for a man who wrote about talking penii.

They also had the Coronation Chair on display. Apparently until fairly recently it was just sitting around, and anyone could sit down in it. It's covered in scratched-in-graffiti.

After the Abbey we rode a double decker bus to Trafalgar Square, which is close to Leicester Square, which was close to where we got lunch at a Chinese place. I ordered a beef & egg over rice dish that I thought might be something comparable to a Japanese dish I like. Instead it was like a plate of rice with sloppy joe mix on top and a raw egg cracked over the whole thing. It was the only meal I've had so far that I didn't like. But I did like the Taro Bubble Tea that we had.

After lunch we went back to Trafalgar Square where they have an inexplicable statue of George Washington. I don't think that's the way Trafalgar Square is supposed to work. We went into the National Gallery and wandered around going "I've seen you in pictures before!"

Then we had a short break at back at the Haggen Daz we'd seen before. Ice cream is a most excellent invention.

We headed back over to the Gallery, but this time we went into the National Portrait gallery, which I liked better. They have portraits of all kinds of people separated into time periods, and little displays about who they were and what they did. I love portraits. There's something about seeing these paintings and sculptures that actually represent the real person...seeing if and how personality comes through, and what they thought was important to record. There's a real connection there for me.

We went back to Flidget's flat. It took over an hour because the trains had broken down, but I didn't have a clue since I fell asleep almost the minute I sat down. Thank goodness Flidget was there to make sure I got off at the right stop!

We had dinner from Burger King which was an odd experience that I don't think bears repeating. And then we went to see the new Pirates movie. I panicked a little when the movie stopped about halfway through. "Is this supposed to happen? Do you have intermissions in England? Are they going to fix it? I'm not paying London prices and not even seeing the whole movie!!" But it all turned out just fine and a good time was had by all. Or both, as the case may be.

Comments

[soranokumo.livejournal.com]

*blinku* Was the Japanese dish you were thinking of gyudon? The Japanese restaurant in Decatur offers all kinds of donburi, and that sounds kinda like it... (This is, I have to admit, a random question, but I am curious!)

Also, another reason to visit England! All this time I've thought about Shakespeare, I'd forgotten that Chaucer had to be around there, too. Also, George Washington in Trafalgar Square? ... ... ...but why?

Also also, yay trip posts!

[kaitou1412.livejournal.com]

(sorry about the earlier comment, replying in google to the wrong thread!)

The rice dish I was thinking of isn't gyudon, it's more of a home-cooked vs. restaruaunt sort of dish. I can't think of the real name off the top of my head. But it's 'tricolored rice.' There's rice with a kind of scrambled egg on one side, ground beef on the other side, with green peas down the center.

I'll get to all the Shakespeare stuff tomorrow! *heart*

[flidgetjerome.livejournal.com]

For the record I do know a restaurant that specialises in donburi too, though on description Ann's dish sounds most to me like the Koeran bi bim bap.

(In related news - Ann, I can't believe you didn't mention the woman in the kimono at the National Gallery, which is easily one of the most surreal sights I've ever experienced in London.)

[kaitou1412.livejournal.com]

women in kimono? Been there, done that. It was the saris everywhere that surprised me!

here is soboro (found it!) , by the by... http://www.kamadafoods.com/english/recipe/dashi/index.html

[soranokumo.livejournal.com]

Ah! That sounds familiar, too... and thank you for the link to the site - I'm gonna peruse that a bit. (Thorne gave me lovely Japanese "neko" dishes as a housewarming present some time ago and I have yet to put them to any use. One day after I move into my new apartment I'm going to have to change that!)

*grin* And women in kimono might not seem so strange, but in London? Mwee!