clog blog: London Tourists

London has felt warmer this week. Not sure if that is because it is warmer or due to the fact that Ireland was much colder or maybe we are finally acclimatising!

Shell has Monday and Tuesdays off so we hung out together on Tuesday. After a late start we headed into Town to the National Theatre where photographs from Landscape Photographer of the year were on display. Some really stunning images that got us inspired! You can view some of the pics here: http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/61965/exhibitions/take-a-view-landscape-photographer-of-the-year-2010.html.

Next we headed to Hampton Court Palace. It was already quite late and we couldn't justify the 15 pounds each to get in so we wandered around the garden instead which was enough to get an idea of Tudor court life. If the garden is anything to go by, the Tudor court must have been very extravagant indeed! The gardens are massive & immaculate, even in winter. We enjoyed wandering around and even managed to find the 300 year old grape vine, the oldest in the world apparently. We decided that it would be best to come back for a proper visit in Spring or Summer.

After trying to have an early start every day and failing miserably so far we have given up and are focusing on doing just one or two things a day.

Wednesday we headed to the Science Museum in South Kensington. Both being interested in science we were really keen to see this museum but were a bit disappointed in the end. It is a great museum with some really good collections but we were expecting something else. The displays are aimed at children and there isn't much science explained at all. As a museum, the collections are impressive but there is very little explanation of the science behind the discoveries. For instance there are rooms dedicated to the production of steam, flight and ships through the ages, but no where does it explain how steam is generated or how flight works. Science is about the how & why it works, without that there is no science. Maybe we are too fussy... On the upside though, as a non-science person the museum is really accessible. Having said that, we enjoyed the space, ships and flight displays.

We ran out of time to see The Natural History Museum on Wednesday so headed back to South Kensington on Thursday to explore. This museum we really enjoyed and highly recommend it!! The building itself is very impressive. It is massive and elaborate, both inside and out. The museum has collections of just about every living thing, even extinct species. It also has an impressive collection of fossils and many replicas of fossils from around the world. We enjoyed the dinosaur, mammals, blue whale, giant sequoia, tree and fossil marine reptiles galleries. The displays in the central hall, such as the giant Diplodocus skeleton, are also worth a look. Don't forget to look up at the ceiling!

The museum isn't only a record and storage house, there is an ongoing effort to collect and study samples at the Darwin Centre which is a state-of-the-art science and collections facility. The museum has done well to make science accessible to the public and demystify some of it. At the museum you can walk through 'the coccoon' which is the Darwin Centre, or at least part of it, and see the scientific process of sample collection, storage and study. A lot of it is interactive and you can view scientists at work and sometimes ask them questions. It really is well done.

On Friday we spent most of the afternoon at St Paul's Cathedral. It is a beautiful cathedral, inside and out. The entrance fee includes an audio guide which is very kewl. It talks you through all the interesting points of the cathedral and its history. If you have any questions, there are many cathedral staff and vicars walking around whom are most friendly and helpful. There are 2 min prayers every hour for many things including for peace and the world. The cathedral is still an active church and there are services there every day which anyone can join. We were fortunate enough to still be there for Choral Evensong at 5pm. It really was special and moving listening to the choir (mostly boys with a few older guys for the bass) sitting underneath the dome and whispering gallery. It was refreshing and calming to sit still for a little while and focus on God and Christ, especially after all the missioning we have been doing lately. After attending Evensong, we can appreciate traditions of set prayers and worship throughout the day and how they help to set a rhythm to one's day, week and life. We still want to get to Westminster Abbey and hopefully make Evensong there too.

On Friday evening, Shell, Bron & Justin went to an acapella concert held at Kings Place in Kings Cross. There was a guest appearance by Shell's favourite acapella group, The Swingle Singers. If you haven't heard of them, check out this you-tube link for the welcome back they did at Heathrow airport for a T-mobile add: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYrb8JYscw0. This is the song they sang last night but they also did it in an underground tube previosuly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdHphy_OZGI. I'm sure you will recognize it ;~)

This weekend our activities include Justin going to a photo expo with Shell and his aunt Sue and her husband Gary, Bron shopping in Oxford Street and a day trip to Cambridge to see Bron's friend from UCT Bronwen Aken.

Have a great weekend and enjoy the sun for us!!