Britain in Fall Day 6

Having learned yesterday the details of the Changing of the guard, I decided to work my morning around that. First I had English Breakfast at the hostel, and made my way to Harrod's in time for them to open for the morning. Apparently that's the way to go, because while Trevor told me the crowds were crazy, I had no problem breezing about the store unfettered. Which was good, because that place is straight up humongous. It is deceptive from the outside, it doesn't look nearly as large as the seemingly endless rooms full of merchandise within. The food halls were amazing, just a sensory experience you don't find at, say, Safeway. I wandered about for nearly an hour, and certainly didn't cover everything. My favorite department was Old Maps and Prints on the 3rd floor, with its own clerk ready to help.

From Harrod's I took the tube to Green Park, and across to Buckingham Palace. There was already a sizable crowd, so I secured a spot near the fence where I thought I might get a decent view. It really was quite a production, much longer and more involved than I had imagined. I've witnessed the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns, which involved a handful of soldiers, and figured it would be something along those lines.

Imagine my surprise when not one, but two marching bands, two corps of guards, and a set of mounted guards were all marching up The Mall. As near as I could figure, the one set of guards switches with the other set of guards. One of the regiments was a regiment that normally does not guard the palace was there on this day, and they did not have the traditional uniform.

During the festivities, the marching bands combined and set up for a little concert. They played all sorts of appropriate, regal tunes, when all of a sudden, was I hearing that right? "Hey Jude?" Yes, they played several Beatles favorites during the course of the ceremonies. Eventually, all the marching about finished in the Palace forecourt and all of the soldiers made their way back out through the gates and down The Mall. Except, of course, for the newly installed guards. Many people followed the procession down The Mall as the bands played. I followed along. I think they ended up at St. James' Palace. I continued down The Mall to Trafalgar Square.

At this point I hopped on the Underground again to make my way to Greenwich via Canary Wharf. I arrived at the Cutty Sark DLR station and found my way through Greenwich Park, up a steep hill to the Royal Observatory. This is the place where they started measuring longitude, the prime meridian runs right through the site. It is also the home of Greenwich Mean Time.

I had great fun jostling with fellow tourists astride the meridian, one foot in each hemisphere. However the fun took a turn when I accidentally flung my camera across the court onto the cobbles. The kindly guard told me that wasn't the first time he'd seen that happen, but my mood was still soured a bit. The camera would turn on, but not do anything, and not turn off unless I took the battery out. I decided to put the camera aside for the rest of the trip and continued through the rest of the Royal Observatory museum.

On my way back to the station, I got a little lost in Greenwich, I found myself variously in some back alleys whcih turned into a little pathway that went into a park, or maybe it was a graveyard. Eventually I turned a corner and came across the DLR station. I stopped for a quick lunch at a pub before heading back toward central London via the DLR and Jubilee Line.

I decided to disembark at the Southwark Tube station, and walked toward the Tate Modern. The last time I visited, a cool installation caled the Weather Project dominated the main turbine hall. This time, nothing of the sort made an impression on me. Although I guess it was part of the nature of the installation to be temporary, but it still was disappointing to know that I couldn't ever go back and see it. I walked over the Thames on the Millenium Bridge and up to St. Paul's. It was undergoing some sort of restoration so I guess I didn't get the whole St. Paul's experience.

By this time I was a bit weary from running all over greater London, so I hopped back onto the tube, picked up my things from the hostel, and headed back to Liverpool Street to catch a train to Bury. I happened to get a rare direct train! Upon arrival in Bury I walked to Trevor and Stacy's new house.

September 28, 2004 11:59 PM