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James from Dallas, Neil from Grand Island, Nebraska and I made an extremely short visit to London. It really only added up to two days total but we were blessed to receive the magnanimous hospitality of a priest I know (Fr. John) and a childhood friend of mine (Angel).
It was good to see both of them again, in their element. I know James and Neil were glad to have met them too. Fr. John and Angel were very generous to us.
From our arrival Fr. John kept us fed to the brim and we needed the nourishment in order to make the day-long trek through London guided by a true citizen of Great Britain, Angel. She has lived in London for about ten years now and is, as I learned a citizen, not a subject (of the Queen). She would have had to have been born there to be a subject.
We started off seeing the Tower of London. It wasn’t principally a prison but it sure is famous for its prisoners and their beheadings that happened outside and inside its walls. St. (Sir) Thomas Moore and St. John Fisher are two among many who were both held captive there and had their heads cut off outside of the Tower on Tower Hill.
The Tower is also the place to see the crown jewels and they were royal, let me tell you. Besides jewelry I think I saw the most elaborate and largest punch bowl ever in my life.
We could see the Tower Bridge (incorrectly known as London bridge) from the Tower of London. The tube (subway) system is fantastic so we didn’t bother crossing the bridge to get to our next destination, Parliament.
There we saw Big Ben (a nickname for the clock tower itself but actually is the name of the large bell contained in it…all these interesting factoids only a citizen would know). Angel led us to a nice nearby pub where we had a great lunch and pleasant conversation. I had fish and chips that were very satisfactory.
Across from Parliament is the Eye of London, an incredibly huge Farris wheel. We had a 360 degree view of the city and got our bearings set for the last site: Buckingham Palace via Downing Street, Trafalgar Square and St. James Park.
Angel had arranged for us to have tea with the Queen but she must have had a last minute engagement to attend. Her Majesty didn’t even have the courtesy to wave from the window.
It was quite lovely (I’m trying to sound British here) catching up with Angel. I wish I hadn’t waited till my last months in Rome to travel to London.
Little did James, Neil and I know of the huge dinner Fr. John had prepared for us back at his rectory/presbytery. He really was outstandingly welcoming. It was a blessing to be a deacon at the Sunday Mass with him and meet parishioners afterwards before flying back to Rome.
London is much larger than I thought, with 10 million people. There is so much to see and I hope to return some time in the future.
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