Travelogue: Chester

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Starbucks in ChesterOut of the Lake District and on to Wales on this grand tour of England!  We had pegged Chester as a good stopping point on a short driving day and we were not disappointed.  This ancient walled city is right on the border.  After a quick lunch at a spot on the second floor that looked out onto the street, we did a little shopping, which it seems is what Chester is known for these days.  The “rows” as they are known are two floors of shops that line the main streets of the town.  No cars allowed so it is relaxing to wander, marveling at the timber architecture amongst the modern retailers.  Couldn’t help but take a picture of the Starbucks!

Stained Glass

We ended with the Cathedral: just amazing!  Beautiful stained glass windows tucked into soaring arches.   A wonderful escape from the commercial buzz outside.  We took the audio tour and got lots of great details about the cathedral that dates back to 1092.  You can view more photos, mostly of the cathedral, here.

Travelogue: Stratford-Upon-Avon

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The CottageWe came to Stratford in search of William Shakespeare, and he wasn’t hard to find.  Stratford was the bard’s birth place.  He married Anne Hathaway here but pretty quickly left for London where he gained fame as an actor and writer.  He returned to Stratford at the end of his life, though, and is buried at Holy Trinity Church.  We toured several Shakespeare sites.  All three were well kept with helpful tour guides.  The birth home, in particular, had several costumed interpreters and an excellent exhibition on the Shakespeare’s life.  Anne Hathaway’s cottage is the birth home of his wife and is located about a mile outside of town.  Shakespeare’s birthplace is in central Stratford.  We visited Mary Arden’s farm, the original home of his mother. It was rainy, but we were able to get through the farm with its birds of prey, chickens, and pigs.  I had fun looking at the animals and was a little homesick for my chickens.  I tested out the video capabilities of my camera and was pretty impressed:

These are Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs.
The Window Above Shakespeare

We also made a pilgrimage to Holy Trinity Church, where Shakespeare is buried.  A church was first mentioned in this spot in 845 AD.  The present building dates from 1210 AD.  The surrounding churchyard is filled with graves from many different eras.  Moss covered stones hug the ground while crosses and obelisks rise above.  The spire of the church is visible from everywhere in Stratford.  The stained glass window is just above Shakespeare’s grave at the front of the church.

House Boats Along the RiverStratford is along the Avon River and there were long house boats tied up at various places.  As we walked along the river, I saw a sign on the window of one of the boats, advertising a book.  I couldn’t resist: I knocked on the door and was welcomed in by Jeremy Scanlon and his wife Dorothy.  Jeremy is an American who was captivated by the boats and spent many years providing tours through the rivers and canals of England.  His book, Innocents Afloat, tells his story.  The boat–a 70 foot narrow boat called the Unicorn–was amazing.  Long and thin, there was a sitting room, kitchen, bedroom and bath all in a row.  The walls under the window were lined with books.  He and his wife have a home along the canal but spend a good bit of their time on the boat.  I was so glad I knocked on that door!  And now I’m hoping to get back some day and do my own tour on a boat.

You can view more photos here.

Travelogue: Hampton Court Palace

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Entering Hampton CourtJust a few miles outside of London is what is reputed to be Henry VIII’s favorite palace: Hampton Court.  He would take a barge down the Thames from London. The palace originally belonged to Cardinal Woolsey, Henry’s Lord Chamberlain.  When Woolsey failed to obtain Henry’s divorce from his first queen, Katherine of Aragon, he fell from favor, and Henry took Hampton Court for himself.  It was also popular with monarchs after that, including William and Mary.

We toured the kitchens and several monarch’s state rooms along with the gardens.  The Clock Tower at Hampton Court PalaceThe rooms were furnished with period pieces and beautiful paintings and tapestries. Unfortunately, photography was not allowed in any of the apartments.  The palace tour included an excellent introduction to the English monarchy.  The palace has impressive gardens and a maze.   Like almost every major attraction, there was a cafeteria as well.  We spent several hours wandering around and then had a late lunch.

You can view some additional photos here.

Travelogue: Second Day in London

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St. Martin in the FieldsWe started out a little earlier today.  Again rode a bus and the Picadilly Tube Line into London.  Got off at Picadilly Circus and made our way to Trafalgar Square.  Along the way, we stopped into St. Martin’s in the Field to check on the Cafe in the Crypt and check out the church and the gift shop. We wandered through Trafalgar Square, admiring the lions and the fountains and the other statues, including the one of George Washington outside the National Portrait Gallery.

Buckingham PalaceThen, with the huge crowds, we headed along St. James Park to Buckingham Palace.  The Changing of the Guard was meant to start at 11:30.  We got to see part of the Guard head down the street and followed them to the Palace.  It was packed!  We watched the Horse Guard arrive and then headed back across the park.  It was really just too crowded to see much.  I shot a little video but was happy to head back to the park to escape the crowds.

We saw lots of wildfowl in the park: grebes, widgeons, coots, moorhens, several different types of gees, and white and black swans.

Elgin MarblesWe headed back to St. Martin’s for a lovely lunch in the crypt and tried to figure out the afternoon.  We decided we wanted to see the British Museum more than St. Paul’s so we hopped on the tube.  Again, huge crowds greeted us.  St. Giles Circus was under construction and it took us some time to get our bearings.  Eventually, we made it to the museum, which was also crowded.  But we sought out the Rosetta Stone, the Sutton Hoo burial objects, and the Elgin marbles.  On our way to the Sutton Hoo, we saw lots of great Celtic antiquities and all those wonderful mummies and mummy cases.  It’s just an amazing collection of stuff!

Of course, the Greek government has been suing to get the Elgin marbles back and there was an interesting pamphlet that made the case for keeping them at the British Museum.  I’m sure Egypt would like to have the mummies, too.

St. Paul'sWe got back on the tube for a visit to St. Paul’s.  We knew it would probably be closed but at least got to walk around it and even got to take a quick peek inside before the Holy Eucharist started.  From there, we walked down to the Victoria Embankment and walked along the Thames to the Temple Tube Station.

My legs are tired but I feel like I’ve really seen London.  It’s the same interesting mix of old and new that I’ve seen in other cities like Lucerne and Milan.  When you look up you see the ornate architecture with gargoyles leering down and statues of the famous standing in crevices.  When you look down, you see a multi-ethnic city.  Different languages fly through the air around you.  Taking public transportation really emphasized that…everyone ride the trains and buses from businessmen in suits and ties carrying briefcases to young people in grungy clothes, spiky hair and studs in their noses with ipods and backpacks to Muslim women in head scarves and long dresses with shopping bags.

Travelogue: First Day in London

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I’m really too tired to post, but I don’t want to forget…my parents and I started our two-week tour today.  Waterloo StationWe had wonderful English porridge for breakfast then headed to downtown London from our hotel near the airport.  We managed to navigate public transportation, first a bus, then the tube, to get to Waterloo station.

We had hopes of taking the London Eye, but the crowds were amazing so we hopped on a boat instead to the Tower of London.  We got a nicely guided tour from the boat’s crew as we headed down the river.

What to say about the Tower?  All that gruesomeThe Tower of London history of the murders, torture and executions.   The ravens are cawing and you climb the tiny, circular staircases, imagining Henry and Anne and Elizabeth sweeping through the rooms.  Edward I is celebrated in the White Tower and there’s a beautiful sculpture near the spot where so many lost their heads.

We took the boat back up the river and this time got off at Westminster.  We were hoping to tour the Abbey but were too late to catch the last tour.  And, the sign indicated it would be closed the next day, too, for a special event.  We were disappointed but decided to stay for Evensong.  What a wonderful stumble upon…the service was perfect after the long day of touring, beautiful choir song, notes rising into that awesome space, surrounded by the memento mori of the crypts and sculptures and grave stones.  I was facing the huge stained glass window. Westminster Abbey

I was mostly disappointed about not getting to Poet’s Corner and paying homage to Chaucer.  As I looked around during the service, though, I realized we were on the edge of the corner.  When the service was over, I took a moment to walk towards the back of the area in which we were sitting, and there it was: Chaucer and all the rest!  I didn’t get to take pictures but it was OK.  A lovely personal memory wrapped in the beauty of the service.

Tomorrow is Buckingham Palace, St. Paul’s Cathedral and the British Museum.  We want to have lunch at the Cafe in the Crypt at St. Martin’s in the Field.

Spinning, Spinning, My Head is Spinning

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I just couldn’t let this one go without comment.  In this clip, John McCain basically blames his running mate’s statements about Pakistan on journalists!  And the question wasn’t even asked by a journalist.  Instead, it was a voter, shouting the question to her as she walked.  It was noisy, she just spouted off the first thing that came into her head, etc. etc. etc.  This is CRAZY!  At the end of the clip, McCain reveals exactly why he named her: she got everybody excited.  This isn’t about who would be the best candidate; it’s about giving Republicans, especially the evangelical base, a reason to go vote for the whole ticket.  Who cares that she doesn’t have a clue?

An Insult to Women

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John McCain has picked Sarah Palin, first-term governor of Alaska, as his running mate.  The media is wondering aloud if it is a brilliant move or a questionable decision.  I definitely come down on the latter side.  After spending months attacking Obama for his lack of experience, McCain has picked a woman who actually had to mention her tenure on the PTA in order to bulk up her resume during her acceptance speech!

Mostly, I’m annoyed because this is basically an insult to women, especially a slap in the face to Republican women.  McCain, I suppose, was hoping to appeal to all those disaffected Hillary supporters out there.  Really?  And the way to do that was to pick a relative unknown with no experience who most suggest is going to be eaten alive in a debate with Joe Biden?  Doesn’t the Republican party have a woman who is equivalent to Hillary?  Someone with national experience?  A few names come to my mind–Kay Bailey Hutchinson, for one, who is now in the position of defending this choice.  Or Condoleeza Rice?  Maybe McCain was simply initimidated by these women?

I saw some Republican woman on CNN get frustrated with James Carville when he questioned the choice.  This is so typical, she said, that men brush aside women.  Sorry, lady, not buying it.  We would have been thrilled if McCain had actually chosen a woman with a chance.  I’m sure Sarah Palin is smart and has lots of future potential but as vice presidential candidate so is a poor choice.

Pulling My Head Out of the Sand

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Like all Unitarian Universalists, my week has been overshadowed by the horrible shootings in Tennessee last Sunday. I think the shock was intensified for me as the week played out because of  the sudden awareness that my liberal beliefs pose such a threat to others.  Oh, I knew Ann Coulter and her tribe made fun of me, but I figured much of it was just political theater.  So, it was a real eye opener when I heard about the “liberal hunting license” that is available on the web.  (Sorry, unlike some of my liberal brethren, I refuse to link to these kinds of hateful things.  You’ll just have to google it yourself.)  And, then I discovered that killing liberals has been a pretty standard joke on Fox News.  Really?  Someone, anyone, finds it funny to talk about killing people like me because of my political views.  I might find Russ Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly offensive but I would never wish their death.

And I found myself wondering how we got here…where hateful rhetoric like this is not only accepted but seemingly encouraged.  While I wouldn’t want to blame people like Sean Hannity for what happened last Sunday, his ongoing war against liberals certainly didn’t help.  For someone who is mentally unbalanced, these relenting attacks become an underlying soundtrack to a tragic life and offer up an easy target.  Tom Friedman says that while he was sleeping, the world got flat.  While I was sleeping, the world got ugly.

There has been a positive side for me, and I suspect for others.  I very much took my religious faith for granted, that I had a place where I could worship freely, no matter my beliefs.  I knew that there were martyrs like Michael Servetus, burned at the stake for his beliefs.  But that was ancient history.  We live in an enlightened era, in a country that espouses freedom of religion, right?  The shootings in Tennessee shook my trust in that freedom and made me think hard about my own faith.  When I walk into the sanctuary on Sunday morning, it will be with a new-found gratitude and a prayer for those who are now suffering for their beliefs.

A New, But Old, Brand of Patriotism

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Lynne Keisling at Knowledge Problem pointed to an article in The New York Times that reported that the $4 plus gas has led to a move from gas guzzling SUVs to fuel efficient compact cars.  While I am happy that consumers are going green, I think it’s sad that it had to take high gas prices to convince them.  Wasn’t it enough to know that they were wasting precious resources?  Were they really so self-centered that until it was about them and their wallet, they couldn’t understand why someone might choose to drive a smaller car?

We need a new brand of patriotism in this country, one with its roots in World War II, the kind of patriotism that encourages people to give to the community all the time, not just when it is in their economic interests.  Rather than quibbling over lapel pins, let’s really be patriotic.  For a start, encourage people to both buy fuel efficient cars AND drive less.  Maybe give employers who implement tele-commuting a tax break.  Gas rationing during WW II was seen as a patriotic thing to do; let’s bring back that sense of pride.  Second, how about getting people to grow victory gardens again?  With the price of food rising and the scare over salmonella, having people grow some of their own fruits and vegetables would certainly be a patriotic thing to do.