Liverpool

We slept in again this morning, then got up and ready about time Jo came around to take us to lunch. We walked to the Egg Café, a vegan restaurant, that was quite delicious. From there we walked through the town center down to Albert Dock which I was super excited about. It started out quite a nice day though it got colder as it progressed but we walked the entire length of the dock. It was so cool to look out across the Atlantic Ocean! There was also the Liverpool Museum and a tribute to the Beatles but we didn’t go into either. Jo snapped a bunch of pictures as we enjoyed the docks though the wind blew our hair all over the place so the pictures are not that good.

We packed a few clothes for the night and took off to Wigam about 40 minutes away where her mum lives. We got to ride on the Motorway, though their streets are so very different from ours and I find them very confusing. Johanna’s mother was very friendly and obliging, offering us all kinds of food and treats when she got home. We prepared to celebrate the New Year at Alex's house, though we knew nobody. Emma and Greg really made the night wonderful, they were so friendly and open to conversation that we could sometimes follow. The New Year was celebrated by running outside, lighting sparklers, and watching fireworks before the cold drove us back inside. 

Onwards

This morning we were really lazy. We got up and started a load of washing, had breakfast, and took wonderfully warm showers. We walked about 20 minutes to the main shopping area of Liverpool and looked through the many shops which have numerous after Christmas Day sales. It is crazy how many people buy things…anyways Lara was happy because she didn’t have to go into any museums, cathedrals, or other buildings of historical significance. We definitely hit TopShop, Primark, H&M, La Senza, Monsoon, Warehouse, Urban Outfitters, Cult, and Burger King. We were quite enthralled by the differences in their clothes from ours since all they seem to wear is tights, long tops, and boots or flats. It started pouring down rain so we walked back to Jo’s campus apartment to await her return from work. She and her boyfriend, Alex, came around about 6:30 and we went to have dinner at Nando’s.

 
 

Exploring the Countryside

We slept rather later again today though I woke up feeling not very well. Sue had a full house last night, she had Lara and I in Karen’s room, then Steve home for the holidays as well as Karen and Michael in the living room. Unfortunately their washing machine was broken but we did some laundry in the sink and Sue let us hang our clothes about the house on the radiators to dry. After coffee and light breakfast Karen drove us out to St. Bernard’s Abby which is a monastery and surrounding grounds. We looked in the chapel and gift shop before heading out on the path called Calvary steps that leads to a statue of Christ on the cross then to a tiny chapel that has an image of the dead Christ with His mother Mary. The monastery runs a dairy as well but it was too muddy to walk out in the pasture. It was so wonderful after days in the city to see green and open fields!

 




Then we went to Bradgate Park where we walked and took many pictures of the lovely countryside and ruins. This 850 acre park has been a part of the Manor of Groby since 1241. The ruins of the Bradgate House built by Thomas Grey in 1520 still stands as an historical ornament of the landscape. There were many families out walking, children running about and riding or skating perhaps on their new presents, and dogs chasing the birds. It was cold and windy but still nice to be out. She had to answer a million questions of mine about the people, how the roads work, what the school system is like, and where she works. She drove us by the place of her work which is for the government; it is a youth center that hosts programs for troubled teenagers. We spent the afternoon just talking and relaxing in her home until dinner when we walked into town to rent a movie and get a proper meal of fish and chips. Of course we had our fish with salt and vinegar, it was very delicious and filling.

Leicester

We slept in this morning and checked out around 9:30 then had our last breakfast at the hostel. We took the underground to King’s Cross and had a cup of coffee and waited in St. Pancras International for our 12:15 on Midlands Rail.

 

This got us to Leicester (pronounced Lestar, got this wrong so many times) around 1:30 where Karen met us at the station and took us to Michael’s apartment. We were so excited to see her!!! Michael lives in Horizon apartment complex on the 11^th floor. Karen made us some soup and bread for a light lunch. Michael was very friendly and talked to us while Karen got ready to go to her mum’s. He works in the British military in Plymouth south of London and has taken several tours in Afghanistan and Iraq. He insisted we have some proper tea and made us some before we left for Coalville. We headed to Karen’s mum’s home were we met Sue, her mother, Steven, her brother, and Bob, her step-dad. After getting settled, we had a really lovely dinner of Christmas leftovers and Bailey’s. It was quite nice to be in a home and just getting to relax in the family atmosphere. Also it was my 20^th birthday today!

 

 

London: Old & New

After breakfast on Boxing Day we walked over to St. Paul’s Cathedral for a proper tour. The present St. Paul’s is the fifth that has stood on this spot since 604AD and was built between 1675 and 1710. We walked around admiring the glass mosaic and paintings on the ceiling as well as the ornate golden alters. We decided to climb the 257 steps to the whispering gallery in the dome, then the 119 steps to the stone gallery where we could get outside and see the city, then the 152 steps to the golden gallery where we felt far above the city and took pictures of the horizon. After we climbed back down all those steps, we descended into the crypt that houses the Chapel of St. Faith and many tombs including Admiral Nelson, A. Sullivan, a composer, and Lord Wellington.

From there we walked down the street and across the Millennium Bridge where a Japanese lady was hanging decorations on the bridge for a religious holiday. I asked her what they were for but her English was very limited and I cannot remember the name of the holiday was.

Next we toured Shakespeare’s Globe, which was opened in 1997 as the dream of Sam Wanamaker. It was hand-built using authentic materials to recreate the experience of 17^th century drama. Our lady guide was wonderful as she showed us around and told us about how the globe was built and what roles the actors play. She told us that we all had to come back in the summer because the Globe was hosting all 37 of Shakespeare’s play in various languages for the Olympics. We just had a half-day today because a lot of transportation still wasn’t running. We went back to the hostel and took a nap, then had dinner at Pizza Express which was really good!

Christmas Day!

Christmas Day!! I got up to attend the morning mass at St. Paul’s at 11:00, though I left Lara sleeping in bed. This service was pretty cool too, though not as ornate at the night before. The choir sang Lux Aurumque by Eric Whitaker and the sermon was by the Bishop of London. The eloquently spoken sermon was about how knowledge is power and salvation through a community of believers, but I disagreed on several points and rather stopped listening after a while. See http://www.london.anglican.org/SermonShow_15815 for a full transcript of his sermon. I met a really lovely lady name Yeni whom I sat by through this service. She is from South Korea but has studied at the University of Tennessee and is well on her way to becoming a doctor of medicine in psychology, we are now facebook friends!

 
Lara and I had lunch at Starbucks and spend the rest of the day sleeping and organizing my luggage which was spread all over my locker. We watched a Michael Buble Christmas special on BBC which was amazing!

December 24th

We got out of bed about 8:30 this morning, had breakfast and were off to Victoria Station. From there we walked to Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guard. Since it is winter there were far fewer people than usually observe though it was still packed we got the opportunity to see a lot of the proceedings. We stood on the Victoria Memorial to get good views of the guards marching up the street as well as the changing of the guards in front of the palace. Lara really enjoyed the marching bands that lead the guards to the Palace. It was neat to see all the guards decked out in uniform and weapons as they marched to the gates. The bands played several Christmas carols before marching back out and down the street. We strolled back along Buckingham Palace Road on our way to Victoria Station. I was planning to tour St. Paul’s that afternoon but they had closed earlier than expected for evensong and were taking no more visitors.

Throughout our several days in London, we have had many cups of Starbucks coffee, it is wonderful! We had lunch there again today and rested before heading to Trafalgar Square. It was a stark contrast seeing it by night and was really pretty with all the Christmas decorations and lights. We stood in line at St. Martins-in-the Field for the Eventide Christmas Carols. We sat in the balcony and couldn’t really see anything but it was still pretty cool to listen and sing carols. From where we sat, we could see the organist who was amazing!

Then we headed straight back to St. Paul’s since the underground was closing early for Christmas Eve. Then I dragged an unhappy and sleepy Lara to St. Paul’s for Midnight Eucharist. For both services we stood in line for over an hour to get seated. I really enjoyed this service, it was so neat to see the Anglican service and take communion in the more catholic tradition. The organ music and all boys choir were wonderful to listen to and we were seated where we could see the bishop during the Biblical readings and the blessing. The sermon, by Reverend Canon Mark Oakley, was about incorporating contemporary wisdom into worship and removing our masks to let the light of Christ shine through us, it was quite a good sermon which I enjoyed very much. The service was our about 1:30am and we went straight to bed.

Miscellaneous

Our Main Mode of Transportation

Occupy London @ St Paul

 

We were very curious about all the tents and people camped out around the south side of the cathedral. From the first day, the protestors were loud and rather obnoxious, though during the day you hardly saw any of them. We walked into the “Information Tent” and talked to a well spoken lady who told us that the Occupy London movement stemmed from the Occupy Wall Street theme. They were originally planning to camp out in the London’s financial center but were promptly removed by police so they moved to the foot of St. Paul’s. When the police came to evict the protestors, the Dean of St. Paul’s said they should allow them to remain, there they have lived since October 2011. The movement is designed to raise awareness about social and economical issues as well as governmental responses to the cries of the needy.

Hobo Home