an english journal,2007, v i

An English Journal

F riday, July 6, 2007

Today Beth and I left Indiana for our first trip to London, England. Beth was

awarded a Teacher Creativity Fellowship, and I did the unthinkable and

took three weeks off work. My itinerary includes time in London, Oxford,

Cambridge, and Rye. However, Beth will spend only one day in Cambridge with me,

and then after my three days in Cambridge are finished, I will go to Rye to play golf

at the famous Rye Golf Club. Although there had been recent terrorist activity in Lon-

don, we were not really that concerned.

Judy Williamson drove us to the train station at Indiana Dunes to catch the 11 AM

train to Chicago. The English gothic architecture of the club house would make a

grand backdrop for our bon voyage lunch. We ate on the 12th floor balcony under the

canopy, and it was a beautiful day. The lake was an extraordinary shade of light blue.

We could hardly hear the sound of the cars honking on Michigan Avenue below. The

Art Institute and Grant Park stretched out below us. It does not get much better than

this.

Chicago Departure

TRAVEL, ARRIVAL, JET LAG, and ST. PAULS CATHEDRAL

View from the balcony of the University Club

Afterward, we rode the train to O'Hare Airport

and checked our bags, which were too heavy. In

Boy Scouts, the motto was “Be Prepared.” That

meant taking as much gear as you could carry,

and that pretty much worked. When it comes to

international travel, the better course is to pack

light and take your chances. I hope to learn that

lesson someday. After some minor accommoda-

tions we were able to arrange our luggage in such

a way that only one bag was charged for the extra

weight. Lesson learned.

Saturday, July 7, 2007

It was a long flight. It takes forever to fly from

Chicago to London. I can see why those who can

afford it prefer first class with those cool bed seats.

Our seats were dinky by comparison. We left Chi-

cago at approximately 5:00 p.m. Friday night and

arrived in London on Saturday morning at 7:30

local time, but about 1:30AM Logansport time.

Plane Trip


The breakfast of croissants and yogurt was a welcome

treat as the flight concluded. It was day break in Eng-

land.

Upon arrival at Heathrow Airport, we went through

customs (what customs?), answered a few questions,

got our Passports stamped, followed the crowd, and

found and boarded the underground subway train,

known as the Tube, for our first ride into the city, into

a section called ”Chelsea - South Kensington.” It was

the first time we heard the ubiquitous phrase, “Mind

the Gap.” It’s the Brits way of telling you to pay atten-

tion to the small gap between the train car and the

platform. Anyone who has been there has heard it,

and never forgets the phrase. The canned announce-

ments kept stating the destination for the train, which

was “Cockfosters.” The smooth, soft female voice

went “You are on the Piccadilly line to…(wait for

it!) ...Cockfosters.” The voice goes up on the first syl-

The Tube

Opposite: The Heath Row Tube Station, in-

side and out.

This Page: As fast as a Speeding Bullet;


lable, and down on the second and third, with a slight

pause between the first and second syllables. I will

remember it always. We passed several golf courses,

which were teeming with old men walking their early

morning rounds. Not a golf cart in sight. For once, I

am glad to be elsewhere, like on a train, a train in

England, heading for a bed…or so I fooled myself into

thinking.

Chelsea sits a couple miles to the west from Bucking-

ham Palace. We got off at the Gloucester Road Sta-

tion. From there we walked about five blocks to our

hotel. It was a sunny Saturday morning. Beautiful,

really. But the jetlag made it difficult to enjoy, at least

for me. Beth seemed to do better.

Our hotel is called The Cranley, and it is a very nice,

small boutique hotel which has only a few guest

rooms. It is very well appointed with traditional Eng-

lish antiques, paintings, and prints. Beth did a really

good job of picking it out. It even had air condition-

ing, which is somewhat unusual for a London room.

Gloucester Road Tube Station


Our room overlooks a small street named Bina

Gardens, which fortunately does not carry

much traffic. There are a number of private

homes, duplexes, multiplexes and hotels in

this neighborhood, and lots of German cars

parked in the streets. Mercedes and BMW are

the most common. The cars look the same as

their American counterparts, but have much

smaller engines.

MEMO TO SELF: When crossing a street, al-

ways look right first. Always. If you don’t,

you’ll get killed. In America, you look left first.

That’s because the oncoming traffic comes

from the left. Here, the cars come from the

right, the opposite direction. Seriously, look

right first, or you’ll surely perish. The accom-

modating Brits even paint the directions

“LOOK RIGHT” on the pavement, purely for

the benefit of us American pedestrians, who

instinctively look left first. In England, looking

left first could kill you.

These pages: The Cranley Hotel, Chelsea

The Cranley


After checking into the hotel,

We just left our bags with the

desk because, of course, our

room is not ready at 8 AM. To

start killing time, we went

walking, looking for breakfast.

We eventually found a very

small restaurant. There we ate

eggs, sausages, baked beans

(for breakfast!) and consumed lots of caffeine.

Fried tomatoes and mushrooms rounded it

out. We split it, Like we did in New York. We

found out later that this is known as the tradi-

tional English breakfast.

In an attempt to fight the exponentially in-

creasing Symptoms of jetlag we ventured into

the heart of London, thinking it would wake

us up. Our first stop was St. Paul’s Cathedral,

which was built in 1675 by Christopher Wren,

after the previous St. Paul's burned to the

ground in the great fire of 1666. It was about

$20 American each, but was well worth it. It is

an incredible structure. It is filled with paint-

The Cranley


ings and mosaics,

and the effect is sub-

lime. In the center is

a huge dome, and

you can climb to the

top of it, provided

you can muster the

strength to carry

your jetlagged ass up the 460 steps which spiral and wind their

way through shafts and tunnels to the balcony surrounding the

dome at the top.

This building is older than our country, and is assailed daily by

thousands of tourists. Even so, the place is absolutely rock solid.

In the basement is a crypt, also called an undercroft, which con-

tains the tombs of many famous people including Lord Nelson of

Trafalgar fame; The Duke of Wellington, victor over Napoleon at

Waterloo in 1815; and the architect himself, Sir Christopher

Wren. “Reader, if you seek a monument, look around you” reads

To the Dome of St. Paul's Cathedral


Opposite: The Dome from the south

This Page: In honor of Queen Anne.

the inscription in Latin on a

plain piece of granite placed

over his tomb, a reference to

the Cathedral itself, as his life’s memorial, and to the dozens of

churches he designed after the great fire scattered throughout

London.

It seems that most of the tombs at St. Paul’s are military heroes

who served in wars stretching from the French and Indian

Wars, thru the American Revolution and Napoleonic Wars, to

World Wars I and II. There are no royal tombs, as at Westmin-

ster or Windsor. Part of the Cathedral was bombed during

World War II, and the entire back was rebuilt in honor of the

Americans who lost their lives during that conflict. In the

stained-glass window was a small panel which depicted the

Indiana state flag. We wanted to break out in a verse of “Back

Home Again in Indiana,” but managed to restrain ourselves.

The Dead of St. Paul’s Cathedral


While we were there we spoke with one of the ministers, an ordained female priest. Those lib-

eral Anglicans. She was three years old in 1941, and can vividly remember the long nights of

the Blitzkrieg, being held by her grandmother in the underground safety of the Tube, listening

while the nazi bombs were exploding at street level, destroying London and its treasures, in an

attempt to demoralize the British early on in the war. It nearly worked. I have no idea what

that must be like. She pointed out the north transept which was destroyed by Nazi bombs, and

said that when she was a teen and a young adult, after the war, the whole section was entirely

boarded up until repairs could be made. As one looks at it now, it is almost impossible to tell

that it was replaced from the original 1675 structure. The Brits clearly went to great pains to

restore their historical buildings after the war, and St. Paul is but one of many.

By the conclusion of our visit to St. Paul's, and especially our climb to the whispering gallery

high within the dome, we were really beginning to feel the effects of jet lag. We started back to

the hotel. It seemed like a cloudy daze. Ah! The sweet sensation of sleep deprivation.

The Rebuilding of St. Paul’s Cathedral

TRAVEL, ARRIVAL, JET LAG, and ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL

A Porch Column in Chelsea

ST. JAMES & PALL MALL

The Bicycle Race

Google Map of St. James and Pall Mall Window in the Oxford Cambridge Club

W e thought it might be fun to

stop by at the Oxford Cam-

bridge Club to check in and

make sure they received the

letter of introduction from the Columbia Club,

and that we had full privileges at that Club

during our stay in London. However, to get

there from the St. James Street tube station we

had to walk through St. James Park, which on

any ordinary day would have been easy, short

and beautiful.

However, this was no ordinary day. On this

particular day, St, James Park was the starting

point of the famous Tour de France bicycle

race, which is the first time in 104 years that

the race started in London. There were an esti-

mated half-million people looking on, and the

park was all cordoned off for the race route,

which made the short walk to the Club more

than a little complicated.

Opposite: The Library, Oxford and Cambridge Club

This Page: The Tour de France starts in London


The Tour de France

About halfway through, and with hardly any

strength to carry on, we decided to forget Club

land, and instead focus on making it back to

the hotel alive and not passed out in some

London side street, sound asleep or dead. We

made it back to the Cranley and got our room,

It is a beautiful room. Beth was firm in her re-

solve to stay awake, in an attempt to minimize

the effects of jet lag, while I was simply out of

gas, gave in to fate, and took a three hour nap.

Just what the doctor ordered. When I awoke I

felt much better. dressed up and rode the tube

to the Piccadilly station and walked to St.

James and Pall Mall, in the heart of clubland.

There are dozens of so called “Gentleman’s

Clubs” or “City Clubs.” Many had odd names,

like Boodles, Bucks, Whites, Pratts and Brooks.

They all occupied beautiful nineteenth century

mansions and townhouses, each consisting of

several rooms, including dining rooms, librar-

ies, and billiards rooms. They all had bars.

Some are drop dead gorgeous, like rhe Royal

Automobile Club, while others have either


The Oxford and Cambridge Club

died, or are dying due to increasing costs and

dwindling memberships. The O&C is defi-

nitely a traditional, old shoe, kind of club

which contains many grand, old rooms. It

seem old, because they are old. The clubhouse

was purpose built for the new club in 1820. It

is still rock solid. Much of the glass in the large

windows is probably original to the building,

as the image through them is slightly warped

by the imperfections in the glass. Part of the

club was destroyed in the Blitz, but was re-

built soon after the war. Another club down

the street was fire bombed by the IRA back in

the 1970s.

The neatest rooms, in my opinion, were the

various libraries located primarily on the sec-

ond floor. One of the libraries was known as


The Silence Library

Sockless at the Oxford Cambridge

Opposite: Weight scales in the hall; Writing

supplies in the library; 18th Century hand col-

ored almanac of Oxford college arms


The Oxbridge Libraries

the “Silence Library," and there is a large sign on

the fireplace mantelpiece which contains the sin-

gle word “SILENCE". Another library is more

formal, which is, I would guess, the original li-

brary room. It has one of the most comprehen-

sive collections of Oxford Cambridge books in

existence, some in Latin and some dating from

the 18th century. It was paradise for me. I could

have spent a long, long time there before becom-

ing tired and bored, I can assure you.

We thought about eating at the club on our first

night in London, but then took a look at the

menu and realized that it was, not surprisingly,

very expensive, and we also had come to the

realization earlier in the day that the dollar was

shockingly devalued compared to the British


A Rather Pricey Menu

The Oxbridge library, dining room, card

room and stairwell


Dinner at Waitrose

pound, and the dollar was worth something

around $.50. With prices being double what

they normally are and with the dollar being

worth only half of what it usually is, it was a

sure recipe for a giant buzz kill. It is perhaps

the most difficult fact to accept when making

the pilgrimage to the island. Anyway, we were

staying at the club later in the week, and we

would dine there then.

We took the tube back to our hotel, and

from there we went to Waitrose, where we

purchased three quarters of a rotisserie

chicken, salads, wine and Diet Coke. We went

back to the Cranley and ate on their front patio

beneath the umbrella of a shaded table and, all

in all, everything worked out quite fine. We

Cigarettes?


Rooms in the Oxbridge;

Waitrose Grocers


The Oxford and Cambridge Club

talked about the good old days, the days when we

smoked cigarettes, especially at times such as this.

We vetted the idea of buying a pack just for fun.

Hard to believe, but we did not. We would soon

learn how stupid an idea that was.

The Library


Shameless self-portraiture: The window overlooks

the back court of Marlborough House, which King

Edward VII built when he was Prince of Wales.

Somewhat different from the Bakers on Tenth Street.

Speakers’ Corner

S unday, July 8, 2007, we awoke and had

breakfast at a local restaurant, Garfunkels.

This was about as American as you can get

in London. Like Applebees. We ordered up

an omelet, and split it like we did in New York on

our Anniversary trip in 2005. But unlike New York,

London omelets are quite small. The pinheaded staff

couldn’t wrap their minds around the idea of having

more than 2 ingredients in an omelet. They know

now. It felt good to have food in the stomach at a

time that made sense, and freed from the chains of jet

lag. Satisfied, we embarked upon our travels for the

day. First stop: Speakers’ Corner.

SPEAKERS’ CORNER at HYDE PARK

On the northeast corner of Hyde Park, on

Sundays at noon, is an event called

“Speakers Corner.”It is an area where any-

one can bring their soapbox, stand on it,

and pontificate about whatever they

choose. People gather, if interested, and

comment, or even argue with the speaker.

Some of the arguments become quite

heated. For instance, one of the speakers

was talking smack about how Americans

were nothing more than the rouge subjects

of her Majesty and America as a mere col-

ony, and how we, American tourists, were

somehow hypocritical by coming back to

the so-called “mother country.” I truly

think her point was to simply gather the

largest crowd, mostly Americans. I was

tempted to shout that Hitler would now be

on the pound note had it not been for the

Americans in World War II, but I opted to

simply keep my Yankee mouth shut. Al-

ways a prudent course of action.

Speakers’ Corner


Speakers Galore

Speakers Corner


In America the politically inclined participate

passively, sitting on sofas and watching FOX

News. Their perception of the world is one

sided, and they stew and boil inside. Not sur-

prisingly, many need treatment for anger

management or coronary heart disease, or

both.

By contrast, the Brits take it to the streets,

literally. These participants, speakers and

audience alike, interact with one another,

which causes thoughtful reflection before

responding, or risk being called out by others

for spewing half baked ideas.

We could learn something from this.


F rom Hyde Park we took the Tube

to the Embankment Station,

which is right on the Thames.

Parliament stood behind us, a

perpendicular gothic masterpiece. From

there, we boarded a boat heading from

Westminster to Greenwich, both had been

a royal enclaves from the earliest days.

Very little remains of the original West-

minster Palace, although Westminster Hall

is a glaring exception, being started by

William Rufus (King William II) at the

dawn of the 12th century.

Greenwich Ho!

Smiling on the Thames; MEMO TO SELF: Camera

looking up is bad angle.

The Tower of London from the Thames

GREENWICH

The trip to Greenwich via the Thames was quite interesting and our

tour guide pointed out many different points, including various

pubs which sit along the Thames, and which were frequented by fa-

mous people, like Charles Dickens… and Cher. He told the story of

pirates coming up the Thames, being captured, tried, and executed.

The executions were quite grizzly, as the pirate was chained to the

riverbank at low tide. When the tide came in, the pirate would, ever

so slowly, be covered over with water. Slowly, he would be covered

over and drown, while others watched on in amusement, over a pint

of warm brew at the nearby Pub. You’ve got to love this little island!

For whatever reason, I felt a little queasy both upon arrival at Green-

wich and again upon arrival back at the Embankment. I initially

thought it could have been due to either the diesel fumes from the

Cher and Dead Pirates

THE RIVER THAMES

boat or the hot sun, I am now of the opinion that

I've suffered a bit of seasickness, since the

Thames is part of the English Channel and sub-

ject to ocean currents, tides, and waves. Then

again, it could have been the deisel fumes.

Whatever.

The grounds at Greenwich are both remarkable

and historic. The oldest structure is a block pal-

ace built sometime during the mid 1400s. Henry

VIII was born there, as were sister Queens Mary

I and Elizabeth I. The old structure is restored to

Westminster and the Thames

Ride on the River Thames

THE RIVER THAMES

London

THE RIVER THAMES

The Ride to Greenwich

THE RIVER THAMES

Opposite: Parliament and Tower Bridge

This page: Greenwich Palace from the river, the interior dome

of the palace

its former glory, and contains an art collec-

tion of national significance. The most

memorable paintings were the portrait of

Adm. Nelson, and a painting of a battle

scene from his victory, and sad death, at Tra-

falgar. The guy who lost his arm ultimately

lost his life as well in the service of king and

country.

The newer sets of palace buildings were

built in the 17th century by their joint majes-

ties William and Mary. The two principal

buildings frame the old tudor palace with

the hall on one side of the central axis, and

Greenwich Palace

Greenwich Palace, old and new

GREENWICH

the chapel on the other side of the axis.

Both structures have huge domes, one of

which contains a clock.

The hall is beautifully painted and incredi-

bly large for a 17th century assembly area.

It has a small stage at the front end and is

filled with murals and designs from front

to back, top to bottom. At one time it

served as a hospital. Now its principle

function is one of tourism, and it is worth

the trip. I don’t think there was an admis-

sion charge, either.

The chapel is located in the second build-

ing and is approximately the same size as

The Grounds

GREENWICH

The Painted Hall

the hall. It has pews facing forward toward the

alter, and a balcony on each side holding benches

facing one another across the width of the hall.

Upon arrival back in town we got off on the south

side of the river at a place called Waterloo Station,

GREENWICH

The Painted Hall

GREENWICH

Garfunkel’s Restaurant

GREENWICH

and from there we eventually found the

Tube station and made our way back to

the Kensington Station. And dinner

again from Waitrose.

Unfortunately, once we arrived, we re-

alized that Waitrose was already closed,

and therefore we were required to eat at

a restaurant, Garfunkles, where we split

a chicken dinner. The meals are not as

large as they are in New York; there-

A Closed Grocery

GREENWICH

fore, splitting a meal was not as satisfying. But

the food tasted good and we went back to the

hotel where we watched TV, and thought

about day three in London.

BACK TO LONDON

M onday, July 9, 2007, started as

a bright sunny day. We

thought it might be an excel-

lent opportunity to visit the

British Museum. On the way, we stopped by

the local post office/drugstore/currency ex-

change so the Beth could post letters to the

states. While we were there, a local woman

became quite angry and boisterous at the

clerk, because he did not use what she consid-

ered to be proper English. It was all quite

funny to watch. When the spectacle was over,

I ask a gentleman if that was the Queen. He

told me it was not, and that the Queen had far

better manners. He was dead serious. I don't

think he was amused at my joke at Her Maj-

esty’s expense. As an American, it is hard to

understand the Brits love of their monarchs. It

just doesn't seem rational.

A Gathering in the Post Office

THE BRITISH MUSEUM

THE BRITISH MUSEUM

A Very Old Collection

The British Museum is in a three hundred year old, classical (ie. Greco-Roman) building,

which was originally built in about 1753. It houses an incredible collection of artifacts from

all over the world, no doubt the fruits of British imperialism in the 19th century. I examined

the collection of artifacts created by the North American Indian and Eskimo peoples. They

had very old pieces, coming from the period of early exploration, but before colonization ef-

forts. These artifacts were much older than those at an American museum, like The Field in

Chicago. It also had a great Egyptian exhibit containing various mummies and other arti-

facts, taken from Cairo when England pretty much owned it.

Repatriation of artifacts is a major topic nowadays, and the British Museum may be the num-

ber one target of the efforts. The most famous of the stolen booty from lands afar is the fa-

mous Rosetta Stone, and segments from the Greek Parthenon. The Rosetta was the key to

deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphics. And as for the remnants of the Parthenon, let’s just say

the Greeks want their building back.

We also briefly visited the section displaying artifacts from Asia including several ancient,

A Very Old Collection

THE BRITISH MUSEUM

golden Buddha from the Far East. As they say, the

sun never set on the British Empire at its apex, and

these exhibits highlighed the stretch of Brit domina-

tion. It is in a way a huge trophy room, with all the

cultural souvenirs from foreign lands stacked floor to

ceiling.

The most interesting part of the British Museum, in

my opinion, was the large wing containing King

George III’s personal library. There were also many

other artifacts from his collections, reflecting the

English Renaissance and advances in science made

during the 18th century. There were also many other

artifacts going back many years to the Middle Ages.

The books themselves were quite amazing, leather

bound and gold leaf stamped. Thousands of them,

The Rosetta Stone

Doors on the way to the Inns of Court

Repatriation of the Parthenon

THE BRITISH MUSEUM

and they were beautiful. They covered

a wide range of topics including geog-

raphy, history, and the classics.

While we were there, Beth's toe

started to hurt because of a nasty blis-

ter. This may or may not have been

caused by the wearing of new and not

well worn shoes. We sought help

from a security guard who took us

from the main museum to a small first

aid room. There he applied a bandage

and she was as good as new. It was

our first taste of the superlative health

care in the United Kingdom. America

could learn a thing or two. And it

would not be our last.

The Kings’ Books

THE WALK TO GRAY’S INN

More Shameless Self-Portraiture during lunch

THE WALK TO GRAY’S INN

The walk to the Inns of Court

F rom the British Museum we walked eastward,

hopefully to find the famous Inns of Court.

While they were somewhat hard to find, we

were ultimately successful.

On the way, we had lunch at a small pub near the mu-

seum. The most interesting thing about this pub was the

cigarette machine, in which the cigarettes cost six

pounds a pack. SIX POUNDS A PACK! Converted to

American dollars, each pack cost almost $12! It was ab-

solutely flabbergasting, and we were quite pleased that

we did not start smoking, as we nearly started again on

Saturday night.

Did I Say Cigarettes?

The Entry to the Hall of Gray’s Inn

GRAY’S INN

The hall at Gray’s Inn

Souvenir Hunting

GRAY’S INN

The first inn that we came upon was Gray’s

Inn. Its foundation several hundred years

ago is still shrouded in mystery. It is remi-

niscent of the typical old college quadran-

gles and courts of Oxford or Cambridge, and

each contains a dining hall, library, chapel,

and office accommodations considered es-

sential to the medieval lawyer. These are

part law school, part guild and part office

space. Some of the practices were that of the

paper pushing solicitors, while other offices

belong to the trial practice barristers. Ameri-

can lawyers do both. The Brits do not.

Kicked out of Lincoln

GRAY’S INN

Grey’s Inn Governors Room

We eventually found ourselves able to get into

the complex containing the dining hall, which

was magnificent. It was a typical sixteenth cen-

tury hall, almost identical to the one at Trinity

College, Cambridge. The original was built in the

16th century and was leveled by the Germans

during the Blitz. But the reconstruction was suc-

cessful, and you would swear that you were in a

medieval building. There were portraits and

coats of arms surrounding the hall, which seated

approximately 180 people at long tables, ten feet

long. The windows contain the stained-glass coat

of arms of various barristers and solicitors who

had been members. We went up into the balcony

in the back, originally designed for musicians,

where we took pictures, and hunted for souve-

GRAY’S INN

Souvenir Hunting

nirs.

We ten found ourselves in one of the conference rooms, probably of the head honchos, as well

as a room which contained the robes of all the members.

We then made our way to Lincoln's Inn, which survived the Blitz, and was still original late

Tudor. When we found our way into the hall, we were stopped by a rather stern English bar-

rister, and told we were not welcome and we would have to leave. I suspect that my short

pants and Pinehurst wind shirt were dead giveaway that we did not belong. Come to find out,

the Brits consider shorts on men to be in bad form. Deal with it, Winston! It was, though, one

of the few times we were not able to infiltrate a target of our guerilla tourism. I have a feeling

we will see Lincoln Inn Hall someday!

We were, however, able to find the Inn’s chapel, which was quite magnificent and dated from

the 1400s. The British poet John Donne was once the chaplain there. The stained-glass was

quite amazing and contained the coat of arms of various barristers and solicitors who were

members of the Inn going back centuries. We sat and listened to a woman practice a song with

piano accompaniment, apparently for the next service. Her voice sounded beautiful in the

chapel, while we soaked in the history of it all.

We made our way across the street to the Courts of Justice, where we arrived just at closing

time, and told to come back the next day. We did not make it back during our visit and it will

no doubt be one of our stops the next time we come to London.

After that, we found our way to the Middle Temple and the Inner Temple, both Inns of Court

as well. Sadly, the only building we could infiltrate was the library of the Middle Temple. It

was an excellent law library, with books going all the way back to the 18th century.

Sir Winston

GRAY’S INN

Grey’s Inn

GRAY’S INN

High Table at Grey’s Inn

GRAY’S INN

Chapel at Lincoln’s Inn

LINCOLN’S INN

Sir Thomas More

LINCOLN’S INN

The Train to Canterbury

CANTERBURY

T uesday, July 10, 2007. We made our Chauceresque pilgrimage to the ancient town of

Canterbury, and its famous cathedral. Geoffrey would have been proud, as we have

our own tale to tell. We call it “The Tourists’ Tale.”

As background, the cathedral at Canterbury is the epicenter of Christianity in Eng-

land, and has been in existence in one form or another since St. Augustine's time in the end of

the 6th century. The current cathedral was started in the early 12th century by various use of

gothic architecture in an English church can be seen here, in the quire, which was re-

modeled with gothic, or pointed, windows in about 1170. It was the first use of a

pointed window arch, as opposed to a rounded, Romanesque window arch. Very sim-

ply, this small innovation finally allowed the construction of taller buildings with lar-

ger windows. This was a complete paradigm shift in the construction of church build-

ings in western Europe, and would hold sway for centuries to come. After all, they did-

n’t have electricity.

But the bigger story here is the story of Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, and

at various times either a friend or enemy, since boyhood, of a certain Henry Anjou,

who in adulthood sat on the throne of England as Henry II. Seems the two had serious

disconnects on various church versus state questions when they became adults. Even-

tually a few royal thugs made the trip to Canterbury, found the Archbishop, and with a

sword took off the crown of his head, leaving him to quickly bleed to death in the north

CANTERBURY

Canterbury Cathedral

Night Entrance, Canterbury Cathedral

Details of the Canterbury Cathedral Gate-

CANTERBURY

Cathedral Details and Door. An

Expectant Graduate

First English Gothic Building

CANTERBURY

Thomas Becket

CANTERBURY

transept of the cathedral…oh yea, did I mention this happened ON CHRISTMAS DAY!.

..CHRISTMAS DAY?? …hard to believe, but true. Anyway, Merry Freaking Christmas, Tommy!

His people collected that piece of skull and other remnants of the Archbishop, bundled them

up and constructed a magnificent shrine in the back of the cathedral. It was claimed to have

great healing power, and thus attracting pilgrims from across England. The granite steps in the

aisles are worn with huge central groves, caused by the millions of medieval pilgrims climbing

them…-on their knees! And it was Chaucer who wrote his famous collection of tales told by

Medieval Canterbury

CANTERBURY

pilgrims making the journey to Canterbury and the shrine to Thomas Becket, which make up

the famous Canterbury Tales. It is the first important piece of literature written in English. Like

it or not, it is a big deal in the history and development of the English language.

So, back to our tale. We make the train ride from London and arrive at Canterbury about

ninety minutes later. The town retains some of its medieval appearance, although there are

now Starbucks and Gap stores in some of the 14th century storefronts. In the center of the old

town is the gatehouse opening to the grounds of the Cathedral, and it retains all of its histori-

cal charm, including the coats of arms of various princes of England, and especially the Tudor

monarchs, over the gate.

The chance to make this ancient pilgrimage was a once in a life time event. Canterbury Cathe-

dral was one of the primary objectives of this trip. All that, plus it took about an hour and a

half to ride the train from London to Canterbury, and about 75 bucks American . We were

very excited to see the cathedral. We had a bunch of energy invested in this, our pilgrimage.

We did not get there on our knees, but it clearly required its sacrifices.

When we arrived at the gatehouse, where you pay the admission fee, we soon realized that the

Episcopal HQ is Closed!

CANTERBURY

The Ancient Cathedral

CANTERBURY

University of Kent, domiciled in Canterbury, was holding its commencement exercises for the

year, and that the entire nave of the cathedral was closed to the public. CLOSED TO THE PUB-

LIC? It did not register at first. But it quickly did and I was about to go ape shit on the poor

ticket girl. What the hell is that all about? I kept my cool, but inside I was boiling. It just didn’t

seem fair, or even believable. The only sections of the cathedral which we could legitimately

get into were the crypt and the Lady Chapel, known now as the Trinity Chapel, at the back of

the cathedral. We were not sure it was worth the admission fee, which was not discounted.

Needless to say, this was very disappointing, and we stewed over it while we ate our lunch,

neither of us saying a word. “The one freaking day we come to Canterbury, it’s closed!’

We commiserated silently over our pub lunch with the locals, them drinking beer and telling

lies at the noon hour, and us the bitter, puritanical Americans, meditating on our misery over a

A Vow to Penetrate

CANTERBURY

closed cathedral and a diet coke. We resolved to each other that no matter what, we would

keep trying, probing for the weakest point of the barricades, and that sooner or later we would

make our trip to Canterbury worthwhile, even if it be by stealth and deception. We had plenty

of time. After all, this was the Myers Family they were screwing with. We are bred to infiltrate.

Somehow, someway, we were going to see the cathedral and turn this day around.

CANTERBURY

Our first good omen: Hear No Evil, See No Evil, and Speak No Evil.

The Nave

CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL

W e went back to the cathedral and paid

the twenty bucks admission, without

any guarantee of seeing the inside,

and just started walking around the

place, looking for all the doors and passageways, and

identifying the weak points in security. We were cas-

ing Canterbury Cathedral, and there would be a way!

We had all the time in the world.

We started in the crypt, as everything else seemed

quite secure. It contained various graves and small

chapels. It is also quite musty. It is the oldest part of

the structure, and goes back to Saxon times. I was si-

lent and buried in history as I walked through that

Saxon maze.

We came out of the crypt and into the Trinity Chapel,

which is the back part of the cathedral. The stained-

glass was magnificent. Sometime King Henry IV

(Bolingbroke) and his queen are buried there, the first

of the Lancaster kings, and the only monarch en-

tombed in the ancient church. This is because when

Royal Tombs at Canterbury


he died, there was a cult devoted to Beckett, and Henry

wanted to be buried next to him. There too was King Henry

IV’s uncle, Edward the Black Prince, who was the son of Ed-

ward III and heir to the throne. The sons of Edward III were

some badass Plantagenets, who hated the French, and possi-

bly each other. The Black Prince was the eldest, and heir to the

crown. He died, however, shortly before his father, and so his

son, Richard II, acceded to the throne. That did not sit well

The Trinity Chapel


with Richard’s cousin, Henry Bolingbroke,

who believed he was better suited to serve as

king, and usurped his cousin’s crown while he

was away. To this day, the Black Prince’s 14th

century armor and saddle hang above his or-

nate funeral effigy, which is found on few

other tombs, the most notable being Henry V’s

tomb at Westminster.

We then found a small opening in one of the

barriers separating the Trinity Chapel from the

rest of the cathedral, and made our way

through it, acting naïve in case we were

caught. We were almost immediately con-

fronted by one of the clergy. It was another

woman priest. Busted! She looked concerned.

“Can’t you see the barricade, Sir?” I immedi-


St. Margaret Appears

These pages: a side chapel dedicated tto war dead from

centuries ago; below, a view from the crossing up into

the tower

The Site of the Martyrdom

The Side Door used by the King’s Men


The Site of St. Thomas Becket’s Martyrdom

The Site of the Martyrdom


ately, instinctively, started in with the hard luck

tale…”all the way from America,” blah blah

blah…”wife an English teacher”,…Blah blah…

“Need to see the Chaucer sites or perish”, blah,

blah…all the obvious pleadings of locked out

tourists.

Lucky for us, she had a secret halo. Her name

was Margaret, whom we have since beautified

and canonized in the Church of St. Beth and St.

Jon, and renamed “St. Margaret of the Corri-

dor.” St. Margaret said, “I really shouldn’t do

this, but Follow Me.” And follow we did.

St. Margaret gave us a private tour, first to the

spot where Thomas Becket had his head sliced

apart with a heavy sword, a Christian martyr

murdered by agents of Henry II Anjou, some-

time King of the Realm. Oddly, the King and the

Archbishop were childhood friends. But their

A Private Tour


This page: funeral memorial to Archbishop Chichele top, the Black Prince below

friendship died as each became the leaders of

their respective realms. I was able to pry loose

a small flake of rock used on the stairs for our

“Rock Collection.” Think of it…that flake was

probably a witness to the martyrdom of the

first rock star of the English Church, standing

firm against the wishes of a power hungry

monarch. It would happen countless times

thereafter, usually with the same result.

She then led us to the area where his shrine

existed before it was demolished by agents of

Henry VIII during the mid-16th century Eng-

lish Reformation. The spot where the shrine

stood is now marked by a solitary candle. It

was interesting to see all of the other hapless

tourists banished from the nave due to the

University of Kent’s commencement, watch-

ing us as we were led into this most sacred

area, past the barriers, by our Episcopal shep-

herd, St. Maggie.

An Academic Procession Forms


St. Maggie of the Corridor took the time to talk to us about the history of the chapel, and it was

as if we had our own private tour guide into sections of the cathedral which the ordinary pub-

lic was not able to see. Perfect. My kind of day. And it was about to get better.

I love a good academic possession, and the commencement exercises turned out to be a plus. A

huge plus, actually. While the crowd of happy parents gathered in the giant nave, clutching

their admission tickets and programs, the academics from the University were assembling

back in the Trinity Chapel, next to the fifteenth century alabaster tomb of Cardinal Henry

Chichele. (Chichele was in the very first class of students at the New College, Oxford when it

opened its doors in 1379. He became great friends with Henry V and became Archbishop of

Canterbury. He also founded All Souls College, Oxford, one of the finest institutions in the

world.) We then sat in the Chapel and watched while the various big wigs at the University

gathered for their procession into the Commencement ceremonies, all dressed in academic re-

galia. There were gowns and hoods from many different universities including Oxford and

Cambridge, Edinburgh, and the University of London. There were also a few American style

doctoral robes and hoods, which seem dark and somber when compared to its colorful English

counterparts.

We took another small tour of the cathedral’s precincts, and made our way back at 5:30 for

Chichele’s Tomb


University of Kent faculty members preparing for commencement at the back of the cathedral

Evensong, which was held in the quire, while in

another portion of the cathedral, commence-

ment exercises for a different department of the

University were preparing to begin again.

We take these incredible structures for granted.

But think about it: They are made of solid stone,

and were constructed without the first drop of

fossil fuel or electricity. They were literally

made by hand.

Really, cathedrals were the domed stadiums of

medieval times. Under its roof, the community

could gather, protected from the elements, and

witness ritual and music. Imagine what the mu-

sic sounded like to an audience unfamiliar with

recorded music. It must have been magical. This

has to be the closest medievals got to a Grateful

Dead show! It was all very beautiful and one

certainly felt a part of history in such an iconic

venue.

After evensong, we went to a local restaurant


Evensong at Canterbury

and had our first sampling of fish and chips. Sadly, the afternoon cook did not defrost the fish

and the batter did not stick to the fish fillets. While they were certainly tasty, they were very

heavy in the stomach for several hours afterward.

On the train ride back, we sat with a woman named Victoria from Lithuania who was in Eng-

land working at a nursery school. She said she spoke 3 1/2 different languages. She had a per-

fect English accent. It was interesting to hear her impressions of both England as well as

America.

On our way back to the hotel, Beth mumbled something about “damn infections. “ I tried to

ignore it, hoping whatever it was would resolve overnight.

The First of Many Brass Eagle Lecterns


This Page: Detail of the Entrance Gate to

Canterbury Cathedral built in the mid-15th

century, showing the arms of both Royal and

ecclesiastical supporters.

Front door to the Rectory.



This Page: detail of carved doorway in the

front gate.

Beth in the cloisters



A nd so ended our pilgrimage to

Canterbury Cathedral. It is a

remarkable place, muddied with

history. We had our ups and

downs, but as it turns out, everything

worked out just fine. We hope to visit

again someday, and we owe it to ourselves

to do that since we had never actually

been in the nave of the Cathedral. It’s al-

ways nice to leave some stones unturned

W ednesday, July 11, 2007, Beth

was not feeling well and real-

ized that she was indeed suf-

fering from a bladder infec-

tion. It was clear that things were going to

get bad. The only question was “how

bad?” How bad physically? How bad trip

wise? And how bad on the pocketbook? The

answer could easily have been BAD, all the

way around.

She went to the pharmacy and was directed to the local Royal Brompton Hospital, where she

was tested and the bladder infection was confirmed. She was given various antibiotics, and the

entire affair cost us just under $12 for the medical care and the prescription. Elapsed time:

about 3.5 hours. Effect on Trip? None. Thank you, St. Maggie of the Corridor, for your contin-

ued blessings. The United States could learn something about health care from the British.

HOSPITAL

Hospital

W e dressed up and went to the

Globe Theater, which sits on

the southern bank of the

Thames River across from St.

Paul’s Cathedral, where we watched

Othello, the Moor of Venice. Because the

Globe is a recreation of Shakespeare’s

original, the seats were very rustic, and

hard, and the play lasted approximately 3

1/2 hours. Renaissance Englishmen

clearly had asses which were far more cal-

loused and resilient than the asses of mod-

ern men.

MEMO TO THE BARD: It could have been about 90 minutes shorter.

THE GLOBE THEATER

Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre

W e went to the National Liberal

Club in Whitehall after the

play, right on the

Thames. The Liberal Party

was a powerful force in the late 19th and early

20th centuries, but hit the skids in the modern

era (but arguably making a comeback.)The

Club downsized in recent years, selling por-

tions of its grand clubhouse to other concerns,

but it still has a large library, a beautiful bar

and dining room, a gargantuan oval marble

staircase, guest rooms, and several committee

meeting rooms. It has a long, tree-lined terrace

overlooking the Embankment Park, where

members are served food and drink in season.

It was the club of the Grand Old Man, William

Gladstone, and the young English bulldog,

Winston Churchill. We sat on the terrace over-

looking the park and enjoyed light beverages.

The National Liberal Club is a fun place. Amd

the same bartender as 2007! We will be back!

We made our way back to South Kensington

and the Cranley, where we ate…where else?…

Garfunkel's!

NATIONAL LIBERAL CLUB

The National Liberal Club

Gladstone and Clegg


The Library at NLC


The NLC

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

The Medieval Abbey

Arial and Blueprint views of the Abbey and its Precincts

F riday, July 13, 2007 we

awoke and had breakfast as

usual at Garfunkel's. It seems

to be a pattern. Or just con-

venient. After that we took the Tube to

Westminster Station to hit Westmin-

ster Abbey. This church is perhaps the

most famous in all of England. It is

actually not a cathedral as that word is

typically defined; it is instead a

“Collegiate Church” It is filled to the brim with graves and memorials, to the great and worthy

individuals in British history, including about 17 ruling kings and queens of the realm.

After paying the $30 admission, we entered the Abbey through the north porch entrance,

where memorials to military and government hero sat. We then came to the North Ambula-

tory which worked around the top arch of the apse. In the middle of this semi-circular walk is

St. Edward’s Chapel, named after the Saxon king, Edward the Confessor. This chapel is where

many of the early Plantagenet kings of England are buried, circling St. Edwards shrine in the

middle. This would include Henry III, Edward I, his grandson Edward III, Richard II, the

great Lancastrian Henry V, as well as most of their Queens. Unfortunately, we were unable to

get close to the shrine as that was apparently reserved for VIPs. I will make it there someday.

Immediately in front of the high altar was the exact location where all the kings and queens of

England have been crowned at their coronations for nearly a thousand years. Beth and I stood

The Abbey Cloisters

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

The Lady Chapel

in this exact spot. Nothing happened. Clicked heels...nothing.

The Abbey holds approximately 2000 people in regular seats if all of the seats are set

up. However, during the coronation of monarchs, bleachers are erected and up to 8000 people

are jam packed into the Abbey to witness the event. After all, the chief purpose of the corona-

tion was to make sure the true monarch was crowned, and that everyone there recognized and

agreed that the right person was being crowned. Not a concern nowadays, but it was a huge

concern in medieval times.

To the east of the apse is the Henry VII Lady Chapel. It was originally built by the great Tudor,

Henry VII, to house the tomb of his pretended ancestor, Henry VI. As there was a cult calling

for that dead king’s sainthood, it was easy for the parsimonious Tudor to highjack state funds

for its construction. It has one of the finest fan vaults ceiling in all of England, and the world.

As fate would have it, and as Henry Tudor probably predicted, the cult of Henry VI died out.

Who then to entomb in this, the finest tomb in all of England? Why, Henry Tudor, of course!

And it is a beautiful tomb indeed. Within the protective brass grill work is a large chest made

of black Purbeck marble. Atop it lie the recumbent gilded effigies of Henry Tudor (Henry VII)

and Elizabeth York. It was cast by an Italian artist named Torrigiano, and is probably pretty

accurate in appearance, at least for the King’s effigy. Their marriage was the event which

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Nazi Damage

The Nave and North Transept

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Newton’s Tomb

This page: current and historical views of the tomb of King

Edward the confessor, who was later canonized.

Opposite page: different views of the tomb of King Henry III,

who in 1230 started the construction of the current Abbey

and dedicated it to his hero, King/St. Edward the confessor.

In fact, Henry III named his son Edward in honor of his

hero, who went on to become the great warrior king Edward

I, who is known principally for sacking both the Welsh and

Scots

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Dead Kings

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Tomb of Henry III

Henry VII Chapel panorama; the carved

effigy of Mary Queen of Scots who was

brought (in two pieces!) to the Abbey for

reburial by her son, King James I. One won-

ders if perhaps Prince William, upon being

made Kingin the 20 or so years, would move

his mother’s mortal remains to the Abbey for

reburial with the Kings and Queens of Eng-

land.

I would.

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Royal Tombs

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Royal Tombs

Top: the fan vaulting in Henry

VII Chapel, arguably the best

in the world.

Various historical views of the

Abbey, including a view into

the burial crypt of Henry VII’s

tomb, which is when they dis-

covered that King James I was

also buried with his grandfa-

ther Henry and his grand-

mother Elizabeth of York

Below: an exterior view of

King Henry VII’s Chapel

which is located on the far

East side of the Abbey

united the Lancaster and York claims to the

throne of England, all stemming from Edward

III’s youngest son, John of Gaunt, who sired fami-

lies with two women, and descendents from both

families have ruled as monarchs. A Brit version of

the Hatfields and the McCoys, except they were

royalty, not hillbillys. (little difference)

It is there that we also saw the tomb of Elizabeth I

and Mary I, the sisters, who are buried together,

but who were separated by religion during their

lifetimes in the aftermath of the Reformation, and

the bloody legacy of their mutual father, Henry

VIII. On the other side of Henry VII’s chapel are

buried all the Stuart Kings of England, as well as

their matriarchs, the beheaded Mary, Queen of

Scots, and Henry Tudor’s mother, the incompara-

ble Lady Margaret Beaufort. She engineered the

Tudor usurpation of the throne, and was clearly a

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Survives the Blitz

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Poets Corner

Different views of the southern transept,

familiarly known as “Poets’ Corner.”

master manipulator. She is highly

regarded even today.

After that, we proceeded around

the South Ambulatory around the

south side of the Confessor’s Tomb,

to Poets’ Corner, where there are

graves and memorials to some of

the world's most famous authors

and actors. Most notable was the

grave of Geoffrey Chaucer, as well

as the memorial to William Shakespeare. But there are also tributes to Sir Laurence Oliver,

Mark Twain, and David Garrick, to name only a few.

We strolled through the cloisters which surrounded a fine garden, and walked through the

Chapter House which was built by Henry III in medieval times as a meeting room for the

clergy of Westminster, and at various times the room has served as the home of the English

Parliament, as well as a storage room for documents up until late 19th century. Much of the

stained glass was blown out during the Blitz, and the new stained glass is brightly colored and

depicts the Arms of several loyal subjects. It looks old, but is relatively new.

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

The Dark Cloister

Westminster Abbey is nature crystallized into a conventional form by man, with his sorrows, his joys, his failures, and his seeking for the Great Spirit. It is a frozen requiem, with a na-tion's prayer ever in dumb music ascending.

M. E. W. Sherwood

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

The Cloisters

The Abbey suffered significant damage during

World War II. One bomb hit the bulls eye and

nailed the central crossing, the place where mon-

archs are crowned. It was no doubt targeted by

the Germans due to its symbolism to the Brits. It

is nothing short of amazing that it has been recon-

structed in such a way that one would never rec-

ognize the sections destroyed during the Blitz-

krieg.

We also visited St. Margret's, which is immedi-

ately next door to the Abbey. How fitting, they

named it after St. Maggie of the Corridor! It is a

fine old church dating from the 17th century and

contains many graves and memorials. It, too, was

damaged during the Blitz, but again, you would

never know it.

On Friday evening we purchased a

roasted chicken and other deli

foods from the Waitrose and took

the Tube to St. James Park. There

we had a small improvised picnic

in the park, on a beautiful clear and

cool evening. We could see West-

minster Palace (not Abbey) and

hear Big Ben chime the evening

hours. We shopped around Picca-

dilly and returned to our hotel.

A panorama of the magnificent Henry VII Chapel. The colored

stained glass in the rear window was put into place after World War

II, when the original window was blown out by Nazi bombs

Originally, the entire Chapel was lighted by colored stained glass.

However, these are found to be too showy for the Puritans, who re-

placed the original colored stained glass with simple clear glass.

The colored flags each represent a member of the Order of the Bath,

which calls this Chapel its home. It is much like the Chapel at Win-

dsor, which is used as the headquarters for the Order of the Garter.

While the Prince of Wales is responsible for running the Bath, it is the

Queen who alone chooses members of the Order of the Garter.

WESTMINSTER ABBEY

Tudor Fan Vaulting

"And they shall then behold the scene around

In wasted age, in antique beauty, faded;

Our great Cathedral fane in silence bound."

Whitehead's "Legends of London."

T hursday, July 12, 2007 we hit the Tower

of London, which was the first official

residence of the current line of British

monarchs starting with William the Con-

queror. It is much larger now, after several enlarge-

ments over the past thousand years. It has served

more as a prison and armory in the last few centu-

ries, and it is most famous for housing the mon-

arch’s jewels and regalia, including the various

crowns of state, the oldest dating back to the Resto-

ration in 1661. The earlier bejeweled crowns were

seized and destroyed by the Parliamentarians in the

aftermath of the Civil War. Thank you, Oliver

Cromwell… Dick. (But I understand your point!)

After a brief walk through the Tower’s precincts, we

sat in the chapel of St. Peter, where they claim 1500

headless bodies are buried beneath its stone pave-

ment, one’s remains being deposited there after be-

ing execution at the block. This number has to be a

gross exaggeration, as there were only seven execu-

tions which actually took place in the Tower, and

THE TOWER OF LONDON

Headless Bodies in the Tower

The Tower from the air: One can

see the various security rings which

enclose the central area, and were

added over the course of several

hundred years. Before modern war-

fare, it had to be a pretty tough nut

to crack.

three of those were queens.

(Boleyn, Gray, Howard…see ya, girls!). There may be 1500 bodies, but they aren’t all headless.

It does make a good story, though. The Boleyn headstone is on the high alter, but it is covered

by a communion table. They have to pull the table cover up to see the stone. It is hard to tell if

they like her or not. She was the mother of Elizabeth I, arguably the best monarch the Brits

ever produced, so cut old Bessie some slack, I say!

Outside of the chapel we saw the site where Boleyn and several others had their heads lopped

off at the block. There is a beautiful monument, capped with a crystal pillow…the pillow they

would let these soon-to-be headless queens to rest their shaking knees as the knelt and passed

into the great unknown. We also saw one of the blocks used for the last beheading which oc-

curred in the 18th Century. There were LOTS of axe marks on the ridge that one laid their head, each with

THE TOWER OF LONDON

The Bloody Tower

its own story. It was rather gruesome.

.

We then hit the so-called “Bloody Tower,”

which is where builders discovered the bod-

ies of the young teen Edward V and his

brother the Duke of York. They were killed in

1483, and their skeletons were found by

workmen while doing renovations back in

the 1600s. The two were allegedly killed by

either Richard III, or Henry VII, or one of

their cronies. It depends on who you talk to.

Historians seem to be unevenly divided on

the issue, with the majority favoring the Rich-

ard III theory. But Henry Tudor knew a thing

or two about usurping power, and had the

motive as well. So, who knows?

We left the castle and visited Tower Hill which

is the site of public executions for people who

THE TOWER OF LONDON

Tower Hill and More Dead Bodies

Opposite: Traitors Gate, which opens up to

the River and through which enemies of the

state were transported to the Tower. Site of

numerous beheadings.

Above: columns located in St. John’s

Chapel.Royal Canons and one Beefeater

did not have great favor with the king, which is located outside

the Tower walls. We also viewed all of the crown jewels, including the Imperial Crown of State

which contains the largest diamond in the world. The display also had various coronation ac-

coutrements, such as punch bowls, chalices, and maces, all made of solid gold. Most only date

back to the Restoration(1661), as the originals were destroyed by Cromwell and the Parliamen-

tarians during the Civil War and the Interregnum.

Finally, we visited the dungeon in the bottom of the Bloody Tower, which was re-created with

the various instruments used for the torture of enemies during the reign of the early kings of

England. The Tower was also used as a prison for the Nazi, Rudolf Hess, before being trans-

ferred to Nuremburg Prison.

The Tower was pretty cool. It would have been nice for there to have been fewer people, but

that’s the way it goes, I guess.

THE TOWER OF LONDON

The Nazi Prison

THE TOWER OF LONDON

Too Many People at the Tower

Opposite: the central aisle and high

alter of St. Johns Chapel.

This page: stained-glass Located in

the Chapel and a carving displayed in

the general exhibits area

THE TOWER OF LONDON

The White Palace

THE OXFORD CAMBRIDGE CLUB, LONDON

The Oxford Cambridge Club

The front entrance of the Oxford and Cambridge Club, located on Pall Mall, London. The blue crest of Oxford and

the Red Cross of Cambridge topped the entrance. The windows to the left Are in the Morning Room, and the win-

dow to the right is the formal dining room. The Windows above are parts of the library.

S aturday, July 14, 2007 In the

morning we packed our bags and

made our way from The Cranley

to the Oxford Cambridge Club

(O&C, or The Oxbridge) in St. James. O&C

is reciprocal with the Columbia Club of

Indianapolis, and thus we were able to use

its facilities. After we checked in our lug-

gage, we went off exploring the St. James

area, and all the different clubs, including

White's, Boodles, Brooks, and the Carlton.

This is not to say that we went inside. But

it was fun viewing the exteriors. We Then


Clubland

returned to the club andexplored exten-

sively the O&C, including its four fine li-

braries and ample supply of free station-

ery, just ripe for the picking. In the base-

ment was a large billiards room, as well as

private dining rooms. We had dinner in

The formal dining room which dates from

the early 19th century, and didn’t have

electric lights until the mid Twentieth cen-

tury. To this day, members may request

candles on the tables, just as tradition

would dictate. There were old paintings of

ancient aristocrats and royals affiliated

with the two universities, covering the

walls. Luckily, there was a large group of

An Expensive Room


people at the table next to us, and therefore

the dining room seemed very lively, despite

the fact that there were very few present, and

those were mostly old men, scattered about

the club either sleeping in leather chairs, or

possibly dead. Although we had a nice time at

the club, the truth of the matter is that the

rooms at the O&C leave something to be de-

sired. We slept in a very small room, no bigger

than a couple of elevators, in a bed which

must have dated from the early 19th century.

Not a very good bargain, and for a mere $500

per night! On the plus side, we can say that we

stayed at one of the oldest, most exclusive gen-

tlemen's clubs in London.

Quid Pro Quo.

The Morning Room


The Parlor


The beautiful library of the Oxford Cambridge Club. I

would like to die in this room, and not some nursing

home. Not sure how the membership would take it,

probably not well.


The Oxbridge Library


The Oxbridge Library

The Formal Dining Room of the Oxford Cambridge Club

Concluding thoughts about London

On to Oxford

OXFORD’S ORIGINS

Oxford is located approximately 60 miles northwest of London, on the Thames River.

It is a town of ancient origins. It served as a major crossroad, and offered a fine ford of

the River Cherwell, through which many a Saxon used to cross his cattle and oxen.

Over the years it has been attacked by Vikings, served as a major commercial center,

and provided a royal enclave to a host of monarchs.

More importantly, though, is that Oxford was home to several significant religious in-

stitutions, including an abbey, a priory, several monastic houses of one order or the

other, countless churches, some next door to one another, and ultimately a Cathedral.

These religious institutions trained its members in its particular brand of religious or-

thodoxy and dogma. Eventually, reputations developed with certain houses and cer-

tain teachers, and there came a point when parents began sending their sons to Oxford

not so they could be monks or priests, but so they would be able to read and write,

and assist either the crown or church in the administration of the realm. Thus, stu-

dents not entering the priesthood became known as the “secular clergy.”

Sometime in the 11th century a couple individuals became very well known and

were sought out as “masters.” Soon, certain masters became associated with certain

“halls, “ and the halls ultimately evolved into the Oxford college of today. ” It is

about this time that the University recognizes its origin, in the late eleventh century.

THE COLLEGES

What is different about Oxford from American colleges is that the so called

“University of Oxford” is composed of about 40 different, independent colleges

which are composed of anywhere from 200 to 1000 students apiece. Every single stu-

dent and every single faculty member is a member of one of the 40 colleges. While

the University does maintain certain academic buildings and the great Bodleian Li-

brary, the rest is maintained by the colleges. And they are protective of their treas-

ures. Nearly all of the colleges are secured by former military personnel, and access

to and from the property is only to be found at certain gates, or gatehouses. With some

exceptions, one does not just walk into an Oxford college to stroll its grounds or tour

its buildings. But they can be penetrated if one is polite, knowledgeable, and patient.

Several were founded during medieval times, several more during the Renaissance

and the Enlightenment, and several more in the 19th and 20th centuries. Some are

quite famous, others you have never heard of. Some were founded by kings, queens,

bishops, and wealthy benefactors who wished to create an eternal group of young men

who would pray daily into perpetuity for the founders’ departed souls. Others were

founded by religious houses or community organizations. Each has its own story, its

own treasures, its own academic reputation.

And each of these colleges is independently owned, has its own property composed of

several acres, and its own set of buildings, which are primarily composed of quadran-

gles. That means that each college has its own chapel, its own dining hall, its own li-

brary, student accommodations, and athletic amenities . Some of these buildings are

hundreds of years old, and some were built within the last 10 years. These buildings

are usually one of two styles: either some form of gothic architecture, some form of

classical architecture, and even a couple buildings are an unusual combination of both.

Also, some colleges have more money than other colleges. Sometimes, a lot more

money. The wealthier colleges not only have ample reserves of cash, but they also own

significant tracts of real estate all over England, which create a steady source of reve-

nue for the college. Many of these properties were given to the college at its founding,

and have been owned ever since and providing a steady source of money. Some have

art treasures and historical artifacts comparable to any major museum. You can usu-

ally tell which colleges have a lot of money based upon the condition of their oldest

buildings. If the oldest buildings are well maintained, you can bet that the college has a

healthy endowment. Some are so famous that they charge an admission fee, for exam-

ple Christ Church, which has been used in all the Harry Potter movies. Thousands of

visitors a day pay the $8 charge to see the famous hall, the front quadrangle and the art

museum.

Each college has a head, whom is known variously from college to college as either a

warden, master, president, principal, dean, provost or rector —based upon the dictates

of the individuals or organizations which founded that particular college. Many of

these heads are at Oxford after long and productive careers in business or the church,

and some work their ways through the faculty ranks. Also, educators are known as tu-

tors, readers, lecturers, or professors based upon their merit and tenure. All are re-

ferred to generally as Fellowes.

GOTHIC VERSUS CLASSICAL ARCHITECTURAL STYLES

To summarize, the college and university buildings at Oxford are probably the best

collection of pre-industrial age buildings in the world. To understand them architec-

turally, one needs to understand the differences between gothic and classical architec-

ture.

Gothic is a term used to describe a style originated in France but mastered by the Eng-

lish. It is what we Americans know as a traditional style of church, with pointy win-

dows, bell towers and a lack of exact bilateral symmetry. In England, any building-

church, school, offices, palaces, government buildings-can be found it the gothic style.

The style hit England in about 1170, in the Quire of Canterbury Cathedral by a French

bishop named Lanfranc, and continued as the primary style of a public building

through 1600, and then was resurrected in the late 19th century which is known as

Gothic revival. Parliament building in London is the prime example of Gothic architec-

ture built during the revival of the 1800s. Other than churches, in America about the

only place one will find Gothic buildings are on university campuses that can afford to

build such highly ornamental buildings. Some American colleges with significant

gothic buildings include Yale, Princeton, Duke, and the University of Chicago. Many

state universities had large gothic libraries that were sadly raised in favor of more

modern buildings in the late twentieth century. Our loss.

In about 1600 Gothic became a worn out style of architecture and the classical style of

architecture from Rome and Greece was used by colleges in new buildings constructed

between 1650 and 1850. The style of architecture is the type that most all American

governmental buildings have used since time immemorial. The Capitol building , the

White House, the Supreme Court, the Lincoln Memorial, and countless statehouses…

are all of the so called “classical” style.

THE MEDIEVAL HALL

E ngland is a country with many halls, some centuries old, and all of them beautiful in

their own way. The tradition was started by the Anglo Saxon invaders of the sixth

century. Their origins on the continent are obscure, but it seems logical that they

evolved from the Viking long houses. The oldest English hall still in existence is

Westminster Hall, which was started by William II (Rufus) in about 1100.

Each of the Oxbridge colleges also contain a Hall in which the members eat daily. They too can

be ancient or modern, big or small, extravagant or quaint. There are some that seat a relatively

small number of people, while others can accommodate large crowds. Some are without a

question the most beautiful rooms in all of England, and arguably the world.

COMPARATIVE HALLS

All Souls College, Oxford 1720

New College, Oxford 1380 St. John’s College, Cambridge 1515

Magdalen College, Oxford 1460

COMPARATIVE HALLS

Jesus College, Oxford 1600

Trinity College, Cambridge 1600

St. John’s College, Oxford 1430

Christ Church, Oxford 1525 Exeter College, Oxford 1620

COMPARATIVE HALLS

Jesus College Christ Church Magdalen College

Merton College

Trinity College, Oxon New College All Souls College

Exeter College St. John’s College

COMPARATIVE CHAPELS

THE OXBRIDGE COLLEGE CHAPEL

E ach of the many colleges at both Oxford and Cam-

bridge have a chapel for the use of the faculty and

student body. These chapels can be ancient, or rela-

tively new. They can be quite large and magnificent,

or small and quaint. Some are in the Gothic style of architec-

ture, while others draw upon classical architecture. Most con-

tain memorials to college worthies, and a few contain the si-

lent tombs of men dedicated to their College. Many contain

treasurers related to the history of the college. In any event,

each chapel is an individual treasure. While they may appear

similar upon a first inspection, further study will reveal the

subtle differences among them.

Clare College

Kings College St Johns, Cantab Trinity College, Cantab

Corpus Christi Sussex College

COMPARATIVE CHAPELS

S unday, June 15, 2007 We repacked our

bags, for the second time in as many

days, and headed to the Piccadilly

Tube, and from there to Paddington

Station to catch the train to Oxford. As we

walked to the station, we cut through St. James

Square, which was very quiet at 8 on a Sunday

morning. There were lots of expensive cars

parked around the perimeter of the fenced in

gardens, and wonderful old town houses sur-

rounding the gardens. The homes originally be-

longed to the ultra-wealthy of London, and in-

cluded its fair share of royals. Later the homes

were converted into club houses and libraries.

Now they seem to be London HQ for large in-

ternational companies that can afford the prici-

est real estate in the realm.

We were excited, and it seemed like the trip

CHRIST CHURCH, OXFORD

The Train to Oxford

Mansfield Col-

Christ Church

All Souls College

Bodleian Library

Magdalen College

St. John’s College

Oriel College

New College

Pembroke Col-

Merton College

Balliol College

Radcliffe Camera

took forever. We had a 300 pound American

woman wedged into her seat in front of us,

and she drove me crazy with her whiney com-

plaints. But we finally arrived at Oxford right

around noon. We grabbed a cab and started

heading toward the university. We were

somewhat disoriented and did not know ex-

actly what side of town we were coming in on.

I now know that we were on the south side of

Oxford. I soon saw some ancient buildings on

my right hand side that I sort of recognized,

especially the gatehouse tower known by the

name of its bell, Tom. Then I realized that we

were right in front of my destination, Christ

Church. The gate house and Tom Tower are

massive. The cab stopped, I kissed my wife,

got out with my baggage, and walked through


Arrival at Christ Church

the magnificent front gate built by Wolsey

almost 500 years ago. There were tourists

everywhere, who were not allowed to pass

through the front gate. They were all gawk-

ing at the quadrangle, probably because of

its association to the Harry Potter movies. It

was a lot of fun walking between them, tell-

ing the porter I was there for the program,

and being ushered into the college, straight-

away. So long, Oxford tourists barricades!

As I walked into the great quadrangle of

Christ Church I could not help but to be

stunned into awe by its immense size and

scale, and its age. After all, it was built, for

the most part, in the early 1500’s. I was very

happy to be there. I was told at registration


The Old Library

The Cathedral


"The wind had dropped. There was even a glimpse of the moon riding be-

hind the clouds. And now, a solemn and plangent token of Oxford's perpe-

tuity, the first stroke of Great Tom sounded."

— Max Beerbohm, Chapter 21, Zuleika Dobson (1922)

that my room was in “Old Library.” I had

done enough reading to have a pretty good

idea where it was. A student helped me take

my bags to my room which is a very large

room, number 11, located on the third floor.

The old library is actually the original hall,

or “Refectory,” of the old priory church

which stood here and was in existence long

before Christ Church was founded in 1525.

Parts of the ancient Church are said to have

existed since Saxon times, probably around

the year 900. The Vikings attacked it once,

and a few of their number where locked into

the church they were sacking, and BURNED

IT DOWN!. It originally consisted of a very

small church, which is still attached to the

cathedral and is called the Latin Chapel.

There they have a shrine to St. Frideswide.

My room has two very large windows with

gothic points at the top and which are ap-

proximately 6 feet tall and overlook the mas-

My Room


The East Range of Tom Quad;

sive Meadows Building. I found out later that the building was

converted to rooms for aristocratic students from Westminster

School in London, in about 1771. My room had two single beds, a

study table, refrigerator, sink and closed up fireplace. The large

windows were excellent, and contained the ubiquitous window

seat and cushion. These are found in most of the pre-electricity

rooms at Oxford, as an aid to reading.


Christ Church, Oxford


Christ Church, Oxford

"Those twins / Of learning that he [Wolsey] raised in you,

Ipswich and Oxford! one of which fell with him,

Unwilling to outlive the good that did it;

The other, though unfinish'd, yet so famous,

So excellent in art, and still so rising,

That Christendom shall ever speak his virtue."

— William Shakespeare, Henry VIII

Direct reference to Christ Church


Mercury

I n the middle of the front quadrangle is a fountain known as Mercury. It stands about 10

feet tall and has a pond around it probably 15 feet in diameter. It is actually the second

statue of Mercury to occupy the spot, as the first one long since disintegrated and was

replaced. However, the head of the old statue still resides in the Upper Library of the col-

lege.

Probably thousands of undergraduates have been involuntarily thrown into the fountain and

its pool, either for good reason or no reason. However, when I was there no one was thrown

MERCURY FOUNTAIN AT CHRIST CHURCH

into the pool.

There are thousands of photographs

of Mercury. These are a few of mine.

I found that the fountain changed in

a way that it appeared based upon

the position of the sun and shadows.

It was always a temptation to take a

photograph of the fountain when-

ever I walk by it.

Mercury


Mercury



Mercury

"By way of light entertainment, I should tell the Committee that it is well known that

a match between an archer and a golfer can be fairly close. I spent many a happy eve-

ning in the centre of Peckwater Quadrangle at Christ Church, with a bow and arrow,

trying to put an arrow over the Kilcannon building into the Mercury Pond in Tom

Quad. On occasion, the golfer would win and, on occasion, I would win. Unfortu-

nately, that had to stop when I put an arrow through the bowler hat of the head por-

ter. Luckily, he was unhurt and bore me no ill will. From that time on he always sent

me a Christmas card which was signed 'To Robin Hood from the Ancient Briton'"

— Lord Crawshaw, House of Lords Hansard, Tuesday 8 Jul 1997

T he crown jewel of Christ Church is

its early 16th century hall, which

sits in the southeast corner of the

front quad. It was built by Cardinal

Wolsey in about 1525 and was the first build-

ing started and completed for his new college,

which was to be known as Cardinal College.

Unfortunately, the good Cardinal did not last

long enough to finish it, once he was proved

unable to obtain a divorce between King

Henry VIII and his Queen, Catherine of

Aragon. The college consequently remained

only partially completed, with the Hall, the

west and south ranges of the front quad, and

the humongous kitchen which adjoins hall be-

ing the remnants of the Cardinal’s great en-

deavor. After Wolsey fell, these buildings

were taken over by King Henry VIII and incor-

porated into his new college, Christ Church, in

about 1546.

Wolsey’s Project

CHRIST CHURCH HALL

Paintings in Hall

The Hall will look familiar to most people as it is

the original inspiration for the hall depicted in

the Harry Potter movies. Further, it has been

duplicated at American institutions, like Cornell

and the University of Chicago.

The Hall contains dozens of oil portraits of its

more famous members painted by very famous

painters, including several Gainsboroughs. The

most famous portraits are at the front of the

Hall, and include the famous Holbein portrait of

Henry VIII, Cardinal Wolsey, Queen Elizabeth I,

and several others. In the rear are notable por-

traits of Lewis Dodgson, (Lewis Carroll) who

spent his adult life at Christ Church, as scholar

then fellow. There is also a portrait of John

Wesley, the founder of Methodism, who was a

CHRIST CHURCH HALL

High Table at Christ Church

CHRIST CHURCH HALL

CHRIST CHURCH HALL

scholar here in the 18th century.

Joining the Hall are several private dining

rooms which are used by various clubs and

individuals throughout the year. Also, at the

top of the stairway, is the college buttery,

CHRIST CHURCH HALL

which is to say that it is the college bar. It is deco-

rated with several rowing oars which have been

used by the championship rowing teams fielded by

the House.

CHRIST CHURCH HALL

Ancient student graffiti at tha base of the

stairway to hall, from the early 1700’s,

done in nail heads and protesting the

prime ministership of Robert Peel, him-

self a former scholar from the college

during his Osford days.

M y classes were held in a room located

in Peckwater Quadrangle. The room

itself was on the ground floor, and

was composed of a large room with

walnut paneling (real walnut paneling) and a small

bedroom off one side and a smaller bedroom on the

other side. Initially, the small bedrooms for the stu-

dent and the smaller bedroom was for his servant.

This quadrangle was built in the very early 1700s,

And that was a far different time than we find our-

selves in today

PECKWATER QUAD, CHRIST CHURCH

The Walk to Peckwater Quad

The walk from Tom Quad to Peckwater.

Sundial; Staircase 3, site of my class: Boat

Club triumphs Wrought Iron light fixtures

PECKWATER QUAD, CHRIST CHURCH

Peckwater

E ven though Christ Church is one of the

largest colleges at either Oxford or Cam-

bridge, the odd thing is that it never has

had a purpose built chapel. At first, this

was unnecessary, as the land which was dedicated to

the college was the site of a medieval priory, includ-

ing a large priory church. In 1546 King Henry VIII

restructured the church and made Oxford and the for-

mer priory at Christ Church the new Oxford Cathe-

dral, complete with a bishop and a Dean. To this day,

the Chapel at Christ Church is still a Cathedral in the

Anglican Church and has several services each and

CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL

Tha Cathedral

every day. It is also the smallest Cathedral in all of England.

Portions of the Cathedral date back to the 10th century, and maybe earlier. On the Northeast

side of the Cathedral is a small chapel known as the Latin Chapel. This is what remains of the

original structure. Contained in this area are relics belonging to a St.Frideswide who allegedly

lived during the ninth century and was responsible for several miracles. Whatever.

Beth and I attended a couple of services in the Cathedral. Although it is the smallest Cathedral

in all of England, it is a medieval gem and is one of my favorites.


Creation of the Cathedral

A Side Chapel


Views in the Oxford Cathedral


Stained glass in the Cathedral


an english journal,2007, v i

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