Before I left for London, I listened to the Mary Poppins soundtrack a lot. Well, on Monday, I again listened to it a lot...particularly the song about the bird woman. Why? Well, because, there I was, sitting on the steps of St. Paul's, imagining the tourists away and the little old bird woman selling her bags of seeds. Silly, I know, but I had a good chuckle about it and thought, as I ate my banana, that it was pretty cool. St. Paul's was incredible. The second I walked in, I walked slower and felt quieter. The nave is big and co
lorless, and therefore full of pure, clear light. Beyond the nave, at the crossing, the transcepts branch off and the dome shoots up three hundred and sixty-five feet. Starting at the dome, the ceiling is brilliantly decorated with mosaic and painting alike. I sat and stared at it for a good while, looked away, around at the columns and memorials, then back up at the ceiling and was again completely taken aback. Every time I looked away and looked back, I had the same gaping awe come over me. There was such sp
ace! Such color! It was brilliant. Positively brilliant. One of my favorite parts was on the East end of the cathedral, there is a chapel dedicated to the American soldiers that died defending Britain in the second World War. It was a very touching place. The British citizens raised the money to build the chapel, where the original chapel had been damaged in the Blitz. I got to climb up into the Whispering Gallery, which is just below the dome
. After that, I climbed up to a level a bit higher, which took me outside to a wonderful view of the city. That was where I saw Tower Bridge for my first time. I continued my climb to what I believe is called the Golden Gallery, which is on the very top of the dome, just below the lantern. What a view! I've had the privilege to have some pretty amazing views in my life, and this definately is up there on the list. I sat on th
e top of St. Paul's, drinking my orange juice, gazing out on the Thames. The Tate Modern was directly across from me, Tower Bridge down river to my left, the London Eye and Westminster up river to my right. I could have stayed up there all day long, but unfortunately it is a popular spot, so it started getting a little
crowded. Oh yes! I almost forgot. Before I scaled the dome, I had just finished exploring the cathedral floor and was just about to head down into the crypt (where I had lunch and saw the tombs of Christopher Wren, Wellington, and Florence Nightengale, among others) and it just so happened that they were about to start a service of the Eucharist, under the dome and in front of the quire. So, I took a seat and attended my very
first Eucharist. I didn't actually take the bread and wine, but it was quite a thing to observe. My favorite part was where we were all invited to "share a sign of peace" and everybody shook each other's hands and said "Peace be with you." It was nice. I wasn't sitting particularly close to anyone, and was just there to observe, but a woman walked over and shook my hand and such, as did one of the priests (I'm not sure what they are actually called, come to thing of it...). I liked it; while the rest of the service felt memorized and practiced, this part, wh
ile we were told to do so, was still a sweet moment. After my jaunt in the crypt, my climb to the top of the dome, and my wander around the cathedral floor, I finally took a seat directly under the dome and took it all in; I've never seen such a place. Westminster was fantastic and spectacular, but this...this was an absolute architectural wonder. Ever since taking art history with Mr. Oram at dear old Davis High, I've loved architecture, especially cathedrals and buildings with features like that incredible dome. So beautiful. St. Paul's was another one that is in my top five favorite visits since I've been here.
Before I left for London, I listened to the Mary Poppins soundtrack a lot. Well, on Monday, I again listened to it a lot...particularly the song about the bird woman. Why? Well, because, there I was, sitting on the steps of St. Paul's, imagining the tourists away and the little old bird woman selling her bags of seeds. Silly, I know, but I had a good chuckle about it and thought, as I ate my banana, that it was pretty cool. St. Paul's was incredible. The second I walked in, I walked slower and felt quieter. The nave is big and co
lorless, and therefore full of pure, clear light. Beyond the nave, at the crossing, the transcepts branch off and the dome shoots up three hundred and sixty-five feet. Starting at the dome, the ceiling is brilliantly decorated with mosaic and painting alike. I sat and stared at it for a good while, looked away, around at the columns and memorials, then back up at the ceiling and was again completely taken aback. Every time I looked away and looked back, I had the same gaping awe come over me. There was such sp
ace! Such color! It was brilliant. Positively brilliant. One of my favorite parts was on the East end of the cathedral, there is a chapel dedicated to the American soldiers that died defending Britain in the second World War. It was a very touching place. The British citizens raised the money to build the chapel, where the original chapel had been damaged in the Blitz. I got to climb up into the Whispering Gallery, which is just below the dome
. After that, I climbed up to a level a bit higher, which took me outside to a wonderful view of the city. That was where I saw Tower Bridge for my first time. I continued my climb to what I believe is called the Golden Gallery, which is on the very top of the dome, just below the lantern. What a view! I've had the privilege to have some pretty amazing views in my life, and this definately is up there on the list. I sat on th
e top of St. Paul's, drinking my orange juice, gazing out on the Thames. The Tate Modern was directly across from me, Tower Bridge down river to my left, the London Eye and Westminster up river to my right. I could have stayed up there all day long, but unfortunately it is a popular spot, so it started getting a little 
crowded. Oh yes! I almost forgot. Before I scaled the dome, I had just finished exploring the cathedral floor and was just about to head down into the crypt (where I had lunch and saw the tombs of Christopher Wren, Wellington, and Florence Nightengale, among others) and it just so happened that they were about to start a service of the Eucharist, under the dome and in front of the quire. So, I took a seat and attended my very
first Eucharist. I didn't actually take the bread and wine, but it was quite a thing to observe. My favorite part was where we were all invited to "share a sign of peace" and everybody shook each other's hands and said "Peace be with you." It was nice. I wasn't sitting particularly close to anyone, and was just there to observe, but a woman walked over and shook my hand and such, as did one of the priests (I'm not sure what they are actually called, come to thing of it...). I liked it; while the rest of the service felt memorized and practiced, this part, wh
ile we were told to do so, was still a sweet moment. After my jaunt in the crypt, my climb to the top of the dome, and my wander around the cathedral floor, I finally took a seat directly under the dome and took it all in; I've never seen such a place. Westminster was fantastic and spectacular, but this...this was an absolute architectural wonder. Ever since taking art history with Mr. Oram at dear old Davis High, I've loved architecture, especially cathedrals and buildings with features like that incredible dome. So beautiful. St. Paul's was another one that is in my top five favorite visits since I've been here.
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