QUINTESSENTIAL LONDON--DAY 1

We've met our Road Scholar group as well as its two leaders, Kevin and David, and I'm comfortable we're part of a good crowd.  There are 18 of us and we hail from all over the United States. (Kevin and David, of course, are British.)  We're ready for our first day of touring and our itinerary will cover The British Museum, Guildhall, and St. Paul's Cathedral. Lunch will be on our own and Kevin has suggested the Museum lunchroom.  Right now, though, we're stuffed after the hotel's over-the-top English breakfast, so lunch is holding no appeal.  For now.

As our coach pulls away from the hotel, Kevin begins his detailed, and thoroughly entertaining archeologist/historian take on London  It's unaffordable for starters, so forget about buying a flat in our South Kensington neighborhood.  Average price today is 1.2 million pounds.  Pounds.  Multiply that by 1.62 and (much to my dismay) the figure is a cool $1,944,000. I don't know about your budget, but...

  

     
 Look and enjoy, but it's probably beyond your means...

Within blocks we pass Harrods, that most famous of up-scale department stores, now owned by Qatar Holdings who, per Kevin, are snapping up most of London't real estate.  Apparently, Middle East moguls are the only folks who can afford to purchase and live in this gorgeous city.  But, moving on...Jane Austen lived right there on Dover Street during her years in London, and the Middletons have a pad here at the Ritz Hotel.  Darwin rented a flat just to our left on Gower Road and portions of Harry Potter were filmed just ahead.  We have SoHo on our left (we know because there's a Sex Shop) and Chinatown on our right.  My head is spinning, but I swivel toward the Sex Shop which turns out to look a lot like our neighborhood Victoria's Secret.   Maybe the English really are a little prudish.

Established in 1753, The British Museum was designed to hold and preserve the Art and Culture of the world for all of Human History.  It has millions upon millions of items in storage and on display, plus millions of visitors every year, many of whom are here this morning.  We'll begin with the Rosetta Stone, then move on to explore Egypt and its neighbors.

Excuse me...The short girl can't see the Rosetta Stone...and it's on my bucket list.  The Rosetta Stone contains a message written in three scripts:  Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic, Demotic Script (who knew?), and Ancient Greek.  Since the scholars of the day could read Ancient Greek, and some even knew their way around Demotic they were able, for the first time, to decipher the Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics...thus opening the way to many Egyptian historical writings.  It was a major find in the very early 1800s.

This is more like it.  Rameses II.  Generally considered the most powerful and respected Pharaoh in Egypt, he is also the leading contender for the role of Pharaoh in the biblical book of Exodus.  I love when I can put a face to an Old Testament character, and this one is nice looking.  Even kind of pretty.   He lived 90 years in an era (1200 BCE) when longevity was rare, and was so well thought of that eight more Pharaohs took the name of Rameses--not to copy, just out of respect.

If you visit the British Museum, or another like-minded institution, do grab a guide who can explain the ancient tablets that will be displayed in room after room after room.  Kevin was amazing. He slowly strolled from panel to panel pointing out details, explaining scenes (including the time frames and names of participants) and absolutely brought these carvings to life.  Really.  It was a new experience for me.

The glass roof of the Great Court of Queen Elizabeth II which knits the various buildings of the British Museum into a cohesive whole, while providing a welcome openness, brightness and fresh air. Obviously, this is a new addition. One which people seem to love.  The loos are here--toward the center and down the stairs.  They are clean and plentiful.  I'm beginning to learn just how important loo reports will be over the next three weeks.  Oh--the two smudges on the roof? Men doing a little repair work...or maybe cleaning.  Looks tricky.

I can't look at St. Paul's, much less walk up the same entry steps and down the aisle without thinking of Charles and Diana.  That was a gorgeous wedding--well worth getting up in the middle of the night to watch.  She was beautiful, he was (unbeknownst to us) miserable.  Why the royal family was so hell-bent on thwarting Charles and Camilla, I'll never know.  Oh, I read the reasons, but real life (as so often happens) crept in and everyone involved was left bereft.  That is very sad.

We climbed the stairs to the rotunda--250 plus steps, I think, and gingerly walked around the narrow balcony.  The view of the cathedral was magnificent but not to be photographed.  What a waste. Actually, I didn't know that until an observant guard reminded me.  He didn't know I had this one already locked up!

I have no acceptable photos of the Guildhall, although it is quite impressive, and located in the City of London.  The Lord Mayor presides there--Lord Mayor of the City of London which differs from London itself.  Lord Mayor is a woman this time around.  Good for her!

Just outside of Guildhall, this dark line on the plaza marks the exact outline of a Roman Amphitheatre discovered in the late 1980s.  Entry is through the Guildhall Art Gallery, where we descended a flight or two of stairs into the dark remains of the blood and gore of Roman gladiatorial days.  The designers of this space have used digital visuals to recreate the missing parts of the stadium to great effect.  A must see.

Our first Road Scholar Day has been a smashing success.  As we depart the coach, we plan to meet again at six for a little wine or ale in the bar.  These Road Scholars are my kind of people!