If you’re following my journey on Facebook, then you have already seen the pics. However, I still need to unload all the images in my head from my third week in the U.K.
WIMBLEDON
I found out my nephew Nathaniel, who plays tennis, would be watching Wimbledon on TV, and I thought getting him a souvenir from the tournament would be extra special. I planned my day at Wimbledon for Tuesday. I had seen the train that went to Wimbledon, so I wasn’t too nervous about finding my way there. I also looked up ticket info online and it said they reserved about 500 tickets at the gate for same day sale. This sounded reasonable as I didn’t even know if I wanted to see a match. My plan was to show up, take a few pics, buy Nate a t-shirt and leave. I figured I would be done by noon and then I could spend the rest of the day working on my writing in London.
Getting from Harold Wood to Wimbledon park was a bit of an adventure. I think I left Harold Wood around 8am ish and I arrived at Wimbledon a bit before 10am. I suspected I got off the train a stop too late, so I asked someone at the train station. They asked me if I had tickets and I said no. They said I had gotten off at the right stop for the queue. The queue is one whole train stop away? Hmm. They suggested I walk left blah blah blah and I saw a Wimbledon souvenir shop. I was tempted to buy a t-shirt there and just get back on the train. But, I said what the hell. I’m here already. The man in the shop gave me a free map to Wimbledon and I was on my way. I saw the entrance to the park but inside all I saw was mothers and toddlers by a spraying wading pool. I saw some smallish tennis courts. I wondered if I had taken a wrong turn. I kept walking because I saw these beautiful rose walkways and then I saw the queue. I tried to gauge whether there were less than 500 people in queue (remember they reserved 500 tickets at the door?) I couldn’t really tell. I walked over to a steward and they said to look for the balloon on a stick and that was the end of the queue. Got there and the queue person handed me my queue card. I was number 8699 in queue. I was informed that only 8500 people could go into the park. All others would be let in on a one-person-leaves-the-park-and-one-person-can-go-in basis. My thoughts included: how much do I love Nate? Can I come back tomorrow? What the hell are all these people doing here?
Nevermind. I was there and I stayed in cue. I had an American couple and a German family next to me in the queue. I read and eavesdropped on them for entertainment. I was in queue for about 2 and half hours before I got into the park. After that it was rushrushrush. There are 19 courts at Wimbledon. My ground pass gave me access to courts 5-19. Not all the courts had seating—people just milled about around the fence. I saw parts of three matches that day. Heather somebody from England, two girls from I don’t know where at center court (they resell the tickets for 5 pounds), and the famous John Isner match. I’m really pleased I was there for part of the match. I left Wimbledon at around 9pm and got home around 11pm. I was exhausted! And I lost my oyster card (travel card for underground and national railway.) I got Nate the official ball boy Ralph Lauren polo shirt (85 pounds!) Overall it was a great experience.
BLENHEIM PALACE
On Saturday, I took a London Walks excursion to Blenheim Palace and Oxford. Again, travelling to the meeting point was an adventure in itself. I got there right on time. Blenheim Palace is the home of the Duke of Malborough and the place where Winston Churchill was born. It’s absolutely breathtaking. It’s the first palace I have ever been /in/ (I’ve been outside Buckingham Palace and the Palace in Madrid… maybe others I can’t remember) I enjoyed the gardens the most. The palace is on 2,000 acres. You could spend all day in the gardens and still not see them all.
OXFORD
After the palace, we took a tour of the city of Oxford and Oxford University. Another gorgeous place. Some of the things I found interesting were that it doesn’t have any classrooms. The University is made up of 38 colleges. You actually apply to an individual college and then you become part of the university. Each college offers all the disciplines (law, medicine, engineering, etc.) The reason there is no classrooms is because most of the learning is one on one with fellows or tutors. The university and colleges offer lectures which students can choose to attend, but they are only required to attend their appointment with their tutor. During the interview process, a tutor will choose the students they will work with. The living quarters are called stairwells. There are usually 4-12 students in each stairwell and each have an individual room (small but they don’t have to share) Each college has their dining hall, library, and chapel. They have 3 8week terms a year. An undergraduate degree takes about 3 yrs (all final examinations are presented the last term of their program) and a medical degree for example takes about 5 years. They can score 1st with honors, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in their final examinations. It all seems really intense. It’s like most of the learning is on your own, which I completely am in favor of.
HILLSONG
Went to church on Sunday morning at Hillsong London. They had their annual fundraiser Heart for the House on Sunday. I was really impressed with how organized the church was. From the minute my foot stepped inside the church I had guide after guide until I was deposited in my seat. I really like that they reach out to everyone who attends/visits. They have activities throughout the week and they follow up with people who want to be connected to the church. I can see how helpful that is for people who live here. I’m not too sure about the whole performance during the service. It very much has a concert feel. I still haven’t decided what parts (if any) are important to God. It’s a bit confusing. In a way that’s why I like listening to Joel OIsteen (well the few times I have) because he gives a lot of practical advice for daily living. To me, the show is just that – a show. It’s fun and entertaining but it doesn’t help me in my daily life. It doesn’t make me a better person. I guess for some people it does help them in their daily lives but I suspect it’s more ‘fluff’ … like icing on a cake… not very deep or character changing—just a feelgood kinda thing. Like I said, I haven’t really made sense of it all, but it is what it is.
HARRY POTTER LONDON WALK
After that I went on a London Walk on film location for the Harry Potter movies. Not as exciting as I had hoped. I had already seen most of the places in London and I couldn’t remember the movies. Boooo… still took a few pics. I want to watch the movies again so I can keep saying ‘I was there!’
My third week in the U.K. was great. It was actually really hot. I am super dark now! Darker than I am when I’m in the valley.
Today was the first day in a week it’s started to cool down. We’ll see how week four goes.
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