Woodberry at Oxford 2013: Saturday, July 13

We all woke up fairly early to get packed for our trip to London. There was no time to pussyfoot around if our train to London was to depart at 9 in the morning. The train was a breeze because we had already ridden the train last week. After the hour long train ride, we found ourselves in Paddington Station right in the heart of London. Our first place to see was the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace. Today was supposed to be the hottest day of the year, and it sure felt like it. The square in front of Buckingham Palace was packed with people, which made it seem hotter and more humid. Once the guard changed, we made our way down the Mall to cross St. James’s Park and return to the Underground. We rode the subway to the Monument that was dedicated to the Great Fire of London in 1666. This fire burned for 3 days straight, incinerating 436 acres of the city. By that time, we were all starting to get a little hungry, so we took the DLR (Docklands Light Railway) to the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich to have lunch at the café. The café was close to the Observatory, so we decided to check that out. We got to see the 28 foot telescope in the rotunda atop of the Observatory. The Prime Meridian was also up on the hill, and if you wanted to wait 20 minutes in the long winding line, you could set one foot in the Western Hemisphere and the other in the Easter Hemisphere. Needless to say, there were many interesting things to see near at the Observatory, most significantly the clocks made by John Harrison in an effort to win the longitude prize—a story which some History classes read about in the book Longitude. After a much needed break, we headed to the Thames River to catch a boat back to the heart of London where the Haymarket Theatre was. The boat we took up the Thames was called the Mercedes, and even though it was slow, it gave us time to see all of the cool landmarks scattered about the river bank, including Canary Wharf, Tower Bridge, and the London Eye. Eventually we came to dry land and split up at grab some grub at Covent Garden before we set out for The Haymarket Theatre to see the play, “One Man, Two Guvnors.” The theatre was hot inside, but not many complained because we were too busy laughing. I can honestly say it may have been the funniest play I’ve ever seen, it was downright hilarious from start to finish. When the play ended, it was already past 10 o’clock, so when our train arrived back in Oxford we were all quite tired. It had been a long day, and we couldn’t wait to see what tomorrow had in store.

Submitted by Eddie Williams