Wodgey, Wompy Guff

Monday was another sunny, beautiful day, so we tried again to go to Westminster Cathedral. Finally it worked out for us, which is good because I totally would have given up if it was closed a third time.


They offered a free audio guide, which didn't really provide any interesting information but at least told me what everything was. Well, I thought it did. Today I realized that I didn't see the tributes they had set up to Charles Darwin and Sir Isaac Newton and I don't think they were mentioned in the audio guide. Ugh. And I'm not paying to go back for that. I think this was the most expensive church I've been in.

The whole thing was pretty, as these touristy churches tend to be, but the prettiest part was the ceiling of Henry VII's Lady Chapel. I guess it's like the most magnificent architecture in the building, but it's this really big deal in general, too. You're not allowed to take pictures, and I saw it at the point where I was still following that rule.

A lot of kings and queens are buried there, but there are also memorials for other famous people. The coolest place, the Poets' Corner, had a bunch of sculptures and plaques on the wall for famous authors, poets, and literary critics (yuck). This was where I decided to be bad and take some pictures, because they had a thing set up for Shakespeare and a smaller one for Jane Austen. I'm also pretty sure Charles Dickens is buried there -- the thing for him was on the ground... where I think he is, too (or in it, I should say). I didn't get a picture of him because I got in trouble for having my camera out. Woops.

There was a little courtyard (below) and another garden further on, but it was closed for the season. In that general area there was a museum with tributes to a bunch of royals that I ducked into for only a second because it was creepy. They had wax-like figures of a bunch of people, and the one of Queen Elizabeth looked like Meryl Streep. Weird.


There was also a door with a sign that said "Britain's oldest door." I just thought that was really funny. Like, how do they know it's the oldest one? And is it really that important that it gets a sign?

And that's it. It wasn't a huge thing, but it's a must-do in London so I'm glad I can cross it off the list.


Unrelated: A lesson in British words and pronunciation:

1. sloth = "sloath"
2. "wodgey, wompy guff" = ??? (My professor said this. I had to write it down.)
3. knackered = tired (I actually think everyone knows this, but my boss told me he was knackered today and it made me smile. He also calls me "mate." I love it. I don't tell him that, though, because I don't want to look like I'm crazy.)