Quarter Eleven

Saturday morning after a refreshing shower and a round of bathroom cleaning, I headed out of the house with no sure plan as to what I would do. I called Levi to see what he was up to and he told me that he had just visited Parlaiment with Mindy and Tiffany. This sounded like a great idea. It was a nice day so I decided to walk to the tube station instead of taking the bus. I got off the tube at Westminster. I found on my map the direction I needed to go to find Parlaiment and when I looked up, Big Ben said, "Hey, idiot, I'm right here!" He chimed boldly at quarter past eleven. I walked around Parlaiment and passed Westminster Abbey. I cant wait to attend a service there! It was another very bright, sunny morning which made taking pictures somewhat difficult from my angle. I was meeting Gillian halfway across the city at one, so I decided to walk along the River Thames to get there. I waited at The Tower of London for about an hour because Gillian's tubes were having signal problems, and she just has a habit of being late. (sorry, dear. but it is true) I noticed there seemed to be a lot of tourists at the Tower, and by the time Gillian arrived we deiced food was more important that fighting off tourists for a guided tour through the Tower. We ate at the Tower Diner. Mmm. Best pizza I have ever had. On our way out of the diner Gillian caught her first glimpse of The London Bridge and almost cried. We walked along the Thames for a whie, taking pictures, and talking about how much we love London. We met with Levi and I took them on my "pilgrimage" walk. Then they went shopping and I went home to do homework.

Sunday afternoon I was riding on the top of a classic red double decker for the first time. It was a much better view of the architecture that stands above the modern shops. I noticed from this elevation that the street lights turn yellow between red and green both ways. My destination was to get to Tottenham Court Road for church. I heard that Hillsong Church had services in central London so I knew I had to go. When I got to TCR all I knew was that I was looking for the Dominion Theater. I stopped in the original YMCA building to ask a staff member where I could find it. He said "It's right around the corner. The building with the big gold statue." Big gold statue? That's where the musical We Will Rock You is playing. Surely they're not having church services there. Wrong. The theater is rented by Hillsong one day a week, while the other six days are dedicated to showing headlinging musicals. More than 1,000 volunteers from the Hillsong congregation set up all the lights and sound equipment every week! They also volunteer as hosts for visiters. The music was loud and inviting. Even though I didnt know the songs they were familiar and easy to follow along. I loved the atmosphere and I felt welcomed enough to try to get involved with their connect groups while I am in London.