Today we attended church at Westminster Abbey, followed by a pleasent walk along the Thames river (passing such monuments as Parliment, Big Ben, and the London Eye).
After that, we had a nice chicken dinner, and went to Speaker's Corner in Hyde Park. Speaker's Corner is a place where anybody can get up on a soap box and say whatever they wish, and not be persecuted for it. The one rule is that you can not directly threaten the well-being of another person (physically), or actually bring them to harm. Here I am on my soap box. Not many people are listening to me. Possibly because the man speaking behind me is trying to convince us all that we are all gods, restricted by gravity and govenrment. 

Tuesdays mean classes at the London School of Theology - which is far away.
Here I am on the train, riding through the English countryside.
Durning the afternoon session we have Luke and Acts with Professor Conrad Gempf.
Here we are discussing Luke.


Ah, Tuesday.

We thought it would be nice to see Tolkien's grave, so we traveled clear out of Oxford (by accident - when we got lost), and back in again, to find the cemetary with Tolkien's grave. After picking wildflowers while lost, and after the man from the gas station walked us down the block after asking him for direcitons a second time, we found our place. Closed. So Karla and Bre agree that we have come too far to give up. Solution being that we break in. Fortunately, there was a hole in the first gate, making it easier to climb through and over the spikey gate. Karla cut her palm, and Bryana got herself stuck, but I made it through without a scratch. I didn't even have to put forth an effort. The advantages of being a hobbit.
Trying to follow the perimeter of the grounds far enough away from the edge so that people on the street would not see us, and trying to aviod a man walking around the cemetary, we made it to the front gate. It was open. We followed the grave markers to Tolkien's grave - a few yards from where we had come through the fence. But we made it, flowers and all, to the grave.

Everybody in the pub get tipsy.
Would be a sin to let a drop go to waste.
A beautiful tribute to Tolkien and Lewis over the fireplace in the Rabbit Room.
The piece of parchment in the frame reads "We the undersigned, having enjoyed your ham, have drank to your health." and is signed by The Inklings, including JRR and Christopher Tolkien, and CS Lewis.
The famous Rabbit Room Having a discussion next to the fireplace.

I may be a halfling, but I can drink like any man!

It comes in pints?!?

Of course we had to have a beer, just like the Inklings.

Bre, Karla and I went to Oxford on Monday.
Here is Karla and I outside the Eagle and Child. Yes, this was the whole reasoning behind the trip - to eat lunch where The Inklings once sat. 

Eating Karla's delicious (and deliciously cheap) grapes. 

Saturday morning we went to Notting Hill to enjoy Portabello Market.
This is Bre and I in the midst of thousands of people, the good majority of which were tourists. 

And sometimes things get a little crazy. 

And I thought Mr. Frodo was heavy...






(That is Jeff's backpack.) 

Just an innocent game of rummy.
There was some muttering from one of the players about how it was disappointingly passive. 

So here we are, yesterday, in front of the British Library. If I could explain to you the circles we walked in to get here...

Inside are some true treasures - A Gutenburg Bible (one of the first 180 printed), notebooks of da Vinci, the original Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Caroll has very neat handwriting), an 11th century text of Beowulf, a 14th century book of Chauser's works, pieces of paper that the Beatles jotted random words on, transforming them into hits such as "Yesterday" and "All My Life", notebooks of great composers such as Mozart and Bach, and the oldest surviving copies of the New Testament (the Codex), and other wonders of the world. 

Though I try, I can not quite get down the look.Oh, how I miss Leslie. 

My new-found friend, Blukey, and I outside room 41 - that's ours. Oh, Karla lives there as well. 

There aren't many books in the library, but at least they have Lewis. 

Song and dance outside the FMC, where Bre and Karla like to stand and serenade friends in the rooms above. 

Since I'm going to have a lot of time on my hands, I am considering a job here at the FMC as a greeter. Will work for chocolate. It could work. 

I discovered the amazing chocolate here. And pence. 

And of course, even in London, there is time to stop and smell the roses. 

Relaxing in the FMC garden. Finally, in my element! 

After all those stairs, I thought I'd watch a little British television in the Blue Room. However, it is all football, bashing the American government, and kama sutra tips. They do have good music videos. 

Teddy, Cush and I! Reunited and it feels so good! 

Nobody warned me about the stairs in this place. It's almost as bad as Cirth Ungol. Forget this. 

And back on the tube. We did stop for a coffee before going back to Highbury, where I experienced all the joy of London mail services.