Monday, June 4, 2012

Jubilation


We are in the midst of Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee here in London, commemorating her 60-year reign. Now, the queen is only the second British monarch to make it to Diamond Jubilee (the first was Victoria, of course), and so this is an all-out, full-blown, no-holds-barred par-TAY. Bigger than the royal wedding last year, even. I mean, we're talking FOUR bank holidays here, and the Brits don't close the banks for just anything, so you know this is a big deal. There are all sorts of things going on, like horse racing and boat parades and concerts and other exciting stuff.

The Queen is a big fan of horses and horse racing, so the event that kicked off the weekend on Saturday was the Epsom Derby.

Photo from this site
Please use proper British pronunciation and say it "DAR-bee." Thank you.

A couple of the girls, Megan and Becca, actually went to the event, but I was one of the ones who went out and bought snacks and then came home to watch the fun on the telly. And it was so exciting!! Maybe it's because my mom's family loves horses, but I've always loved watching horses and rodeos and things like that. Can I ride a horse very well? No. Not really. But like I said, I love watching them. It sounds cheesy, but they really are beautiful, majestic animals, and there's something mesmerizing about watching them in motion. I feel like being here I have gained more of an appreciation and a love for beauty--beauty in nature, beauty in architecture, and beauty in people.

Anyway, the DAR-bee was exciting. And there was much screaming and yelling, "Go, horse, GO!" and, "Wow, look at him! He's really doing it!" and all sorts of other silly things. This must be how some people feel when they watch football on TV. And it was so funny in between races to listen to the commentary and see drama among the jockeys and watch the moments when the camera was on the commentators and they didn't know it... British television has some interesting differences from American television. It's slightly more...idiosyncratic in a way. Funny.

After church yesterday KayCee and Jocelyn and I headed down to the Thames for the grand flotilla down the river. As expected, the crowds were huge, but perhaps not as huge as they might have been because of the weather. It drizzled/misted the entire time we were out. Not ideal weather, but I think I can endure it better now that we've had a good dose of sunshine. As we walked down the road along the Thames, I had to remind myself that no, that song is not "My Country 'Tis of Thee"--it's "God Save the Queen," and it's the national anthem here.


We found a spot near Vauxhall Bridge that had a big screen where you could watch the proceedings, and wiggled our way into the crowd to try to get as close to the bank as possible. We didn't ever make it to the front, but we weren't too far away.

There was a lot of what I call "tiptoe photography": standing on your tiptoes and holding your camera as high as you can in order to maybe get a shot over the crowd of the boats passing by on the river.


A classic example of tiptoe photography. You can't really see anything. But I got some good shots! They're coming up shortly.

Some people employed more creative solutions in order to catch a glimpse of the action. People applauded when these two women made it safely to the top of this signpost.


People got on top of the phone booths too.


I have to admit that it was rather cold and I was rather tired, and after awhile I was beginning to wonder if I should've just stayed home and watched it on the telly. But it was all worth it when the royal barge came by. And I saw it with my own eyes! And I saw the Queen! And Kate and William! Success!


This is also an example of tiptoe photography. It's impressive, I know. Thank you. Thank you.

As soon as the royal barge passed, we hightailed it for home in order to beat the majority of the crowds, but as you can see, it was still a bit crazy. I got home and didn't even make it to my bed--I crashed on the couch and was out in five minutes.


And this evening a few of the girls and I went over to Hyde Park to watch some of the concert on the big screen and take in the festive atmosphere.

All this jubilation can be quite exhausting, but it was energizing as well. I feel in a way even more patriotic about my own country by seeing the pride that the British have in theirs. It's a sentiment a lot of us on this program have felt--not that we feel anti-British (we'll leave that to the Scots--my gracious) but that we admire their patriotism and have increased our appreciation for the country that we call home. And home to the States I go this week! Hard to believe that six weeks are already almost gone. This has really been an unbelievable experience, and one I will treasure for the rest of my life, I'm sure.

1 comment:

  1. One word. JEALOUS. Ok, two. JEALOUS and ENVIOUS. You got to see the Royal Family! I have been thinking about you enjoying the Jubilee as I watch the coverage here in the colonies.

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