As most of you know my two favorite historical figures are Abe Lincoln and Winston Churchill. Today I decided to tour the Imperial War Museum’s Churchill War Rooms Museum.
I got to the museum when it opened at 10:00 AM and I am glad I did. There was no line to get in and the museum was not too crowded. When I left at 2:30 PM there was a line of people at the entrance to the museum waiting to get inside. The huge underground bunker complex where Churchill and his General Staff directed Great Britain’s global war effort in World War II was locked up shortly after the end of the war and was not reopened until the 1980s. They decided to turn it into a museum with a large room set aside for a Churchill museum chronicling Churchill’s life from birth to death. They have an amazing collection of original documents and objects from Churchill and his wife of 56 years, Clementine.
The war rooms’ part of the exhibit and the Churchill museum were fantastic, every bit as good as any museum I have ever been to, including the Smithsonian museums in Washington DC. As most of you are aware, I am a history geek. And for a history geek like me, getting an opportunity to tour this museum was like dying and going to heaven.
This is the door to Number 10 Downing Street that Churchill passed through when he became Prime Minister in 1940.
This is one of the bunk beds in one of the bedrooms in the war rooms complex. It looks like one of the alburgue sleeping rooms where I slept along the Way. I always thought the alburgue bunk beds were Army surplus, but I had no idea these alburgue bunk beds were World War II Army surplus.
When I got out of the museum it was a beautiful Fall day and I decided to go for a walk in St. James Park.
On the way to the park I passed by this memorial to the men who fought and died in the Crimean War.
I also walked by the official provider of fishing tackle and waterproof clothing to the Prince of Wales. I have no idea why the Prince of Wales can’t go down to Bass Pro Shop like everyone else and get his fishing tackle. It seems a bit snooty to me to have an official provider for your fishing tackle and rain gear. But it is jolly old England and they can be a little snooty about these types of things.
In St. James Park I saw a great photo exhibit on World War I called Fields of Battle, Lands of Peace. The 100th anniversary of the armistice that ended World War I will be celebrated here in London on Sunday. World War I wiped out a whole generation of young men in Great Britain so this Armistice Day will be a solemn occasion.
There were about 20 story boards like this in a field in the park. Each story board had a wartime photo from World War I and then a current photo showing how the battlefield landscape had healed from the destruction caused by the war. Each story board also had a well written narrative on one aspect of World War I. I spent an hour at this outdoor exhibit and learned a great deal about World War I.
St. James Park is a real gem. This is the view of Windsor Castle from St. James Park.
Princess Dianne has her own memorial walk around the park. What a nice way to honor her.
This is one of the two mounted guards that sit on their horses on either side of the gate to Horse Guards Parade Ground. I watched the changing of these guards and the ceremony was pretty impressive
On the way back to the hotel this afternoon I walked by a barber shop. One of the barbers came out of the shop and said that I had the worst haircut he had ever seen. He offered to try to fix my godawful haircut for free. I thanked him but told him I am kinda getting used to this bad haircut and would wait till I get home before I try to correct it.
I decided to have an early dinner. I walked by a Japanese restaurant that advertised Japanese food cooked the Brazilian Way. What in the world is Japanese food cooked the Brazilian Way? For goodness sake, if you are going to serve Japanese food cook it the Japanese way, not the Brazilian way, whatever that is.
I walked by this place and quickly decided that I was not going to have Spanish food for dinner tonight.
Enough is enough. I am so tired of Jamon that I could scream. I decided to go wild and have a Thai rice bowl.
My Thai chicken rice bowl was delicious and about as far from Spanish Jamon as I could get, which is what I was shooting for.
That’s it for today.
I hope everyone had a great Friday.
Good evening from London, England.
AbeAndMarkontheCamino 