Can you hear me?

Being here in London right now is like being part of history. Right now England is having this huge snow storm, and it's something this city is not equipped for! Having lived in Utah for the past few years, when it started snowing here a few weeks ago, I went, "Shucks. I thought I had escaped the snow." But that's about as far as my concern went. Other people in the country, however, were starting to panic. It started snowing at night, and was actually really cool to see. It was really windy so from inside the snow appeared to be falling horizontally rather than vertically. In the morning was the big surprise: everything was covered in snow! There were probably six or seven inches on the ground. It was pretty to see, I took a few pictures and then retreated into my warm flat to cozy up with a book and enjoy the view on the other side of the window. It was a peaceful day. It wasn't until I ventured outside later to return a book to the library that I noticed the extraordinary events occurring. As I walked down the street I first noticed the large number of children walking around, which wasn't normal for that time of day. I realized that schools had been closed down, and found out later that over 1,000 had been! I also noticed quite a few shops and stores were closed. One of them had a sign on the front window that said "Closed due to lack of employees. Sorry for the inconvenience." Apparently lots of public transportation had been closed down and many people couldn't get to work! Literally, much of London just shut down. I was in shock! A city as big and developed as London absolutely paralyzed! And it really was. I couldn't believe that it was from these few little inches of snow, but it was! I began to realize the impact that our climate really does have on us. In Utah, even if a few feet of snow falls in a day, people still go to school and work and live life normally. Because they're equipped to do this. They have set things up so they can function in harsh weather like this. London, on the other hand, does not normally get this kind of weather. So even with it's presence, no matter how small it may appear to us, it was a big deal here, because the city didn't have the means, or the knowledge really, on how to handle it. It really was fascinating to see.

Another thing I actually really enjoyed about this snow storm, was the sudden massive number of snowmen that appeared around the city. I think every person in London made one! They were on the sidewalks, in the streets, in yards, and in every available patch of ground in every park. The day after the big storm I went running in Kensington Gardens. It was really pretty to see the entire area just pure white. And I loved all the snowmen! Because they were EVERYWHERE!!! It was really funny! But with over 1,000 schools closed down, what else did you expect the kids to do right?

Anyway, also during this week we went to St. Paul's Cathedral. This place was magnificent. It was huge and so pretty inside. Also there is a very large crypt underneathe, which actually was a little more light and lively than I was expecting a crypt to be. But there was something I loved about St. Paul's Cathedral: the WWII memorial. There was an area that commemorated the American service men and women who came to England during the war to aid the British and it's people. There were three stain glass windows, the first labeled Service, the second Sacrifice, and the third Resurrection. Each one had a picture displaying the action of its label and inside all three were the flags of all fifty states. And on the ground in gold it said: To the American Dead of the Second World War from the People of Britain." I thought that was so cool! This was a historic building that hundreds of thousands visit each year, and our nation's relationship is so important that they put this here for all to see. Even though we are two separate countries, we are all still people who need and help each other when the opportunity arises.

Something a little more playful was also in St. Paul's Cathedral that I really liked. It's called the Whispering Gallery. St. Paul's has this massive dome at the top that you can get into. To get to it you have to go up like 100 steps, which is a nice little work out. Then when you're in there, you can stand on one side of the dome, and whisper to someone on the other side of the dome, and they can hear you! When I first heard about this I was a little skeptical. It's a big dome. But I'm a believer now! It totally works! It was actually kind of creepy sometimes because you would be stnading there looking at someone across it, and suddenly you would hear your name whispered behind you. You would turn and when discovering no one behind you, would search around the domw to find who was looking at you. But it sounded like a ghost sometimes saying your name! It was really cool. I love St. Paul's!!!