London

A quick stop in London, and we started our tourism right away.

After dropping our things off at our homestays, we went directly to the TKTS booth in Leicester Square. People got tickets to all sorts of shows, from Pinter's Hot House to Spamalot to War Horse, which Julian and I went to see later that evening. We also sprinted through the National Gallery, stopping to listen to the London Symphony Orchestra rehearse outside in Trafalgar Square!

As for War Horse, Julian and I were hoping for something intense and were extremely impressed by the puppetry and visual flair. We were both choked up at the end. But we also thought the plot was insubstantial--just a boy chasing a horse, extended by twist after twist. Still, we enjoyed seeing it.

The next day, I went to go visit Kimmy and Ella. We had a yummy lunch at Nando's, where Ella couldn't stop talking about my polka-dot umbrella! It was a fun adventure finding their place, and their neighborhood is so cool: trendy new restaurants mixed with beautiful townhouses. It was great seeing family while traveling abroad!

That evening the Whiffs met up at the Holborn Circus offices of Hogan Lovells, a law firm, where we performed for a few dozen litigators in a beautiful little auditorium in their building. Best of all, they had a canapé reception afterwards, where we had a great time sipping champagne and nibbling delicious snacks (amazing macarons) while soaking in the view from their top floor balcony overlooking all of London.

The next day, we sang at the Dartmouth House, a.k.a. The English Speaking Union (as in public speaking, not language), then on to the US Embassy, where we sang in the main lobby in front of portraits of many ambassadors, including W. Averell Harriman (founder of Sun Valley! and a Yalie!) and Yale's own Kingman Brewster. 

Then, Reuben had the grand idea to dash off for a 20 minute visit to St. Paul's. Spencer and I joined. I couldn't get "Feed the Birds" out of my head! We didn't pay the exorbitant entrance fee, but peeked in.

The Cathedral seems bigger from the inside, and is absolutely beautiful, especially its soaring domes and multilevel end catwalks.

Straight to Gatwick and off to Amsterdam next...