British Museum -- Sudan

In our continuing effort to see most of the British Museum (a little at a time) we visited it again on 20 November, concentrating on a special exhibit on Sudan, which, we learned, is the largest country in Africa and about 10 times the size of the UK. Sudan, of course, has been much in the news of late because of the tragic events in the Darfur region of that unhappy country.

The BM exhibit deals with the archaelogical history of the country -- going back to Neolithic times about 200,000 years BC. There were several ancient civilizations in the country -- some contemporary with the ancient Egyptian civilizations -- and competitors of the Egyptians. Sudan even contains many of the ancient gold mines that provided the gold used by the Egyptians in their better-known jewelry and decorations.

The British Museum has had a lengthy history, for over a century, of working in Sudan and has extensive collections from that area. We found it interesting and illuminating -- pretty much always our reaction to visits to this great museum.

Swearing Loyalty

We probably all know the British are very big on tradition. One of the most interesting and unusual is the annual visit the Lord Mayor of London pays on the queen in order to renew his loyalty. The tradition goes back nearly 800 years; quoting from a modern source: "The loyalty of the Lord Mayor might be less questionable now than it was in 1215, but the newly elected Mayor must still make his way to the Royal Courts of Justice to pledge allegiance to the Crown, just as Dick Whittington did in 1397 (and again in 1406 and 1419)."

The tradition is still alive in 2004 and, as the British are so good at doing, has been turned into a combination cermony and spectacle. Only today, the Lord Mayor-elect is preceded by a lengthy procession (parade?) of about 200 floats, bands, equestrian units, etc. The parade leaves the Mayor's London mansion and proceeds for about 90 minutes to the Royal Courts of Justice. While the Mayor goes in to swear loyalty to the Queen (and to have lunch with her and other VIPs) the procession members are treated to a lunch of their own -- no doubt less formal and less grand. Then, after lunch, the parade (I mean procession) re-forms and returns back to the Mayor's mansion.

Today large crowds gather along the route (which is slightly different on the return) and it is a fun "day out" for all. See some of the parade at: http://chuck.smugmug.com/gallery/292916/1/11628266

Raphael, Turner and Vermeer

The National Gallery on Trafalgar Square contains one of the world's great collections of paintings -- in this case all by European artists. We spent an enjoyable day there on the 13th of November -- giving our tired feet a break while eating lunch in the gallery's very nice restaurant.

The collection is organized chronologically, with geographic grouping within that scheme. The earliest period represented is 1250 to 1500. We spent the bulk of our time in the 1500 to 1600 period (Michelangelo and Leonardo ("Virgin on the Rocks"), Titian and others) and in 1600 to 1700 (Vermeer and the Delft school, Rubens, Rembrandt, etc.). Toward the end of the day, as our stamina was running out, we spent a short while in the 1700 to 1900 area where one of the highlights is Van Gogh's "Sunflowers".

This is one of the places that will need follow-on visits -- there's just more than can be appreciated in one visit or even two or three.

A Reprise of an Earlier Story

We just received some photos that were taken by the photographer at Karissa’s and Dante’s wedding. They're a lot better quality than the ones Chuck took and which we posted earlier. Some of them are of the Bride and Groom’s first dance, which was a really great salsa number by these two fine dancers. See the pictures at: http://chuck.smugmug.com/gallery/270696

Chez toi ou Chez moi?

During the week of 25 October, Chuck attended a major exhibition in Paris – “Euronaval” is held every two years and features exhibits by all the major defense contractors showcasing their systems. There were 25,000 visitors this year and it was a great opportunity to make some more of those contacts that are the reason for his job.

Kathi had come along to do some sightseeing. At the end of the exhibition, we stayed on leave for an extra day– and, of course, had gotten to see some of the city during the earlier evenings. Kathi was able to see a bit more of the sights during the days with the wife of one of Chuck’s colleagues who was also there.

We traveled by Eurostar train (the high speed “bullet train”) from Waterloo Station in London to Gare du Nord in Paris; returning the same way on the 29th. Our hotel room was on the 32nd floor of one of Paris’ highest buildings and we had spectacular views from our window. (See http://chuck.smugmug.com/gallery/269135/1/10642742 for some of our Paris pictures.)

It would take a month of very busy days just to see most of the better museums of Paris – and there are so many of them; the Louvre alone could easily absorb a week. We did re-visit the Louvre, which we had last visited in 2000, but, again, saw very little of it. The Musee d’Orsay, right across the river from the Louvre (and converted from an old railway station) is on a much more human scale, with extensive collections of French impressionists. We really enjoyed this one, and spent about 5 hours in it – awed by the beautifully-designed and –restored building as much as by the art it contains.

We took a nighttime Seine cruise, including a visit to the Eiffel Tower. Kathi and Carol, the other lady with her, took an unusual tour of the famous Paris sewers which, in addition to their obvious function, served as hidden pathways for the French Resistance during World War II. Naturally, it being Paris, we had a couple of really delicious dinners – our favorite being at a restaurant call Le Soufflé, where one can have an “all soufflé” dinner, accompanied by a salad. Other highlights included a long walk along the left bank of the Seine, returning to our starting point, but on the right bank. Along the way we re-visited Notre Dame cathedral, had cappuccino at a sidewalk café and ate an ice cream cone on the Ile St. Louis. We made lots of use of the Paris Metro (subway) which we liked almost as much as the London Underground.

We want to return some time when we have a LOT of time – and a LOT of money. One of the best things about Paris was that it makes the London prices, which we had thought were outrageous, seem distinctly more modest.