The changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace occurs every morning at 11am. At this point, the ceremony has no real meaning, except as a tourist spectacular. And boy, does it ever draw crowds. We arrived around 10:30. I sent Scott, Sherrie and Brianna to see if they could find a spot where they might see something. I stayed behind both because I loathe crowds, and I knew my back wouldn’t appreciate the unsupported standing. Instead, I people watched while leaning against a wall.
After the main ceremony was over and many people had exited the area, there was a surprise. The marching band and a crew of guards returned to the palace courtyard and put on a show. I had a perfect vantage point looking through a fence.
Scott had an even better and more exciting experience. He is a Fire Marshall and fire investigator at Stony Brook University. It turns out that fire and police professionals trade special special coins (as collectables). When they visit a new place, they bring a few and give (or preferably swap) a coin with the local officials. Scott connected with one of the police at Buckingham Palace. That led to an invitation to meet other officers and three incredibly special souvenirs. He is now the proud owner of a coin from Scotland Yard, a coin from the Buckingham Palace Guards and a special badge worn on uniforms from the time of Queen Elizabeth.
At that point I desperately needed to sit. We took a taxi to St Martin in the Fields church. The taxi ride alone was an experience. They’d never been in such a roomy taxi and were impressed by the fold-down seats. After a quick look at the church, we descended below the church to the crypt. This crypt has a restaurant in it—the floor is made up of gravestones. I had a drink and rested and sent them off to look around (I’ve been there many times).
From there we walked up Charing Cross Road to the best bookstore in the city, Foyles. While they browsed through books, and bought several, I sat again to preserve my back.
Then we took a bus to Harrods, that iconic department store. Once there, we made our way to the food halls. While they have been redone and are not as spectacular as they once were, they remain impressive. I especially liked their easter displays and goodies. We searched in vain for the Egyptian escalator. I asked five or six employees and none of them had a clue what I was talking about. I found that strange, as it was always a big draw for shoppers and tourists. We never found it. I wondered if the store had redecorated and removed it. But when I googled it later, it is still very much there. Oh well.
From Harrods it was a quick hop to South Kensington to meet my friend Pascale. We all had drinks and then dinner.