We met in the breakfast room at a reasonable time in the morning to head to Bletchley Park to see the Colossus (a code-breaking computer), an enigma machine, an several other code-breaking machines. We learned all about cryptography and some of its pioneers. They also gave us access to see the mansion on the property and the huts that housed the offices where the code-breaking in World War II occurred. It was incredibly interesting, and the volunteer staff was enthusiastic to talk about the subjects with which they were so familiar. We took the train at 12:30 to get back into London.
The others were hard-set on meeting people not in the class at the hotel before they started the rest of their day. I just wanted to get the show on the road, so I went alone to the Tate Modern. Notice, though, that was the first time I had done anything completely alone on the trip and yet it felt completely natural. In retrospect, it was at this point that the results of what I got out of the trip started to show. I got independence and a sense of ease outside of my comfort zone.
I walked to St. Paul’s Cathedral. To my surprise there was a dance performance outside, so I stopped and took pictures as I watched. The dances were a mixture of modern and vaudeville acts. I’m glad the dancers were there though because I refused to pay to see the inside of the church. After seeing so many churches in Europe, I wasn’t going to start unethically paying to get inside. I walked across the beautiful Millennium Bridge straight to the front door of the Tate Modern.
I went first into the Dalí and film exhibit. It was phenomenal. They had The Persistence of Time and Narcissus. Unlike the Mona Lisa, both of these paintings lived up to their expectations. Though smaller than I imagined, they were still enchanting beyond reason. There seemed to be so much meaning behind the oddities of the beautiful characters and colors of the surrealist paintings. The strangeness of his paintings translated well to film. In the collection of movies and film clips they had of Dalí’s work, I discovered what a surrealist movie looked like. The films ranged from a Spanish silent film to a scene from a Hitchcock film designed by the artist to an animated movie that was a result of collaboration with Walt Disney. I was blown away by the exhibit and spent some time there just admiring everything. I did make it to the modernism, surrealism, cubism, and impressionism exhibits they had in the main galleries, but I was blown away by Dalí’s work the most.
While admiring Monet’s Water Lilies, I was approached by a man in his eighties. He asked me what I saw in the painting and if I liked it. I explained I enjoyed the colors and the abstraction of the shapes. He responded by saying that he preferred more detail but that he could sympathize with Monet because his eyes were going blind in much the same way as those of the painter. We talked for about twenty minutes; he told me about his love of pipe organs and his favorite piece in the Tate Modern, a sculpture called The Kiss. I went to see it after we finished talking, and it was as beautiful as he suggested.
I ate at a Greek restaurant that night. The food was served in small portions, much like tapas in Spanish restaurants. It was very good. I had calamari, a Greek salad, and a lamb wrap. I met the group seeing Othello soon afterwards.
Othello I had neither studied nor read, so I was pleasantly surprised by the show. Seated in the left balcony of the recreated, thatched roof Globe Theater, I could see perfectly. The tragedy was beautifully acted, and I don't think I should ever see another Shakespeare play unless I know the quality will be comparably perfect. It was the best Shakespeare I had ever seen, film or stage production. The black man who starred as Othello was a powerful actor with a powerful voice. His angry scenes were actually frightening; it was wonderful.
I knew I was going to have an early wake-up call the following morning, so I went to bed soon after the play.
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