Tawapologetics: OBU in London #13 - July 30 (Windsor Palace)

Windsor Castle - gloomy morning

July 16 – August 14, 2018 – “The London 15” – OBU Student Abroad in London, England

This summer, I had the privilege of spending a month in England with a group of 15 students from Oklahoma Baptist University. Dr. Lindsey Panxhi (an English faculty colleague) and myself, along with our respective spouses, conducted a faculty-led StudyAbroad that spent four weeks on the ground in London teaching OBU courses to OBU students while being immersed in the culture and history of Great Britain. These are our stories!

Windsor Castle panorama

Monday, July 30 – Windsor Castle

Well, today we are missing Alethea’s 15^th birthday, and I feel tremendously guilty about it. I wish we were at home. I’m having a great time in London, experiencing and learning SO much, but it can’t possibly be worth it to miss our daughter’s birthday. Worse still, we’ve committed to doing the London trip next summer as well, which will mean missing Alethea’s 16^th birthday too. What kind of a father misses his girl’s 15^th and 16^th birthdays? I say I love her, and I surely do, something fierce – but do my actions demonstrate that love adequately? I wonder.

From where that girl started, with a difficult pregnancy, premature emergency birth, and early surgery, she continues to astound and inspire me. She is so smart and funny, musical and pleasant – she is the most amazing kid we know! I worry that missing her birthday conveys the impression that she matters less in our eyes than the other kids, but that is not the case in the least.

St. George's Chapel

Our day in London … today we took a trip to Windsor Castle, where Prince Harry and Megan Markle were married earlier this year. The town around Windsor train station was quite touristy and trendy, and a bit on the pricey side.

The Castle itself was huge and beautiful. There was a very nice tour of the State Apartments that was quite pleasant, and then St. George’s Chapel (wedding site) was amazing. But overall, Windsor was a let-down.

1. The line-up! We arrived amid a light drizzle, and stood in a Group queue for about half an hour. There were SO MANY people at Windsor waiting to get in – craziness. Darn popular royals.

Chinese restaurant: 1423 China
2nd oldest building in Windsor!

2. The crowds! Long lines translate to crushes of people inside the Castle walls. Because Windsor is a royal residence, everyone wants to see where the young royals live.

3. Off-limits! But, because they live there, the vast majority of the Castle was closed to visitors. The 2 places I listed (Chapel, Apartments) were the only interior places we could see. The grounds were pretty, but it doesn’t have the extensive gardens of Hampton or Kew or Kensington. So we were done quite quickly at Windsor – within two hours. It’s sad, because the weather was beautiful (after the drizzle ended) – a pleasant 21 Celcius all day long.

Beautiful cascading garden

4. Cost! Windsor wasn’t included in the Historic Royal Palaces membership; so it was 17GBP each for entrance, plus about 14GBP for the train connections. Plus, finding a reasonably-priced lunch place proved difficult. Vanessa and I ate a mediocre meal at a small café (The Garden Café) right by the train station.

So, we think we’ll can Windsor next year. The train trip was fun, though! Tube to Paddington Station, NWR (Northwest Rail) train to Slough, then a connector train the last three miles to Windsor.

Vanessa and I left early, back to Pickwick. I got the budget updated – we’re in really good shape! Vanessa and Arsid have done an incredible job with the groceries and cooking, eliminating a lot of the money stress.