Day 05 - Dickens Walking Tour/ Royal Courts of Justice/ ‘War Horse’ Play
Tuesday, 27 November 2012, 23:45
DAY 05
Today was another rainy day and in the morning, we were all reminded by the teachers (once again) to make sure we had enough layers of clothes on before we left the motel. The teachers even went around one by one, checking and ensuring we were warm enough before departing. While some of us might feel that their repeated reminders were a bit of a nag and unnecessary, being warm enough is extremely important because falling sick during this trip would be a great waste of opportunities to see London as one would have to rest in the motel instead of attending and following the planned itinerary. After departing the motel, we made our way to the Southwark Tube station, which is the station nearest to our motel, and took a train first to Bond Street on the Jubilee Line and then changing trains and going to Holborn on the Central Line. This was the first time we were taking the Tube during rush hour when most commuters were making their way to work and the teachers stressed many times that we had to stick together on the train and what we should do if we got separated from the group. Thankfully, we managed to stick together and there were no hiccups. The Tube is really packed during rush hour and the sight of the people squeezing into the train cars would remind one of a can of sardines.
After reaching our stop at Holborn, we met our tour guide, Diane, and we started our Dickens’ tour on foot . During the tour, we walked around the neighborhood where Dickens used to live and Diane explained how his life experiences provided him with inspiration for his many famous stories. Some places we visited during the walk include the courtyards of Lincoln’s Inn where Dickens set his famous novel ‘Bleak House’ and a 15th century dining hall and a 17th century chapel. We also saw what is believed to be the location of ‘The Old Curiosity Shop’ which is a shop that is in one of his stories.
Through the tour, we were able to know more about Charles Dickens and what inspired him to write his famous stories. I also found it interesting that he had 10 children with his wife and the story of how his wife found out about his mistress. Dickens sent a necklace with the name of his mistress engraved on it to his home address and unfortunately, his wife was at home and she was not very pleased to receive a necklace from Dickens that did not have her name on it.
After the tour had concluded, we had lunch at Brunswick and went on to take the Tube back to Covent Garden station where we did even more walking (in the cold rain) to the Royal Courts of Justice. On this tour, we learnt about the history, art and architecture of the Royal Courts of Justice, together with learning about who does what and where in court. One of the interesting things I found out after this tour was that the Royal Courts of Justice has seen cases where celebrities like the Spice Girls who have been involved in breach of contract are heard. Cases involving slander are also heard here. I also found it interesting that the judges do still wear the iconic horse hair wigs and silk gowns, following tradition. We also learnt that the appeal against extradition of Julian Assange, the director of WikiLeaks, was held at the Royal Courts of Justice. There are no pictures of the Royal Courts of Justice because as we learnt it is illegal to take pictures anywhere on the premises, and we would have risked imprisonment up to two years if we had taken photographs.
After that, we proceeded to have a sumptuous dinner at Porterhouse Restaurant in Covent Garden. The Porterhouse is a popular pub in Covent Garden and our guide, Angela, jokingly told us that she spoke with the people working there and made sure they didn’t serve any alcohol to anybody who looks like a Singaporean and is around our height. After the heavy dinner, we went to watch the play ‘War Horse’ at the New London Theatre.
The play makes use of puppets. However, these are not the ordinary sock puppets that you might be thinking of. The puppets used are huge! Imagine a life-sized puppet of a horse manned by 3 or 4 people trotting around the stage. The puppets ranged from horses to a tank and the way the puppeteers manipulated them was very impressive and realistic. Every single detail from the movement of the horse’s ears to its tail made it seem to be alive. The story was a very touching one and I shall not explain the plot so as not to spoil it for you as you can watch the movie if you really want to though it does not use puppets but real animals.
The play was 3 hours long and by the time it ended, it was already 10pm. By this time we were all eager to head back to the motel and get ourselves some rest to get ready for the exciting day tomorrow.
Written by Christian Lam 12S22 (Group B)
Written by Christian Lam 12S22 (Group B)
