The London Series #5 Great Expectations

​Before all my international trips I have had great expectations about what I will learn, the sights to view, new people to meet, and the joy of traveling.  London did not disappoint.
I found that I was not well informed about the British culture.  I now have a firsthand appreciation for the damage done in the blitz in World War II and the extraordinary effort the British have made to reclaim their history.  I recall walking into one cathedral that appeared to be built around 1100.   On the walls was a picture of the cathedral after the blitz, it was a pile of rubble.  The building had been carefully reconstructed to its original stone work – it was a miracle.
I visited Churchill’s war rooms to learn how small a space it was and how few people directed the war effort from a bunker near 10 Downing Street.  We have never experienced extended foreign war on our soil and I hope we never do.  We are still suffering from the remnants of the Civil War and the self inflicted damage is truly beyond belief.
Of all my impressions of London I have two words that come to mind.  First, endurance.  London has been inhabited for almost 2000 years continuously.  The human spirit has endured in that place.  The second is the well earned reputation the British have for emotional reticence.  I learned that quality may be the key to their success throughout history.  Keeping the “stiff upper lip”.
Go to London if you ever get the opportunity, you will not be disappointed.