England/Scotland 2024 Pilgrimage – Day 17: London

Tuesday, September 17, 2024

Since we were both exhausted, we decided to sleep in until 8:00. Ten hours of sleep was much needed and refreshing. I worked on the blog a bit, then we were off to find breakfast.

Fortitude Bakehouse

Jennie texted several recommendations for eating. She raved about Fortitude Bakehouse so we couldn’t pass it up. Obviously, many others couldn’t, either, since there was a long line down the alleyway it was on. We each picked out two items, a presumably savory Morning Bun for both of us, a Cinnamon Sticky Bun for me and a Chocolate Sticky Bun for Gregg, thinking we had a sweet and a savory.

Oops! The Morning Bun was sweet, too, although delicious! It had a cream center with raspberries in an egg based pastry. We were not disappointed, yet decided to keep the sticky buns for later. Oh, Gregg had a Flat White and I had Irish Breakfast Tea. Perfect pairings! There were benches outside so we sat and enjoyed our breakfast and shoo’d pigeons away who wanted a sample.

Westminster Abbey Eucharistic Service

Westminster Abbey has a lunchtime Eucharistic Service at 12:30 so we quickly made our way there. Those going to service were allowed in a different line and didn’t have to pay to get in. Although, they kept a close eye on us going in and out so as not to see the rest of the Abbey for free. No worries. We saw as much as we wanted of the beautiful Abbey, took some photos after the service, and decided we were satisfied with the visit.

The service was in the main nave and was special.

Lambeth

From Westminster Abbey, we walked to the Lambeth area, over the bridge. Lambeth is where Lambeth Palace is located, the permanent residence for the Archbishop of Canterbury. Sadly, he was not taking visitors 😉 but we were able to see it from the tower of the adjoining Parish Church of Saint Mary, Lambeth. Both the tower and the bridge provided beautiful views of London.

We ate our stickey buns before our climb and I left my jacket and bag with the ticket agent (a young man studying here from New England.) The stairs were a bit treaturous, but worth it!

Lambeth is the location of a large gathering of leaders from the Anglican Communion. It happens every few years. So this was a significant place to visit on our pilgrimage.

We have been to Canturbury and visited the Cathedral there years ago. We’ve decided that a visit to Lambeth will suffice on this pilgrimage since Canturbury is at least an hour away from London, often more, by train.

Cafe in the Crypt – St. Martin in the Fields Church

Another culinary suggestion Jennie offered was the Cafe in the Crypt, located under St. Martin in the Fields Church. It is located in the Trafalger Square area. This required more walking and a Tube ride.

We had a late lunch of delicious sandwiches, swapping halves of Corrination Chicken with chutney and Egg and Tuna with black olives. Yummy! They closed at 5:45 which gave us just enough time to go upstairs and see the church. The chancel window is very unique – clear glass with a wavey design. The green trees outside give it an “in the fields” feel.

Trafalger Square

Trafalger Square is enjoyed by many people sitting by the fountains or on the steps, relaxing and enjoying the beautiful evening. On the square is also the National Gallery which is free (unless you want to see the special exhibit of Van Gough paintings, in which you’d need to pay 28 pounds each…we passed.)

The gallery has a nice collection of Impressionism Art which I enjoyed viewing. Afterwards, we hung out by the fountains in Trafalger Square.

Picadilly Circus

The evening was still early so we made our way to Picadilly Circus. It is London’s version of Time’s Square and their theater district. We took in the sites, walked around, then headed back to our hotel. On the way home, we had Ginger Shots. Then stopped at a Tesco Express for Advil (my aching feet!) and dark chocolate digestive biscuits. Isn’t that a lovely term for cookies? It sounds much healthier. Home by the Tube with music at the bottom of the escalator.