Isabel in London!: Half-Term Activities

I. The Imperial War Museum

The first official day of half-term was a Monday, and Mom and I had it all to ourselves. We immediately decided to head off to the Imperial War Museum. We saw an exhibition on "Children of the Blitz" (children who had been sent away from London to avoid the bombing of the city by the Germans). It showed things about school, included things such as letters, and it even had a typical house from London during the Blitz, which you could go into. At the end, there was a little newsreel (brief movie) showing people celebrating the end of the war, but it also had a few things about how the children felt when they came back to the city from the countryside and other places outside London. For example, one girl hadn't seen her parents for years, and they couldn't recognize each other when they were supposed to meet on the train platform. We also went into a model trench from World War I -- a trench is where soldiers stayed before going out and fighting -- which had life-size soldiers writing letters home, talking, cooking, going out from the trench to fight, and helping the wounded.

The Children's War - Morrison Shelter: air raid shelter in 1941 You sleep in it! You ate on top of it! ou could get a little tired of being in it!

World War One trench exhibit at the Imperial War Museum London

We also went in a pretend submarine and learned about accidents and sinking. And, lastly, we went into a pretend bomb shelter: it was totally dark, the benches shook, and we could hear people talking and singing, trying to cheer themselves up. After that, we walked down a pretend street and saw the ruins of houses and stores that were burning after the bombs had dropped. In the bomb shelter, we sat next to a grandmother and her grandson. She could remember being in a shelter during World War II as a child and she recalled the musty smell. It was all a little scary.

II. Mom's Work

My mom works at "The Junction,"and I had to go with her on half-term Tuesday so she could drop off some papers. The Junction is in a narrow building without much space. The Junction is where my Mom works with clients who are addicted to alcohol and drugs, such as heroin. The people who work with her are from all different cultures. Fred is from Scotland, Isaac is from Canada, Devika is from India, and Chinye is from Nigeria. There are lots more people, but that would be too much to go into.

III. Wonderful Wednesday

My Mom sometimes goes running in a park called Wormwood Scrubs, and finally on a wet Wednesday morning she took me there to see the birds and the nature. It had open football fields and little clusters of undergrowth. I had a good time there listening to the chirping of the birds. After we got back home and ate lunch, we went out again. We went to see the movie The King's Speech about King George VI whose father dies and the next king, his brother David, leaves the throne, to marry an American divorced woman. This means that King George the VI, also known as Bertie, has to be king now, and he is a stammerer (sometimes stumbles over his words). The hero is his Australian speech therapist, Dr. Loeb, who uses very interesting methods, like swearing, to help him and asks him all these strange questions.

The king, his wife and their two girls (Elizabeth and Margaret). I don't think they are the jokey sort.

IV: Isobel and Her Kids

On Thursday, we went to meet Mom's workmate Isobel and her eight-year-old girl Neve and six-year-old boy Fergal. We couldn’t find them at the tube station where we had planned to meet—until we got paged! When we did find them, we walked, or I should say zig-zagged all over, to Borough Market (in Southwark). We walked through the market and smelled some Stinking Bishops cheese, which everyone hated but me! Then we ate lunch in the gardens of Southwark Cathedral. There we saw a European robin and a … fox! (There are foxes in London, and both my Mom and Dad have seen them on their runs and rides through town.) Next we went to the "Poetry Corner" at Southbank Center, where we sat and wrote poems. There was also a kids' area, where kids could run around; and there we had a big PILLOW fight. Overall, it was a fantastic day—and, I forgot, we had a Flake (vanilla ice cream with a milk-chocolate 'stick')!

V: British Museum

We used the Friday of half-term to go to the British Museum. First, we all wandered up to the first floor, where Dad and I looked at some old clocks. We saw many lovely clocks, very complex, with all sorts of moving parts and things that chimed (like a church bell). There were beautiful and exquisite clocks: for example, two tall wooden "grandfather" clocks, with well thought out marquetry designed in the shape of birds, flowers, and other animals. I love marquetry and I like to think about cutting out and fitting together all the pieces—which, though very tiring and difficult work, sounds like fun!

Long-case clock, wood marquetry, made in England by John Draper ( 1700-1710), BM

Next we went to the room "Europe 1400-1800," and here are a few things that stood out in my mind: There was a figurine of man, meant to be an allegory of "Winter" (dressed in winter clothes, with a muff that had wrinkles), made out of white ceramic. I found it very beautiful and wondrous. There were also two plates, one with a gray dog chasing a butterfly, with small drawings of bugs and plants on the rim; the other was clear glass with a green-leaf design. I also saw some blue and white salt-glazed stoneware, earthenware (unglazed), and a ewer designed to look like a shell with glass coral (orange!). I also discovered a new type of glass called potash-lime glass. When it was time to leave, Dad pointed out a cup made from elephant and rhino tusks; there was also a cup with amber on it and things made out of mother of pearl.

Hunting horn of ivory, of European form (1490-1530), British Museum (similar to the one I saw)

VI: A Day in the Eighteenth Century (Really!)

On the next day, a sunny Saturday, we headed out for some fun at the Wallace Collection. They were putting on a "Day in the Eighteenth Century" program, with special actors and singers! We first went to listen to a singer who was accompanied by a harpsichordist, both wearing fancy wigs and dresses. Next we went to do a craft project, where we designed with colored pencils and pictures two golden boxes, which had patterns on them. (I now use mine to keep all my beloved treasures in.) We then went to another craft booth, where Dad and I designed our own "service": paper plates, which would be used for "special" occasions (like the special porcelain services at the Wallace, used by kings and queens). We also got to meet and listen to Madame de Pompadour—it was really an actress! (On the way, I stopped and played some betting games with fake money—really fun!—and the two people running these games wore elaborate costumes.) Madame de Pompadour, who wore a fancy pink dress, spoke to the audience about her relationship with King Louis XV; what it was like at court; her favorite artists; and her likes and dislikes. After that we went to hear a bit from Voltaire—but he was boring, so we moved on! Mom and I went to finish our boxes, while Dad went to hear a talk about the museum's famous collection of Sevres (porcelain). It was, all in all, a fantastic day and an experience that was different from any other I have had.

Madame de Pompadour, painted by François Boucher [her favorite artist!], (1759), Wallace Collection

Madame de Pompadour, the actress (which one do you think is prettier?

VII: Dinner with Family of Four

The final day of half term began as a bright Sunday morning, and I went for a good four-mile run with my Dad in Hyde park. There we saw baby ducklings with their mother and father! Fortunately for us, since I love nature, we noticed a tourist taking pictures and asked if he might be able to send us some photos—and he did! (He was a nice Italian named Frederico.)

Make Way for Ducklings, Hyde Park Edition!

Later, at around 1:00, we left the house for an outing in a terribly rainy world. We walked five cold, hand-freezing, shoe-drenching miles, until we reached Kenwood House (in Hampstead Heath). Dad and I circulated through the galleries almost three full times; and we finally compared three of our favorite paintings in the museum, all in the same room:

1. a self-portrait by Rembrandt around age 60, with two circles in the back (the story goes as follows: a famous medieval Italian artist Giotto wanted to show his artistic skill, so he drew a perfect circle—as did the ancient artist Apelles, they also say—and Rembrandt was trying to show that he could do that, too).

2. a portrait of Pieter van den Broecke by Frans Hals, with wild hair and very detailed ruffles

3. a guitar player by Johannes Vermeer, showing a woman with funny curly hair

And the winner was: Rembrandt! Second place went to Hals, and coming in third was Vermeer.

Next we walked two more miles to Sarah and Boaz's house. There I played with Ottilie (we did bother Isaac, too) and with the family pet, a brown rabbit called Muffin. We also had delicious Sunday dinner. So, after eleven miles, loads of paintings, hours of playing, yummy roasted chicken and potatoes, and torrential cold rain, I discovered the London truth: that even horrible weather cannot dampen a wonderful, final half-term-holiday day!