I woke up feeling very nauseous, so I stayed in bed till almost 1:00pm. I really wanted to go to the service at St. Bride's church, where they were performing a Mozart mass. But I knew I wouldn't make it through the day if I didn't stay in bed.
I got ready for the day very slowly. Then Luke, Tyrell, and I met Liza at the Harlequin Restaurant inside the Kingsway Hall Hotel near Covent Garden. We had booked a reservation the night before, and I had a distinct impression that I needed to pay for everyone. So, I did. Although I don't consider myself to have a wealth of money at all, I have definitely been blessed with several scholarships that have allowed me to not have to worry so much. This was one of those times where I felt prompted... where I knew I could afford it, and paying for the other three would take a load off of their minds for the rest of the trip.
Sadly, I wasn't super impressed by the tea. It was an experience we were encouraged to have at least once while in London. Tyrell, Luke, and Liza all got tea, and I got hot chocolate... which was amazing! We were then served sandwiches... which were decent, but not incredible. Then we had lots of little desserts. Scones with clotted cream and jam, eclairs, cheesecakes, macaroons, and fruit tarts. Everything tasted delicious, but it wasn't the most amazing thing. It probably had something to do with the fact that I was super hungry, and mostly just needed more real food instead of lots of dessert-type things.
After tea, we took a 25 minute walk over to the Royal Festival Hall. Tonight's concert was the Duruflé and Fauré Requiems. It was particularly appropriate right after the London Bridge Attacks. Before the concert began, the conductor dedicated the performance to those affected by the attacks, and then we all stood in a moment of silence for the victims who lost their lives.
Here is a picture of a flag we saw on our walk to the concert hall. It was flying at half mast for the victims of the attacks.
The performance of these two requiems was particularly appropriate because these composers chose to leave out the Dies Irae, or Day of Wrath. These requiems are very hopeful rather than some of the gloom-and-doom masses written for the dead. One movement in particular has always been a favorite of mine. It has got to be one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written.
Random side note: we saw Jennifer and Matt Heder at this concert. They've been traveling around the UK, and heard we'd be at this concert. So they bought tickets, and joined us. Kinda fun to see friends from the US in the UK.
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