Tuesday 21 October 2008

walking for walking's sake

We went as a group to Saint Paul's Cathedral the other day. It was fun to go again, but I was honestly a little 'cathedraled out.' However, out of the top three biggest domes (all of which I can now say that I have been to the top of!!) I think that I like Saint Pauls the best. It is decorated in mostly white stone, and only little gold touches everywhere except for the apse where it goes a little glitz crazy, but other than that, it stickes nicely to simply suiting the baroque style that it is and not over emphasizing itself.. if that makes sense.. The dome itself is a black and white painting that tries to evoke the sense of a 3D freize. The Duomo in Florence has a beautifully colored painted dome, but the rest of the cathedral was too plain on the inside, especially from the very brightly colored outside. St Peters in Rome was huge, with huge brightly colored mosaics and tons of gold. It is gorgeous, but I also like the fact that both times I have been to St Pauls there have been very few people there (comparatively speaking), and you have more time to silently and peacefully soak in Christopher Wren's architecture. Wow.. here I am, just writing for myself, and sounding all comparative and academic.
Anyways.. the reason that I'm even writing this post is because after I was in Saint Pauls, I started contemplating the significance of life and the impact that one person can have on the world. It's interesting how we are always told that the material things in life don't matter, however it is only through the creation of these material things, books, statues, cathedrals, that we are able to have a significant part in other's lives and be remembered and/or useful to future generations. As I was thinking about this, I realized that the only thing that truly is important in life is the unavoidable action and interaction that we as human beings do. We really can do anything (with only a few limitations like physical ability, laws, morals, etc..) and it is only through our choices and our action that these things will ever get done. From there I decided that I wasn't going to waste my afternoon with doing nothing, so I decided to walk home! It was great! I walked from Saint Pauls, down Fleet Street, past a couple of theaters (including the one where Lion King is playing), past Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery, down The Mall, past Buckingham palace, and up along and through Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. It was great! A crisp fresh fall day with the wind lightly blowing, listening to my music and watching all of the people going by with their personal agendas. I really have no idea how long it took me, but I'm guessing it was around 2 hours, it felt shorter, but I don't know how the time passed if it wasn't through my walking..
Bascially. I had a great and enlightening day. Love those.
Not to be out done, I finished the day by going to the ballet of Swan Lake at the Royal Opera House. The spectacle of ballet was something, and I enjoyed the scenes that moved the plot along, but all in all, I have to say, ballet is not necessarily my favorite thing.. I have to admit; it was beautiful, and the fourth act was stunning.

1 comment:

Lisa Reising said...

Yay and hooray for your blog Sam!! I am honored to be your first "follower" because, as you know, I am your biggest fan (with the possible exception of Dad). I love your thoughts expressed, along with the pictures. I love your spirit! And I certainly love you :D