Monday, July 12, 2010

Sights and Sounds

I think I've found my favorite spot in London-- South Bank Centre. The city has developed a wonderful terraced walkway along the Thames River that provides a beautiful view of the river, a panoramic view of the city, and a great spot for one of my favorite pastimes- people watching.

From my perch I could sip coffee, read a commentary on Acts, and watch the world go by: families, student groups, crying/squabbling/laughing children, old folks sharing an ice cream, and young couples whispering secrets.

This is no quiet place: horns are honking, bicycle bells are ringing, river barges are sounding warning, and the rumble of the tube/subway is ever present. You can walk across the Thames and hear a four-piece string quarter, steel drums, an African flute-like instrument (not a vuvuzela!), and a guitarist. To stay in any one place for long exposes you to more languages and dialects than can be discerned.

I overhear two young English businesswomen laughing as they walked and one snidely says to her friend, "Oh my gosh- I thought maybe you had become a born-again Christian or something!" I am reading in the second chapter of Acts about how the gift of the Spirit allowed everyone to hear of the wonders of God in their own language...

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