London - Day 3

In which we become groundlings, fully geek out and visit Avenue Q.

Tons more walking and Tube-ing today. The highlight had to be the tour of the Globe Theatre. This is the theatre where Shakespeare’s plays were put on. Well not this specific building as the previous two Globes had burned down. The roof was (and still is) thatched and therefore very flammable! This Globe is as much a replica as the original as possible with the exception of: health and safety additions, extra lighting, and modern toilets! We paid to get the 40 minute tour and we had an amazing tour guide who was so energetic about everything it made everything that much better. She said thy could fit 3000 people in the Globe back in the day (now it fits about 1700, which still seems astounding as it doesn’t feel that big). 1000 would stand on the ground kinda below the stage and the would be called, appropriately enough, groundlings.


She said back then, the English came to ‘hear’ the play, which is why the best seats – the gentlemen boxes where Royalty always sits – are right on either side of the stage. This also allowed them to be seen by everyone in the theatre. This is similar to a celebrity getting their picture in People magazine today.


At the conclusion of the tour I couldn’t help but purchase an ‘Out damn spot” tea towel.




After this we headed over to the Tate Modern. What’s cool about museums in London is that they’re all free (or donation). We walked around and saw some Picasso, Monet, Pollock and numerous other works of art. At the gist shop I purchased a copy of the Banksy book that I had read at Mike’s. The photo the right is a painting on the outside of the Tate Modern building. Reminded me of Banksy!

From here we made our way to Geek heaven – a gigantic toy and comic book store! It’s a great store that has everything geeky. We bought a few things (including some Indiana Jones things not available in Canada!) and then met up with Mike’s friend Chris for dinner. We ate at a cozy pub nearby.

After dinner, Chris left and Mike and I went to see the musical Avenue Q. I’ve had the soundtrack for years and have always wanted to see it and lo and behold it was playing in London! The theatre was cozy but large as there were three balcony levels. The play was just hilarious. If you don’t know, it’s kind of like Sesame Street for adults. Highly recommended. During the finale a banner didn’t unfurl properly at first which was no big deal, but the actor incorporated it into an upcoming line which caused great laughter from the audience.