Three Hours of Pain for 15 Minutes of WOW

 

I love fireworks.  I don’t know what it is, but I look forward to every New Years and 4^th of July.  Last year, when we were at a “People of Walmart” New Years Eve party and we watched the London fireworks on the BBC and all I could say, “I have to see that show in person next year.”  So as the New Year approached, we decided that we had to find a place to stay so we could really enjoy all the New Year celebrations in downtown London. 

Our "People of Walmart" costumes

 So on New Year’s Eve morning we boarded the train in Ely bound for London.  We expected the city to be crazy with people gearing up for that evening’s parties.  We checked into our hotel and ventured out into the streets looking for something to fill our time.  We didn’t have too many plans since we had an early dinner reservation at a local Italian restaurant so we could be on at Westminster Bridge early in hopes to beat the crowds.  We did some shopping and ended up at Whole Foods for a quick lunch.  We spent a considerable amount of time there.  We pulled up chairs to their wine bar for wine and cheese tasting until we had to head to dinner.  Whoever thought we could have such a great time at a grocery store!

 The Crowds on Westminster Bridge

Dinner was good but nothing to rave about.  The staff was anxious for us to leave so they could close up and head to their own New Year celebrations.  Our plan was to be in the Westminster area around 8pm.  I had read that it starts getting busy around that time, and if you weren’t there by 10pm you would not find a place near the water with a good view.  As we walked out of the tube station, it was literally a sea of people. We were surrounded by hundreds of thousands of people.  We went with the flow and finally ended up by the statue located on the west end of the bridge.  We claimed our small piece of concrete and battled the crowds to hold our position.  I looked at Big Ben as we stop and realized we had over three hours to wait!  I’m glad Andrea loves me because I’m not sure she would have agreed to stand (with nowhere to sit in sight) for three hours for about 15 minutes of entertainment.  The crowd provided great entertainment for our wait.  Some drunk guys decided to climb the statue, eventually the police had them come down, it rained off and on where we shared umbrellas with a couple from Spain and another group of four guys from another country I couldn’t figure out, and the shear drunken mass of humanity that was flowing all around us.  The mood of the crowd was amazing!  People were happy and just having a great time.  The three hours went by quickly.

 Drunk Guys on Statue

As midnight approached, Andrea and I both agreed that we would never do this again.  Our feet hurt, our backs ached, and we didn’t get to enjoy any of the beverages we brought because a trip to the port-o-potty would have meant an easy hour trip to cover 100 yards and possibly get swept away by the sea of partiers to never return.  It was easier to hold it and limit our intake of fluids.  It was surreal to hear the iconic “bong” of Big Ben at midnight as the sky above the Thames erupted in fire and sparks and London Eye illuminated with colors and fireworks flying off it from all directions.  It was the first time they have launched fireworks from Big Ben, and the clock exploded with a ring of color with every bong as it rung in the New Years.  After the impressive 10-15 minute display, all we could say is that we were glad it braved the crowds and made it down, what an amazing night!

The next morning we woke up and made our way down to the parade route.  We expect great things from the parade.  If you remember from our St. Patrick’s Day experience in Dublin, European parades are unique and interesting compared to parades in the US and we expected the same in London.  What a boring parade!  It was about 65-70% American performers, bands, and cheerleaders.  Almost everything else was a float pulled by a lorry (Brit for semi-truck).  Andrea’s favorite display was the Pony club.  We only made it through about half of the parade before we were tired of it.  We spent the rest of the day doing a little shopping but spent a considerable amount of time hanging out in a pub because as soon as we left the parade route, the rain started falling hard.  Overall we had a fantastic time.  We complained and moaned about standing for three hours, but as soon as the fireworks started we quickly forgot about it and really enjoyed ourselves.  

Andrea's Favorite

Another Interesting Group

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