to london town

the other day, we left for london. it's about an hour's train ride from cambridge with some great views. when we got there, we first went into the british library. there, i asked if i could film. they said no at first, but i could call "press" and ask them. they had a short conversation with my father and agreed to let us film in the precious documents room, containing codex sinaiticus and the magna carta. it was really cool to get the permission, but it was very dark, so we'll see how it looks.

later, after about fifteen bus rides and getting lost (which made for great footage), we went into the trafalger square. this is a beautiful area that has several statues and monuments right outside the national gallery. i filmed in there for a few moments, capturing a couple statues here and there. then, a man tapped me on the shoulder. he asked me what i was doing. i replied simply that i was filming. he simply told me this was not allowed. apparently i need special permission from the city hall in order to film inside the square. i asked where that was. he misheard me, and though i asked where i could film. he said i needed to get five meters behind the entrance stairs. this seemed odd with zoom lenses, but i obliged, putting away my camera. during this "confrontation with the law," two other officers approached, making sure i was no longer filming.

after this, we stopped by the churchill bunker next to st. james park. i didn't even try to film in there, as it was not advantageous to the film, nor was it a productive idea. but it was fun to visit. it is tucked away underneath a government building with fake sandbags outside. a great place to see.

then we walked along st. james park, noticing how most of the people were not british. there were a few, and they were playing football (the british kind). we then passed by buckingham palace, where i saw the changing of the guards from across the street. i got a couple pictures, but no video, as i assumed this was off limits, too. i will later get some outside of the roundabout.

then, on the in/famous harrod's. it is interesting that they will sell anything (including estates in dubai). it is also interesting that when they have a speciality they are selling, say cuban cigars, or italian coffee, they hire natives from these countries. but other than that, it just seems like a big store. a big store and a place to spend money where i have none. but it was interesting.

we are now back in cambridge. we got one of our first official negative reports (we've had a few previous emails, but they seem to change their minds when seeing us in person, rather than a random person from america), so this week could be a little less productive. there are some meetings set for monday, and, with jeff miller having left us on saturday, we are getting a replacement with a brett . . . crap, i just forgot his last name . . . anyway, he's a brett.