Watson, the game is afoot!

We had a free day and I was able to go to the Sherlock Holmes Museum!  Some of you know that I have been a Doyle fan since grade school.  My uncle bought me The Complete Sherlock Holmes and I was hooked.  I have been collecting Doyle for years, and the opportunity to do things like this is a real plus during my time in London.  The museum is of course located at 221b Baker Street.  Obviously Holmes has lots of fans worldwide.  The queues (lines) were long and people were speaking many languages.  Fortunately my flatmate and I went early and did not have to wait long.

 

The house is of the period, with fireplaces and meticulous attention to detail that Holmes aficionados would notice.  There were some hokey figurines and some things that could have been done better, but overall I really enjoyed my visit.  This was one of the few places on my trip that I have bought several things to take home!  I felt as thought Holmes and Watson might walk in at any moment. 

Last night I had the opportunity to return to the British Museum for another visit.  Yes, it is open every Friday night and it is less than a five minute walk from my flat!  There is a special exhibit right now about Pompeii and Herculaneum.  This is the first time that most of these artifacts have been shown outside of Italy.  While admittance to the British museum is free (!!!) there is of course a charge for an exhibition of this nature.  Would you believe I got a discount with my student i.d.?   How many people do you know who in one trip could receive an AARP discount on British Airways and a student discount around Europe? 

 

The exhibit was well done, with a film in the beginning interspersing scenes from these ancient towns and mural portraits of the occupants with scenes of modern day Italians engaged in the same jobs and activities.  It brought a truly human element to what we were about to see. 

 

 



Because the towns were buried for so long, we have a chance to glimpse a civilization that would have been torn down or built over as happened elsewhere.  The murals from Pompeii are indescribably beautiful.  The jewelry of the people, their tableware, even their mechanisms for running water are on display.  The exhibit was set up as a series of rooms in a house.  It was tastefully done, with none of the ashen molds of the victims' bodies that we've all seen pictures of.  There was one of a guard dog, who was found at his post in a doorway.  Seeing him made me sad.  There is still much of Pompeii left to excavate. 

 

At Herculaneum, which was a smaller town, most things were incinerated.  There was some furniture which survived as charred.  It is other worldly to see a graceful garden bench, looking like charcoal, displayed in a garden room with the teal bird and flower mosaic walls from Pompeii.  I spent a long time in this exhibit.

 

Tomorrow is our last formal program day, and then our group will be dispersing. We will go to Buckingham Palace tomorrow and then have lunch at the Hard Rock Café.