The Churchill War Cabinet Rooms 08/11/2023

August 12, 2023

Last night we discussed our itinerary for today. In most cases you need a plan going forward. We were going to get started shortly after coffee. Everyone came downstairs and Amanda and Linda made coffee and we had pastries for breakfast. We decided to have a light breakfast so we could get started on our plans for today. One thing led to another, just one more cup of coffee, and before we realized it, it was mid-morning. We finally got going about 10:30. We use the Arsenal gateway to enter the London Underground subway. It is about one block from our apartment. We walked around to the station and found it was closed for the morning. We then walked to the next station, located in Finsbury. We were already late getting started. We arrived in London proper and came out of the tube by Buckingham Palace, just as the changing of the guard was completed.

We then walked along St James Park to White Hall Street. We realized that the morning had passed, and it was time for lunch. Linda and Amanda found us a "cute" pub to have lunch. The name of the pub was the Horse and Guardsman. This is a wood-paneled traditional pub and is a great location the enjoy the British pub experience. One menu item all tourists traveling to the U.K. should try is the Fish and Chips, with a pint, of course. We ordered 4 fish and chips. By the time we finished it was 1:00. We revamped our schedule for the day and decided the War Cabinet Rooms would keep us busy for the afternoon.

I know many of you have knowledge of the War Cabinet Rooms and probably visited them when you traveled to London, but I will refresh your memory. After the conclusion of the Great War, (WW I), the war to end all wars, it was discussed in the 1920's that plans should be made for the safety of the British government in the event of a future war. This topic was approached because of the aerial attacks by the German airplanes and zeppelins in WW I. It was decided that an evacuation of the government would send the wrong message to the Londoners left behind. After much discussion, that lasted several years, a decision was made to use a very large basement in one of the new government buildings and construct a central office, from which to conduct the coming war. The war rooms became operational one week before England declared war on Germany. They were in continuous use, 24-7, from 1939 until the war's end in 1945. Fascinating tour.

After we finished the tour, we hopped on a "hop on-hop off" tour bus and stayed on it for a while. We got off near the Selfridges Department store. This store was founded by an American, Harry Selfridge, in 1908. Today, the Selfridge Store is the second largest department store, behind Harrods, in the U.K. After having dinner here, it was time to return to Islington. Our plans for tomorrow are, Linda and Amanda are going to the Portobello Market, and Harry and I are going to the Imperial War Museum. We plan to meet the ladies in China Town for lunch. But first, we stopped at a Lloyd's Bank ATM to get some British pounds for Linda and Amanda to use at the market.

I put my MAX ATM card in the machine, entered my pin number and not did not get any money. The machine kept my card and told me to come into the office and see a manager. This is late Friday night and Lloyds does not open up until 10:00 Monday morning. No money, no card. Harry and Amanda saved the day. I told Harry that Linda was good for it, I knew where she lived.

I have used this card all over Europe and this is the first time this has happened. All adventures are faced with challenges, this is no different.