Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey... I am almost speechless. This was my first experience to ever go in to such a significant and beautiful cathedral. There are no such cathedrals back home in the states, so when I heard that we were going to see this cathedral, I had no idea what I was in store for. I was also unaware of the great historical significance that Westminster held. I heard that people were buried there, but I was thinking of a graveyard right beside the church; I had no idea that so many famous people were all buried inside of the cathedral!!! I have never seen anything like it!

When I first stepped inside the cathedral my jaw literally dropped. I was so in awe of the magnificent beauty, and was immediately consumed by the awesome essence of all its glory. The first thing I noticed was the great height of the ceiling and the gorgeous stained glass windows. I think that the ceiling is what gives the cathedral its sense of significance and power. If the same cathedral were to have a flat ceiling that was at average height then I do not think it would have the same effect. The cathedral in itself is extremely beautiful in its intricate details and all of the tombs of so many famous people are obviously what makes the cathedral as famous and significant as it is, but the ceiling and vibrant colors of the stained glass windows are a visual aid to reinforcing its importance. This display is a clear form of the culture of London and represents how they reiterate the status they wish to make known. In the United States, it is not very common to find a church with stained class windows. Even if you do happen to run across one, it usually just has one or two but they are not near as elaborate as you would find in the cathedrals of London or England.

On the stained glass windows there were both pictures as well as Latin writings that were displayed across them. I took Latin in high school I have not completely mastered the language and was not able to read what it said. I really wish I could have because it would have been really interesting to read what it said. The pictures were religious, so I would assume that the writings were as well.

On thing I noticed about the tombs in the cathedral was that there were many buried underneath the floor so that people were constantly walking over them. Now maybe it is just me, but I always thought that walking over someone’s grave was a sign of disrespect, and here we are walking over countless tombs of extremely famous and significant people of our history!! I was slightly taken aback by this, and was not sure if maybe that was just a culture aspect of where I grew up and did not apply to London like it did at home.

I wish I could’ve had more time to stay and walk around in Westminster Abbey because of how greatly intrigued I was of everything. I immensely enjoyed this fieldtrip and could have spent the entire day soaking in all of the history and unfamiliar beauty to me.