what a bunch of monarchy - vacation notes two

this wing of heathrow is a ghost town. gates 39-56 in the new terminal take 15 minutes to walk to from security. and now i sit waiting in front of gate 52, a mere hour before my scheduled hong kong boarding time and i'm completely, utterly alone. like, "night of the comet", "28 days later," alone. this is a beautiful change from the rest of heathrow which gives off the ambiance and sordidness of las vegas, only with more disorganization, more children and no gambling. at least, that i am aware of, in this airport, i wouldn't be too surprised if there were a back room poker den. high end shopping and liquor are everywhere, lights and noise, SO much noise. even through my ipod i can hear it.

then, right past the 1970's high-design corduroy walls of gate 38, the old terminal gives way to the new, wall open up to 24' high banks of windows on both sides, a monument of modern glass and steel. crystal cantilevered walkways shuttle out arrivals overhead as not to disturb those waiting to leave the country below. except for right now, there is no one to disturb but me. alone in the neat rows of eames inspired chairs, watching airplanes pull up and disappear through puffy clouds...

today i was able to visit kensington castle and eat at pizza express before i headed to the airport. the castle was permanent resident for some of the royals, and summer residence to most for awhile. before london spread to kensington, it was in the country and king george the first resided there for some time. much of the castle is off limits (apparently some crusty old monarchs still live ther!) but many of the ornate, ostentatious rooms are available for public viewing. the "tour" walks you through the process of gaining audience with the king, and although it seems like much nonsense in modern times, surrounded by such marble and gilt, the mind naturally turns to donald trump.

is he not the monarch of the united states, for all intents and purposes? he's got a lot of money, everyone knows him, his lavish, showy tastes are well documented, and he has no real power (over the economy or anything else, "apprentice" castmates aside) in the country, but still commands unwarranted respect and gentle mocking? quite frightening.

also in the castle were the last photographs taken of princess diana prior to her death by mario testino. these also juxtapose the difference between the formality of the throne and us commoners, as the relaxed, carefree pictures of diana laughing and grinning, slumped next to a couch on the floor, hands on hips, were said to represent her final transformation after her separation. although some originally appeared in vanity fair, many were new to the world. i was surprised how much i was impressed by then, i'd never really been one to follow her career path, but my sister and i discussed how vivid the memory was of being woken up by my mother at age seven or such, to watch the royal wedding on television. so perhaps, subconsciously, she has always had some importance in my life.

as i finish typing this a swarm of filipinos have taken over the area surrounding gate 52 and interrupted my quiet moment. probably for the better, no use rhapsodizing about the royals any further. amazingly enough, they seem to all be destined for hong kong, and it looks like i might be the only american on this plane. hmm. another first for me...

xx