The Mall And The Party With The Queen

Strange.  This post is a ten year old recollection of a 50^th anniversary celebration.

I was in England late May 2002 for the UK Comic Con show in Bristol.   I originally made plans to visit some friends in France the first week of June, but delayed them when I found out that a three day holiday was declared at that time for the Queen’s Golden Jubilee.

Perhaps not knowing any better, my friend Jim and I decided to make an attempt to attend the ceremony!  From our hotel, we took the London Underground at Bayswater and traveled to Charing Cross.

As we walked out of the station, I noticed the towering statue of Lord Nelson in Trafalgar Square.  Which way was Buckingham Palace?  It was then Jim spotted a red brick road…

The Mall is a street that connects Trafalgar Square and Buckingham Palace.  The red color or “colour” reminded me of a giant red carpet that seem to roll out from the palace grounds.  British flags and giant television screens were lined up on the walkways.  We soon found ourselves amongst a throng of people.  A million people had the same idea Jim and I had.

No other country can blend pomp and circumstance with a party atmosphere like the British!  The Queen waved politely as singers as diverse as Eric Clapton, Ozzy Osborne and Brian Wilson performed.

I was watching Atomic Kitten (and a very pregnant Natasha Hamilton) cover “The Tide Is High” on a jumbotron when two beers and these incredible shrimp and cream cheese sandwiches were provided to Jim and I from a pretty blue-eyed blonde who called herself Greta.

The three of us watched the rest of the concert and even sang along during the refrain at the end of the final performance for the night, Sir Paul McCartney and “Hey Jude.”  After the concert I finally noticed people going wild: men kissing women, women kissing men, men kissing men!

Greta reached over and surprised Jim by kissing him hard on the lips.  When she turned to me, I felt the urge to say something…

“I have to confess: I’m an American.”

“I'm Swedish,” Greta laughed as she cupped my face with her hands.  “No worries, love!”

It took me ten years, but I finally got to use that line:

Meeting up with mon ami Maud in Paris later that week, I admitted that I never actually made it to Buckingham Palace, but I got a lot closer than her country ever did!

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