The Three Hour Tour . . . Well Almost

When we got to the London Center we were assigned different wards to attend and help out in (about 3-4 students per ward). I was assigned to the Crystal Palace ward with one of my roommates, Kayla, and another girl from the center, Jenny.

Crystal Palace, Week 1:

• At 7:00 am we leave the Center, get on the tube, and travel to Victoria station.
• From Victoria we catch the 8:51 train to Orpington and get off at the Penge East stop.
• The map and the directions we were given don't quite match so we decide to follow the map.
• The map gets us totally lost so we head back towards the station and follow the directions.
• We find our ward, held in a elementary, or primary school.
• We have about 10 minutes to spare before the meeting begins at 10 am.

Crystal Palace, Week 2:

• At 7:00 am we leave the Center, get on the tube, and travel to Victoria station.
• We catch the 8:51 train to Orpington and get off at the Penge East stop.
• We remember our way and reach Malcolm Primary School with a half hour to spare.
• We have got this church thing under control.

Crystal Palace, Week 3:

• At 7:00 am we leave the Center, get on the tube, and travel to Victoria station.
• We catch the 8:51 train to Orpington.
• As the train leaves Victoria station we all become absorbed in our books and activities.
• I begin thinking in my head: "This seems like a really long train ride . . . oh well, I must just be tired."
• Then my roommate Kayla says: "Guys, I don't recognize any of these stops . . . "
• And that's when we know . . .

Kayla after we figure out that somehow the 8:51 train to Orpington, which we always take, is somehow taking a different route today. One that will not take us to church. We decided the safest thing to do was to ride the train all the way out to Orpington and figure everything out there. By the time we reach Orpington it is 9:40.

Orpington station on Sunday morning.

Kayla and Jenny showing their chagrin. We went and talked to the people in the ticket office and they informed us that the line from Victoria was having some work done on it for the day . . . thus the new route. They then told us that we had to catch the train back to Victoria at 10:08 and get off at another stop along the way.

It was a chilly morning so we spent our half hour wait in the stinky waiting room, which was a little warmer than outside. We then caught the 10:08 train to Victoria . . . already 8 minutes late for church. We were able to get off at the stop we were told to and then found the ticket office there to see what we had to do next. The woman informed us that because the line was closed we would have to take a railway service bus, free of charge thankfully. The bus ride was an adventure but we got to Penge East station around 11:00 am and then walked to church, arriving at 11:10 . . . just as Sacrament meeting got out.

Malcolm Primary School with an LDS sign outside. I know this is a bad picture but we were over an hour late for church what were you expecting?! It was my first day in Primary and everything went really well, but we had to leave ten minutes early to catch the bus back to a station so that we could get back home. Whew! What an adventuresome day. Next time we will know to check the stops as well as the platform!