We started off our morning by visiting the Imperial War Museum in London. The museum covered both world wars, as well as the 'War on Terror' and the very recent violence throughout Syria. The WWI and WWII exhibits were extremely interesting, and offered a personal look into the details of how each war was fought. In the WWI exhibit there was a part where you could walk through trenches, complete with sound effects. You were able to get a glimpse into the horrors the soldiers were put through. The WWII exhibit was also good as well. However, they dedicated an entirely separate exhibition to the holocaust. This was an extremely emotional and heartbreaking walkthrough. As you made your way through it, you could see how the view of Jews and other minorities went from simply inferior to no better than common cattle. You saw the unfathomable horrors committed by the Nazis, and how millions of innocent lives were lost because of them.
After the museum we headed onboard to a cruise on the river Thames for afternoon tea. We were served tea, sandwiches, and small pastries. We had an incredible view from the boat, and gazed at landmarks like Big Ben and the London Eye.
Finally we finished off the night with our 4th play, Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night". Having little knowledge of this play beforehand, I was expecting a dull reenactment of a typical Shakespeare play. Oh boy was I mistaken. The play was a lively tale that was modernized for today's audience. I was also very happy to find it featured a drag queen, a heavily implied gay man, and several musical numbers. It was also ridiculously funny, and knocked my expectations out of the park. Overall, this has been one of my favorite days so far.
Usually I leave war museums feeling miserable and like there is no hope for peace among humankind. While I did have moments of this here (such as when playing the very current interactive children's war games that identify German ships as the target for bombs) I felt that the way the museum was set up also offered so much hope. They even had a section entirely about peace efforts throughout history and the piece of the Berlin Wall on the grounds-what a powerful statement. Despite my disagreeing with the children's games the museum designed, I am hopeful that people visiting this museum will understand that war is not just a game and that by being educated on the subject history will not repeat itself.
ReplyDeleteMatt,
ReplyDeleteI also thought the Imperial War Museum was very interesting. It was great to see World War I and II from the British perspective rather than the American perspective we have learned from for years in school. Going through the Holocaust portion of the museum gave me chills. I could never begin to imagine what the Jews and other minorities went through during this time. I also was shocked at how much I enjoyed "Twelfth Night." I loved the musical numbers and the modern twist they gave the Shakespearean play. I honestly wouldn't mind seeing it again!