I arrived at Heathrow Airport in London this morning with my travelling companion Melinda, after a crowded but relatively uneventful flight. We immediately took the train to Cambridge to prepare for tomorrow's Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's College.The Centre was bustling with shoppers making last minute gift purchases and tourists taking in the sights and sounds of Cambridge, King's College is actually closed this week for rehearsals and sound checks. The BBC portable uplink is parked on King's Parade (the main thoroughfare through the Centre), and the Chapel is closed to the public. So we did some sight-seeing and shopping, and had lunch at Auntie's Tea Shoppe. Auntie's is a MUST during a visit to Cambridge.
Tomorrow morning, Christmas Eve, we will queue up at 5:00 a.m. GMT, in order to get a seat in the Quire for the service. The tea shops and restaurants on King's Parade will open fairly early, and the gift shops will be open as well, to attract the several hundred cold congregants waiting in the queue. King's College will also reopen early in the morning to offer food services and toilets. I packed a camping chair and the cold weather gear I wear for tailgating at Buffalo Bills football games.
For many years, the custom has been to choose the boy chorister who will sing the opening verse of "Once in Royal David's City" just moments before the start of the service. But according to an article in today's paper, 12-year-old George Gibson has already been chosen to sing. We'll hear him tomorrow, a few minutes past 15:00 GMT.
