One of my grand daughter's favorite cartoons is Walt Disney's cartoon version of Peter Pan.
It always tickled me that she loves it so, because 30+ years ago, it was the first cinema movie her father had ever been to. It was a big deal. He was probably 3, just as she is now. It had been a late night for him and his sister, and the next morning, he came rushing into the bedroom, still excited at the previous night. He leaped onto the bed and began jumping up and down, yelling "I can fly! I can fly! I can fly!" I smiled sleepily until it hit me what he was up to. I sat up quickly to lunge for him, but I was a split second too late. He disappeared over the footboard of the bed. At three, he believed he could fly.
(spoiler alert: no children were injured in this production)
As much as he loved Peter Pan, now there is his daughter.
So when I knew that I was going to see Cara and Colin, I was telling her about Big Ben. "Remember when Peter Pan and Wendy, John and Michael were flying up in the sky and they flew past a big clock? Peter Pan is not real, but the clock is!" She listened to this wide eyed and I promised to get a picture for her.
And I did.
I thought that the renovations on the clock were complete, and I wanted to hear it counting off the hours. It turns out that they are still working on it although the scaffolding is down. There is no date given when the restoration would be complete, but it may be set to coincide with the Queen's Platinum Jubilee this summer.
Funny side note: We skyped while I was in England. At 3, my grand daughter was under the impression that her Aunt Cara and Uncle Colin were not 'real' people. . She is too young to remember their visit and has only met them on the phone. However, she knows her ama to be an actual flesh and blood, three dimensional being. To see her very real grandma sitting with the 'not real' aunt and uncle was difficult to wrap her head around.
(I am not sure why the picture is so hazy. I've got more of them. I've got to get the London pictures downloaded.)
Luckily the scaffolding has now gone so you could get a decent photo or two. Those bells are quite loud when they eventually get going!
ReplyDeleteBig Ben is the name of the clocks big bell but everyone calls it the clock.
ReplyDeleteI knew that the tower itself is named after Queen Elizabeth. I thought the clock was Big Ben, but I stand corrected, Northsider.
ReplyDeleteBack when I was a kid there was a line of alarm clocks known as 'Big Ben' and 'Little Ben'. Not sure if they are still around. Shoot. Not all that sure anyone even uses an alarm clock in these days.
It's a pity Big Ben wasn't quite finished and also that no one really sees the intricate face closely.
ReplyDeleteInteresting about your granddaughters clash of reality.
JJ watched Robin Hood at ours on many a sleepover. He’s 13 now and has been too old for a few years.
ReplyDeleteI didn't realise that the clock was still not chiming. One lives and one learns.
ReplyDeleteAt least you could see it without scaffolding. I believe they rang the bells for the New Year, but maybe they've silenced them again to keep working on them?
ReplyDelete