London, December 13, 2017

Wednesday morning we took the Tube to St. Paul's Cathedral, but it was closed for TV cameras preparing to televise a special memorial for those lost in the London tower fire several months ago. We then travelled to the Victoria And Albert Museum to see the exhibit "Opera: Passion, Power And Politics," which featured pictures, costumes, manuscripts and recordings of operas from the 17th to the 21st centuries. Afterwards we enjoyed a delicious lunch at the museum in a beautiful 19th century room decorated with stained glass, tiled columns and an elaborate stone mantle. After leaving the museum we headed to the Handel And Hendrix House Museum; the two houses adjoin each other and gave good insights into the lives of these two very different musicians. In the evening we dined at the Balconies Restaurant at the Royal Opera House before attending a performance of Rossini's "Semiramide" featuring fames mezzo-soprano Joyce di Donato. - Dan