Hillsong Will Rock You (in London, of course!)

I'm finally getting around to posting the third day of our London trip (just in time to head out to Scotland!)

Our third day in London was on Sunday. One of the members of our group, Amanda, knew that The Hillsong United Church was somewhere in London. Little did she know that it was a mere 9 minute walk from our flats! The service is held in a theatre that plays this show by night!

Yep, that's Freddie Mercury.

(Some of you may have heard of Hillsong. They are a fabulous Christian rock band from Australia. We actually sing many of their songs in chapel at Hope College!) Not only would we be able to attend the church, but Hillsong would actually be performing! They had been on a three week tour across Europe and were wrapping it up in London. So basically, Sunday morning church service was like a free rock concert--but with praising God. It was so fantastic! I've always been a firm believer in praising God with all instruments and voices and, oh man, we did just that!
http://www.hillsong.co.uk/

http://hillsongmusic.com/

To the ear: a concert. To the heart: worship.

After church, we grabbed some lunch and then did some last minute shopping for souvenirs. Having spent all the money that any of us wanted to, we still had 2 hours to spare. What to do...what to do...
In my mind, there was really only one thing left to do. King's. Cross. Station.
For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past decade, King's Cross Station houses Plaform 9 and 3/4, the magical entrance to the Hogwarts Express. (It's Harry Potter, people!). So, we just hopped on the London Underground and took it straight into the station.

The route to the station. (Note the last stop on this line!)

Filled with anticipation, we followed the signs!

"Platforms 9-11 This Way" Woo hoo!

Getting closer...following the arrows...and then...ticket booth. Crap! We don't actually want to ride a train, we just need to take some very necessary picture. So, we stood there awkwardly, trying to see if there was a way to cheat the system. Apparently we had the word "tourist" stamped on our foreheads because one of the guards asked us if we were looking for Harry Potter. (It was like he could read minds!) He kindly directed us into the station and pointed us in the direction of the platform. I was ridin' high at this point, just cruising and looking for the tell tale sign.
Uhhhh...ok. Did I miss something? The platform was nowhere in sight along the vast spread of tracks. As I retrace my steps, I notice lots of construction and scaffolding...Harry Potter never had to deal with any of this! Suddenly, I notice an uncharacteristic brick wall down a side alley of the station. Success!!! I found it (and without the help of Hagrid or any of the Weasleys!)

Harry was there but was wearing his Invisibility Cloak. Silly boy!
Peace out! It's off to Hogwarts for me!
A childhood's worth of dreams in one picture.

As with all good things, this trip came to an end. We headed back to the train station and got back to Liverpool just in time to do some last minute homework. The procrastination was well worth the memories!

This sums up my grand, musical, hysterical, occasionally naked, and unforgettable adventure in London!

Bidding London a fond farewell. Until next time.