it was a bit strange when i found myself at my first catholic mass midnight christmas eve at westminster cathedral tipsy from the free wine/mulled wine provided by the hotel my mum, brother, and i stayed at christmas eve/day. i felt a little claustrophobic actually. the elderly white men chanting in robes, thick, whirling incense, ritual, history, ritual, history... and loads of people signing crosses across their chests surrounding me made me feel dizzy. and it was hot and stuffy...scary really. but it was also amazing. it was amazing to experience so many new things and feelings at once. to feel myself in an enormous cathedral smack in the middle of some weird religious historical ceremony. on the way to westminster, my mum, brother, and i stumbled upon buckingham palace looming in the christmas eve night air. we laughed and got lost and gave my mum the nickname "randella", and finally found our way to the mass. the next day we had christmas lunch at our little ritzy (but somehow welcoming at the same time) west end hotel. english style. christmas lunch was more like a party than a religious event. i guess christmas in england is in part a holiday which serves as an excuse for adults to act like children again (and maybe a warm up for new years eve) and eat until they feel utterly disgustingly stuffed-like a stuffed turkey. so, we joined in the fun: food, balloons, poppers (the party favors not the drug), balloon wars with other tables, wine, coffee, and yes yes yes mince pies! we also paused in between lunch and dessert for the queen's annual christmas speech (10 minutes long-organized around the theme of social justice/peace/children in need in countries around the world). it was strange, different, english, and definately a christmas to remember. ps: when we sat down at our table for christmas lunch, we found the hats in these pictures and were expected to wear them during our meal. mine kept falling off so I wore a gold paper crown instead...good times. thanks mum and joe for making my first christmas in another country feel just like home! miss you guys as always.