Early on Saturday morning, a group of five of us headed towards South Kensington station, excited to witness the once-in-a-lifetime event that, in a happy coincidence, occurred during our time here in London. Once at the station, we realized that we had absolutely zero clues how to get to the wedding. But fear not, we found that we could take District or Circle line to Paddington station...except that both lines were closed down. After several tube trips of trial and error, we found a roundabout path through several transfers and public sprints to Paddington station. Ready to hit the road out to Windsor, we made our final sprint (literally, through Paddington station...in heels!) to the train just as it was about to depart. After a successful train transfer, we made it to Windsor and followed the yellow brick road to the wedding of the decade.
By an extreme stroke of luck, we saw the Princess herself, Meghan Markle, driving down the roads of Windsor to the castle on her way to the ceremony. It had never really processed to me before how much of a big deal it was that Meghan Markle, a bi-racial American such as myself, was marrying into the Royal family. Her relationship with Harry broke so many barriers of class, race, nationality, and traditions previously (unspokenly) enforced by the Royal family. Their marriage was not only an amazing experience of the merger between American and British culture, but a testimony to the open-mindedness brought about by the people of the 21st century.
In another extreme stroke of luck, we were let through security last minute and ended up mere feet from the carriage as they made their way around the town after the ceremony. We were able to see history being made--especially since Meghan's family was represented solely by her mother. The Royal Wedding's impact on global culture cannot be overstated, while on our journey we met other wedding-goers from every corner of the world, every person excited about the impact the wedding would have on global viewpoints of race and acceptance.
On Saturday, the whole world's eye was on London. To be in this global city, experiencing this important historical event, is something that I will be thankful for and a story I will surely tell my children about one day. Meghan's walk down the aisle--at first alone, and then accompanied by Harry's father, the Prince of Wales, was a historic event of its own, yet it is only one small part in the grand scheme of the progressive movements made this past Saturday.
Despite the cultural differences between England and America that at first seem slight--such as keeping quiet on the tube, keeping to the left, and their tendencies to dress business attire for a night out clubbing--I felt for the first time not like an intruding outsider during my experience at the wedding. Even the reserved Brits were cheering for the couple as they passed by, everyone unashamedly waving British flags and breaking the decorum that has been in play constantly since our arrival. Our London eyes/I's were on the wedding, and I wholeheartedly believe this amazing experience gave me deeper insight into 21st-century British culture.
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