I woke up that morning with my reservations; was it even going to be possible to get to the Long Walk and catch a glimpse of the newlyweds? Doubt filled my mind until receiving a text from my mom about how excited she was for me to witness this grand, historical moment. I put on my longest skirt and my finest sneakers before rushing out to squeeze into an Uber with five other girls. The day started out great; Val almost got into the driver's seat and the rest of us spent the majority of the thirty minute ride just figuring out how to use the strange UK seat belts.
Suddenly, the road closed down. One would think that the thought of walking an unfamiliar area, not knowing how far away we were would make six girls quiver in their dresses. We were so ecstatic knowing we were within miles of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to even care to look up directions. We strolled through a part of London we had yet to see- the countryside! Before we knew it, we were walking through a security checkpoint and onto the Long Walk. THIS CAN'T BE REAL!
We secured a spot right in front of a screen while still being within feet of the road and with a clear view of Windsor Castle. After making friends with a few locals, we learned that the Royals did not use that road to enter the castle, but only went up it during the procession. While slightly bummed with the thought of waiting 2 more hours to see Harry and Meghan in real life, we began to hear cheering sweep across the crowd. The screen pans out to an aerial view of Meghan's car just about to turn on to the Long Walk. Without thinking twice, I ran towards the barricade, jumping over coolers and chairs, to get a glimpse of the future Duchess of Sussex. The car sped by, but not before I was able to get a quick peak and video. After that, we were set for the next couple hours.
Watching the Royal Wedding is kind of like watching a comedy; the true experience comes from watching it with a crowd of people. This rang true particularly when the preacher gave his speech. At least 99% of the crowd, myself included, left the speech wondering why he spoke of "fire" about thirty times, Instagram, and the Industrial Revolution. Whilst the speech went on, bursts of laughter came frequently. As a collective, we decided that "Instagram" should never be mentioned at a Royal Wedding. The locals we befriended sat there with their jaws wide open stating "this would never have been approved."
It was finally 1 PM and the procession was about to begin. Being the tallest of the group, I sought out a spot best for our viewing. Fate had our back as a spot suddenly opened up behind two very small women. Minutes later the screen displayed the same aerial view as before only this time it was Prince Harry and Princess Meghan in a horse drawn carriage! They rode by and I could swear Harry looked straight into my eyes... or maybe that was my inner teenager getting a little too enthusiastic.
Windsor is a quaint, little city that I hope to return to in the next few weeks. This day gave me a memory I will never forget.
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