i had a meeting down ludgate hill today which is the road which approached St Pauls. I used to work on this road so know the area well.

today there was a bit of a 'do' on to remember those who had died in the iraq conflict. 51 british people died (out of how many in total ...). but now isn't the time for politics and discussions on the pointlessness of (this) war.

anyway ... Prince Charles, the Queen, Tony Blair and other senior royals and government people were about, so there was high security.

we don't get armed police in the UK much so when we see them it's quite a shock. here is a picture to shock you (if you are from the UK):

To increase security further they had hidden St Paul's cathedral. They had replaced it by a giant black and white drawing. that would have confused any terrorists ...

Obviously the church service was going to be a sombre occasion. so to lighten things up, the police had brought along a bouncy castle:

(notice my colleague tamara in this photo. she was desperate to have a bounce. but it's good she didn't as all that was in the tent was ... a vicar and a tressle table)