In the house of the Huguenot silk-weavers named Jervis you can step into the world of the 18th century. Funnily enough, this family has never existed. It has been made up by the American artist Dennis Severs, who lived in "their" house in the middle of Spitalfields in the East End until his death 1999. His canvas was the imagination of the visitors who should "pass though a frame into a painting."
"Either you see it or you don't", that's the motto of the house. When you stroll through the house you gain the impression that the owners of the house have just left it. The house is entirely candle-lit and log-fired. You can wander around the whole house, from the kitchen in the cellar to the top floor tenants' flat. You can smell the food and in some rooms the mold, you can hear noises from Georgian times and the black cat of the house strolls around you legs.
"It's not a museum, it's an experience," the man on duty tells you before you enter. During your visit, little notes remind you of how to receive your impression. "What! You're still looking at 'things' instead of what 'things' are doing?
Another highlight of today was my first pub quiz. The Warrington is just around the corner of our flat and the quiz was organized by Let's get started. And you know what? I scored as the fifth table (out of five tables, I have to confess). First became the Maidavalables.
Amongst the few questions I was able to answer were "What is the most expensive spice?", "Who was Hitler's chief architect?", and "Which city is said to be founded by Romulus and Remus?" But you can't expect from a non-Brit to know which actor first played Dr. Who, to recognize the theme of a cult-series, or to answer the question which club reached the soccer finals in the UK, can you?
For my colleagues at work, here is another proof how small the world is. Just look at the third picture in the Quiz team galery and see who a member of The Flask is ...
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