Last Full Day in London - and It was Definitely Full

Before I talk about today, I have to tell you about this amazing place we found for dinner last night. It's called Mazi, and it's a Greek restaurant. If you're expecting flaming cheese and waiters shouting "Oopa", you can forget it. The food was wonderfully presented and cooked perfectly. We had a couple of their jars which were starters. This is the grilled eggplant one.

And then we had the Courgette Cakes (zucchini)

And ended with the Grilled Octopus

In our delirious state, we tried to make reservations for tonight too, but they were already booked. I'm sure we'll manage to find another great spot. (BB, you must return. Food is great here!)

This morning after breakfast we headed to the Imperial War Museum. This is a wonderful museum, full of history that they make come alive. Lots of films and interactive exhibits. This would definitely be a great place to take kids.

Then we tubed over to the Natural History Museum to see the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibit. There were some amazing photos there, and even the ones done by teens were impressive. Greg said it made him want to grab his camera and start taking more photos. Highly recommend this exhibit while it's here.

We had time to find a quick sandwich (and another Flat White - Greg's addiction is serious) and then we went to see The Book of Mormon. This is the only show where we bought tickets before we came because the performances always sell out. You won't find them at the discount ticket booth. It was a wonderful show and although I can see how there might be people who would be offended by the language, we weren't - and the audience loved it. It might be helpful to listen to some of the songs before you see it - just to get familiar with the lyrics. Or see it multiple times. There is just so much to it that it's hard to take it all in. (Take note here, NW and HT).

We're back at our flat now thinking we should pack but not wanting to. We leave in the morning for Portsmouth where we'll spend one night before getting on an early morning ferry to Cherbourgh. The weather looks grim in France for the next week, so we're hoping for a change in the forecast.

Farewell, London!

We Finally See a Few Museums!

Last night we went to see Sunny Afternoon, a musical about The Kinks. It was hard not to constantly compare it to The Commitments since both of them are about the creation of a band. We enjoyed the show but The Commitments just had our type of music.

This morning we went on a walk with a London Greeter. This is an organization of volunteers who meet tourists and show them their part of their city. They have them in many major cities including Chicago. Mike met us in Bloomsbury and showed us the various neighborhoods, garden squares, and museums in the area. He even took us into the British Museum and showed us a few of the exhibits. He was extremely knowledgeable about the local history and it was a great way to get to know a neighborhood we might not have otherwise seen.

After we left Mike, we had a quick lunch and then walked back to the Foundling Museum, one of the museums Mike had pointed out. It has a fascinating history. In 1739 Thomas Coram founded the Foundling Hospital to care for all the abandoned babies. The infant mortality rate was soaring, and he tried to save as many as he could by shipping them away to foster families until they were five, and then he would bring them back to the hospital where they would be raised until they could work. The mothers would give each child a token that would be kept with their records, and that is how they could identify their child if they were able to return for him/her. Most mothers never came back and so many of the tokens were on display. Very touching.

We walked back to the British Museum so Greg could take a quick look at the clock exhibit, and then we took the tube to Mrs. Kibbles Sweet Shoppe.

On the way, I saw a few interesting footwear sites. This first one is for you, P.R., if you're reading this.

And BB, this one is for your daughter. Maybe she could shape her shrubbery like this.

Still loving London, and the sun continues to shine. Rain is forecast for tomorrow so we've planned indoor adventures.

Honestly! We Do Things Other than Eat!

In researching for this trip, I kept coming across a couple of restaurants that sounded unique and interesting. So I added them to my list of places I hoped we could try. Today we managed to check off two of these places.

The first is an Indian restaurant called Dishoom. There are several locations in London, and their breakfast specialty that everyone raves about is a bacon naan. How can it be bad if it has bacon? They use that wonderful, warm naan bread to start, add light cream cheese and tomato jam, and then add the bacon. Greg had bacon and eggs on his. Awesome!

The second place I have on my "must try" list is Burger & Lobster. The idea is simple. You have 3 choices: a burger, a lobster, or a lobster roll. All are served with fries and a salad and the cost is 20 BP. That's the menu. I'd heard the place is usually packed and to expect a wait, but when we arrived for a late lunch, there were very few people there. We both ordered the lobster rolls, and they were amazing.

In between these two gluttonous acts, we did manage to go on a tour of Westminster Abbey. That place is beautiful and so full of history. And today it was also full of people! Our tour could hardly move through the mob of people. It was another tour with the London Walks group, and the guide was very knowledgeable and did the best job she could of navigating us around the people. There's no photography allowed inside Westminster, so instead, here are a few shots I took as we walked around town.

Shaun the Sheep is everywhere. Each one is painted differently, and it's fun to find them.

And this is a sign for an Italian coffee chain that is virtually on every block in London. The first time I saw it, I was sure it said Caffe Nerd, so that's what I'm going to call it from now on.

Heading to the theater again tonight. I love that discount ticket booth!

Flowers, Ghost Signs, and Lunch with Friends

It's been a great Sunday, and somehow the weather cooperated and the rain held off.

Our first stop today was an early one. The Columbia Road Flower Market is held each Sunday morning, and for us, it was a 40 minute trip via tube and walking. But as soon as turned the corner onto Columbia Road, we were blown away by the amount and the color of the flowers for sale there. The stalls ran about two blocks and you could buy cut flowers or plants, and everything was beautifully displayed. The vendors were all calling out their prices as the customers walked by. This market had such a different feel than the Portobello Road Market; everyone here was a local buying flowers for their gardens and homes.

We took lots of pictures, then stopped for coffee and breakfast. There's a cute bakery there called Lilli Vanilli that is tucked away in a courtyard behind the market. We tried the sausage rolls, and I should have known better. They were good (according to Greg) but I just don't care for sausages so passed some on to Greg. I did like the beet and carrot polenta cake, and the place was very cute.

We couldn't stay too long at the market because we had a tour scheduled in Stoke Newington, and we were told to be at the meeting place promptly at 10:50. So, of course, we arrived 50 minutes early! Why is it I feel that I'm late if I'm on time; I always arrive early. We decided to search for a bathroom, and found a small Turkish cafe. In the front window of the cafe, a woman was busy making what she called gozlemeler. She would roll out the dough, add a combination of spinach, feta, or what looked like mashed sweet potatoes, and then she would fold it in half and place it on the black heated pan you see on her right. The dough would cook and the stuff inside would all melt together. They looked delicious but I had eaten most of that darn sausage roll and I couldn't think of trying more. But I enjoyed talking with her as she made one after the other and then flipped them up onto the windowsill.

I had really been looking forward to our tour today, and I wasn't disappointed. It's called Ghostsigns Tour. Ghostsigns are old painted advertisements on brick buildings that we've all seen in cities and small towns that are often faded or warn down and impossible to read. There just happens to be a group of these in Stoke Newington, so our guide, Sam Roberts, walked us by them all and gave us an opportunity to try to figure out what they said and what they were advertising. He made it into a game, and it was so interesting to see these pieces of history painted on the buildings around town. Sam is very knowledgeable and has done a lot of research on the painted advertising not only in England but around the world.

As soon as the tour was over, we found our bus to take us to meet our friends, Kay & Jim. They actually live a block from us at home, but we haven't had the chance to have lunch together until today when we happened to be here at the same time! We ate at a seafood restaurant in the Old Spitafields Market, and it was great to see them and hear about their travels.

Another busy day. We picked up dinner on the way home and plan a quiet night.

Third Times the Charm, Pimlico Road, and Breaking the Rules

This morning we finally found a fun antique market, Portobello Road Market. The shops along this road are all quaint and interesting. If you saw the film Notting Hill, you get the idea. On Saturday all the antique stalls open which means you walk into what looks like an antique shop, but then you see aisle after aisle of stalls within the shop. We should have followed the advice of others and arrived early, but we got a slower start and as a result, joined throngs of people who were browsing too. It was strange that we are in England and yet I rarely heard English.

I found a silver napkin ring to add to my collection, and the dealer was really fun to chat with. The name engraved on the ring is Monica, so he told me that Bill Clinton had sold it to him. We talked American politics and bit, and fortunately we agreed on everything (or he might have just wanted a sale).

We rested a bit and then went back to the Leicester Square ticket office for theater tickets for tomorrow night. Another huge throng of people there. Saturday is not a great day to be in the heart of the city. Trafalgar Square was having some kind of festival, and it was nearly impossible to walk on the sidewalks. We grabbed a bus and headed to Pimlico Road.

This is a section of London that I learned about from my friend, JK, lover on all things British. She had read about this road in the New York Times. The section we walked down was not that long, but very cool and it was a relief to get away from the crowds. And we found the chocolate shop of William Curley. (Pay attention here, JK) I believe this is the shop that Ina Garten visited in her show about London. Of course, we had to buy a sample. Something called A Millionaire that was shortbread topped with caramel and all coated with dark chocolate. Heaven. Again, no picture as we choked it down too fast. I need to get better at this posting-pictures-on-the-blog thing. So to make up for the lack of the chocolate Millionaire photo, I'll add a few from yesterday at the Borough Market along with a few Greg took on Pemlico Road. A woman stopped as Greg was shooting the laundry sign and said she walked by there several times a day and never noticed it until she saw us there.

And tonight we break one of our rules and we plan to return to Mediterraneo, the Italian restaurant we went to our first night. Just too good not to go back.

In Search of a Decent Antique Market, Greenwich, and a Last Minute Decision

We've discovered something new. Flat whites. Maybe we're late to the party here, but they are wonderful. I'm not a big coffee drinker, but I read about how these are the rage in certain areas, and I saw it on the menu of our breakfast spot and ordered it. Like a latte but creamier. Will I be able to find them when we get home?

Yesterday, after our flat whites, we took the tube in search of the Bermondsey Antique Market that is held every Friday morning. Very disappointing as there were only about 15 stalls and most were junk. To get over our disappointment, we decided to return to Borough Market where we knew we would be happy again.

Shared a pork belly sandwich that was so good we gobbled it down before we even thought about taking a picture of it. We also shared a baked veggie omelette, and some sangria. Then sampled and bought some wonderful gorgonzola and a cookie called a Ginger Flapjack that Greg is now addicted to and I'm counting on his sister, the baker, to figure out how to make them.

We hopped a train to Greenwich to see the Royal Observatory there and try another antique market. Well, the market was even worse than the first one, so we just walked up the hill to the Observatory and took the audio tour there. Definitely worth doing, and the park surrounding it is beautiful. Greg's back was bothering him, so we decided to take the Thames River Cruise back to Westminster Pier and from there, take the tube back home.

I'm not normally into fashion at all, but I do think I found a look I could try. We saw this lady in Greenwich, and I never did see her face, but Greg said she was late 50's. And still rocking it with those pink tights and baby blue socks!

We picked up some takeout salads for dinner, but as we were eating, we both got a second wind and decided that we might try the Jack the Ripper Tour. Yes, it's a touristy thing to do, but the London Walks guide last night was scheduled to be Donald Rumbelow, a man who is considered to be an expert on the subject and has written several books. We threw on our coats and flew out the door, running through the tube stations to get there on time. We made it, and we're glad we did. The tour was interesting (and gruesome) and we certainly saw an area of London that we hadn't seen before.

Eat til you Pop and Dance til you Drop

Yesterday was another perfect day in London. Mild temps and mostly sunny. I know it won't last but it sure is great.

Our first stop of the day was St. Dunstan in the East.  This is a beautiful garden area in the center of a business area of London.  The church was built in 1100, added to in 1391, and damaged by the Great Fire in 1666. Christopher Wren added a beautiful tower around 1700 (that guy got around). And then in 1941, the church was severely damaged in the Blitz (See JK and BG?  I learned something about the Blitz finally). But rather than tearing the place down, London made the site into a garden and it's beautiful. Some walls are still standing, and it is a haunting yet beautiful reminder of the history of this city. The flowers were not in full bloom this early, but it was still a wonderful space to just sit and enjoy the solitude (along with the locals who stopped by for a smoke).

Yesterday was our long-awaited trip to Borough Market. We'd read about this incredible food market, and we'd even watched YouTube videos where people filmed themselves walking through the market and stuffing their faces with incredible foods. We arrived hungry at noon and realized we should have come at 11 because the place was already mobbed. Picture in your mind the perfect food market. Now make it twice as big and 10 times as good.  That's Borough Market. I won't try to describe it to you.  I'll just show you pictures and let you know that we left stuffed. (Sorry, BG.  More food porn).

We enjoyed the scallops and the sandwich of Duck Confit.  And then we had this amazing grilled cheese.

After all this wonderful food, we decided we needed to work it off a bit. We returned to our flat and did laundry. Pretty exciting. And we shocked our bodies by having a healthy dinner from Itsu, a wonderful chain of healthy restaurants that do take-out. A great poached salmon salad.

Then last night we went to see The Commitments. You might remember seeing the movie. I don't, although Greg claims I did. The play was so much fun and the music was like a playlist of everything I love. It may not surprise you that during the end of the show when they were basically putting on a concert and performing Mustang Sally and Land of a Thousand Dances, the audience was dancing in the aisles and clapping, and I was not only dancing but jumping up and down. Quite a dance move. And my reserved husband was screaming and dancing too.  I swear he was. If you have the chance to see it and you enjoy that type of music, go. Here's a link to a preview of the show.

And one final thought from yesterday. On the tube, there was an advertising sign for Las Vegas. And it said "Come to a place where your accent is an aphrodisiac." Really? Do Americans think a British accent is sexy? I hope Londoners aren't disappointed when they go there.