London again

Judy. I think the day we left Georgia, it must have been in the 90’s F, and we were ready for some cooler weather. We hopped on British Air business class (this is our big splurge when we travel east), fixed our lie-flat beds, made a champagne toast, and fell asleep, waking in time for a cup of coffee before landing. 

Much to our surprise (after last visit) passport control was a technical breeze, and in a few minutes we were in the BA arrivals lounge, showering and grabbing some lunch before hopping the Heathrow Express. 

When we arrived in the city—BAM! It was pouring rain and cold. Nope. No Underground to the hotel. Bring on the taxi. Poured rain the whole way, then stopped as we pulled up to the hotel. The rest of the visit was cloudy and cool.

When we first talked about spending extra time in London on this trip, we decided to stay five days. That way we could see a couple of shows if we wanted. And we could hit up the Victoria and Albert, and other museums we missed the last couple of times we breezed through on our way to other destinations. What were we thinking??? There’s so much we DIDN’T see, but in those few days, we packed in some great visits.

We booked a lovely hotel in Southwark, an area we liked a lot, and which is where Shakespeare’s Globe is located—a must-see this visit. When I reserved the tickets in January, the only show available during our stay was A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM. Yeah, I was a bit bummed, because I’ve seen it so many times, but it took about thirty seconds for the show to win us over. The director made some fabulous casting choices (Hermia was played by a little person, which not only gave a talented actress a chance to play a romantic role, but intensified all of the comments about her size); there were fun steam-punk costumes, and a Puck with a serious attitude. We were delighted. 

Jig at the end of the show

We spent some time wandering the neighborhood, which has gentrified since our last visit, but is still quirky, and surprisingly devoid of American accents. Located a tiny pub under London Bridge for a quiet port,

ate rich Indian food, walked the Riverfront, and found a fabulous wine bar, Tap and Bottle, which had hundreds of wines available. We tried some we’ve never had before—who knew there was orange wine—and after sharing several glasses,

Georgian & Hungarian wines

were able to make our way back to the hotel, which, by the way, had a movie/theatre theme. Our room was on the Wizard of Oz floor. 

Hotel lobby

      

Elevator on our floor

We hit up King’s Cross Station to get a photo of kids at Platform 9 3/4 (the line to take your photo was over an hour, so we just snapped a shot of people we didn’t

I guess they didn't mind waiting

know), and wandered the Camden Market and Camden Town, which have changed dramatically in 40 years (big surprise), and found some goodies for Christmas. 

Only sunny day--walk to Camden Market

 No visit to London is complete without seeing our dear friend Georgy, whom we met in 1994, when he came to Georgia from Moscow with a group student exchange in the theatre program. He’s one of the coolest people I know, and met us at the Sir John Soanes’s House in his upcycled Chanel jacket (he’s a fashion/costume designer). The museum was originally a showroom for articles that Sir John, an eighteenth century architect, displayed for his clients. It’s absolutely fascinating, and the docents were chatty and knowledgeable.

 

Georgy even has a cocktail named for him!

Afterwards we wandered the city with Georgy as guide, stopping at his favorite bar for a drink. Much to our surprise, I got a WhatsApp message from Michelle, our Airbnb host in Nelson, NZ, who was in London for one night. She spent several months volunteering with a nonprofit in Uganda, and has since been traveling around Europe. London was only a brief stop on her way to Portugal, but we decided we needed to catch up, so off we went for a great night of conversation and hearing about her experiences. Boy I love these meet-ups! 

Seeing Michelle midway between our continents!

On Sunday we attended the Choral Eucharist at the Southwark Cathedral, and stayed for coffee where we met some very friendly parishioners. 

Even Shakespeare worshipped here

High altar at the Cathedral

Southwark Cathedral and The Shard

   

Tried to give this guy some suggestions

Sunday roast at The George

The George

Of course we had to have a Sunday Roast, so headed to The George for traditional roast beef, Yorkshire pudding and vegetables. AND a delicious Australian wine—Battle of Bosworth Shiraz—which had been recommended by Anna at Te Whara Ra, the vintner we met in New Zealand! Full circle, for sure! 

The roast was fine. The wine, delicious!

I took one more walk, across the Millennium Bridge, then crashed—early train to Littlehampton on Monday. It was a full, fun, and exhausting visit. Ready for some quiet time.

One last walk