Mad Dogs & Englishmen Out In The Midday Sun
Drawing back the curtains this morning we were greeted with blue skies and sunshine - not something you usually associate with London - but a welcome sight. It’s always so weird to come from one season to another so dramatically, going from puffer jackets, jeans and woolly socks one day to summery short-sleeves and sandals the next. Some degree of deforestation in the hairy leg department was very necessary before stepping out, as I usually subscribe to the ‘let it grow wild in winter’ philosophy (not always intentionally).
A good friend, Rachael, who used to work with me at Wicks, moved to London a few years ago & we’d arranged to catch-up this morning. She met us at our hotel and took us on a fabulous walking tour, starting with a bite to eat in Borough Markets, then up one side of the Thames and down the other. Being such a glorious day, everything was sparkling in the sunshine and the crowds were out in force; wall-to-wall people shuffling along; mad dogs and Englishmen included. The atmosphere was fantastic with multiple buskers entertaining the masses. Everything from contortionists and acrobats to singers and dancers - it was all happening. There was a little outdoor theatre packed with patrons and a colourful merry-go-round flanked by food trucks bursting with delectable offerings, all giving the city a fun, carnival vibe.
Wandering past the Tower Of London, glancing at the famous Tower Bridge, seeing Big Ben (now finally devoid of all his scaffolding) gleaming in the sun, venturing past Shakespeare’s Globe theatre…we were pinching ourselves that we were really here. It was so great to catch-up with Rach and hear about her life in London as we talked and walked…and walked…and walked…We farewelled our friend and began to head back, realising how far we’d come from our hotel. We’d walked for a good couple of hours and now had a solid trek back. We’d like to blame the jet lag setting in (it could just be the fact we are so out of condition) but we were starting to feel pretty knackered indeed. Checking the trusty iPhone pedometer we saw we had clocked up almost 20,000 steps. No wonder we had sore tootsies. We felt like wind-up toys that were running out of steam and needed another wind to get going again. Seeing our hotel in the distance was enough to propel us forward with wistful longing. Finally back, we decided to lay down and watch a movie and about 10 minutes in, I was deep in blissful slumber. I’d forgotten how intense that hit-by-a-bus jetlag feeling can be. It took great willpower to extract ourselves from bed to head out for dinner. Molly’s feet were still sore from pounding the pavement and were sporting sizeable blisters so she made the hilarious decision to go to dinner in the complimentary hotel slippers.
We dined downstairs in our hotel, mainly due to the fact we couldn’t walk too far (especially in slippers). Initially, I thought we’d walked into the Ritz, judging by the prices on the menu, but my shock was relieved when I worked out that what I thought was the price next to every item was actually the calorie count. Phew. As we munched on our mains - calories counted - out of the corner of my eye, I saw something small and brown moving in the corner, right next to our table. At first I thought it was a little bird but on closer inspection noticed it was fluffy, had a long tail and whiskers and was a MOUSE!!! My feet shot off the floor and we both yelped a little at the realisation. I went to yell “Aaagh! It’s a mouse!” but only got to “Aagh! It’s a…!” before thinking better of it and deciding it was probably not advisable to induce mass hysteria in the restaurant. Our furry friend scurried under Molly’s bench seat and disappeared. I waited with bated breath (and raised feet) for it to emerge but we didn’t see it again, promptly paying the bill and discreetly revealing the rodent’s whereabouts to the waitress, who made a ratatouille joke and didn’t seem too perturbed at all really.
