More London

I've added yet more photos to my Around London set on flickr but they're nothing too exciting -- just some shots from a day several weeks ago when I found myself released from the office shackles to attend an all-day training conference in Bloomsbury. Unlike work, training conferences tend to involve a full hour or more of lunch break - no eating at your desk - so I got to spend a pleasant afternoon wandering the Bloomsbury streets, primarily in the Tavistock Square and Gordon Square areas.



These squares are (what seems to me to be) those very London-specific spaces, the urban common gardens. They're surrounded by rows of terrace houses and were originally for the private use of the residents. Now they're open to the public and at lunchtimes they accommodate lazy streams of office workers, tourists, and students looking for a park bench or patch of grass on which to eat their sandwiches. (I actually had a jacket potato nestled in environmentally unsound polystyrene - very difficult to eat on your lap, FYI.)

In terms of the actual gardens, Tavistock Square is relatively sparse. However, it's home to monuments to Virginia Woolf (who lived in one of the neighbouring houses), Louisa Aldrich-Blake (one of Britain's first female surgeons), a very prominent and life-like Mahatma Gandhi, and a stone commemorating the conscientious objectors of the world.


Less happily, it is also the spot on which the bus exploded on the 7 July 2005 bombings of London's transport system. (There is small memorial to the dead on the fence across the street from the Square.)

Gordon Square in contrast, is much more lush and ornate (plant-wise), but without the obvious political and literary dedications. Some of the Bloomsbury Group did live on the Square though.

My photos also include several shots of what probably look like fairly average buildings/houses in the area. I bothered to post them to flickr because it seemed there were so many different styles of architecture in such a small area, from Georgian terraces to some sort of gothic revival to a brand new wood and steel creation that would look more at home in Brisbane. Hmmmm. Perhaps it was my near-euphoria at not having to be in the office that day that made it all seem so interesting.

We're back in the real world today after a week away for the Festival Internacionale de Benicassim, a music festival in coastal Spain. More on that next post!

The "beach"

I've put up some photos on flickr of my recent enforced trip to Brighton with work. The less said about the work part, the better, as it's a well-known fact that being negative about your job on the internet can get you fired.

Brighton itself was surprising - I think I expected something louder and tackier after the reactions you get from most Britons when Brighton is mentioned. But it seemed quite sedate and regional, with the added bonus of a beach. There was also the tangled wreck of the West Pier, which I found fascinating and had to go and research the minute I got home. (I hope that gentleman won't mind me linking to his site. Please let me know if you do, sir!) Here is one of the photos:

I also visited the Royal Pavilion, which I'd never heard of before. It was built for George IV as Prince Regent during the 1800s as a seaside retreat, and later used by Queen Victoria and family (although they found it wanting, and soon sold it to the local Council). After seeing so many grand old building lately I was prepared to be underwhelmed. But the Pavilion was quite amazing, with this monstrous dining room over which 5 huge chandeliers covered in crystals and dragons and lotus flowers hung ominously. (I've been searching for a photo of this room as I really can't do it justice with my words, and photography wasn't permitted, but no luck. You can see an artist's rendering here


although it doesn't really show how much that dragon on the centre chandelier dominates the room.) I had thought it would all be a bit like The Hermitage in St Petersburg - beautifully decorated but sort of run down and bare - but it was quite different in that each room has been fully restored and set up as it was in the Prince Regent's time - so it looks as though people live there. In outlandish levels of comfort and luxury!

The hotel was also comfortable and luxurious, in an old-fashioned kind of way. That is always the one bonus of having to go away with work - the accommodation is usually good. Also, as an extra bonus, my lowly junior associate-level room was not ready, so I got a suite on the top floor! Anyway, you can see some photos in the flickr set. Interestingly (and sadly, I suppose) the hotel was actually bombed by the IRA in 1984 (which you can read about here) and when I looked at the photos on Wikipedia, it seems my room was right in the spot (or perhaps above) where the bomb went off.


I'm looking out the window now at some very miserable looking grey sky and drizzle. What a lovely start to the weekend! It's actually warmer in Brisbane today than it is in London. Summer is a totally different concept on this side of the world.

London things

My Christmas present from Mum and Dad in Australia was a voucher for Tea at the Ritz, a London institution since the early 1900s when the Ritz opened. In fact, it's so popular that they run 5 sittings a day, and you still have to book months in advance. So our time finally rolled around a few weeks ago.

Coincidentally I'd managed to get cheap tickets for Spamalot on the same day. As most of you know, I am a Monty Python fan of old, and I was swayed by the rave reviews the show has been getting. So one sunny Saturday we boarded the Central Line, The Boyfriend cursing his tie and jacket (the Ritz enforces a dress code), and set off to Covent Garden.

Sadly, we didn't really enjoy Spamalot. TV's Alan Dale was starring as King Arthur, and while I'm sure he pulls in the Neighbours and The O.C. fans, he was a hesitant singer and a weak dancer. The chief attraction for me had been the promise of new (to me) Python material, but anything not in the movie fell strangely flat, and everything from the movie didn't turn out to be as funny when not being delivered by Eric Idle or Graham Chapman. Plus there was this borderline offensive (and not at humorous) closet homosexuality story about Sir Lancelot which really stomped on my optimism for the show. Does anyone really find "gay men all dance like Peter Allen and wear pink" jokes funny anymore?

I didn't manage to get a photo of The Boyfriend actually sleeping as photography wasn't permitted inside, but rest assured, he did sleep, and for quite a long time. There is one blurry shot on flickr of the Knights who say 'Ni' which I took covertly, just to record the experience.

In fairness, it has been playing for years, and part of the problem was the claustrophobic staging and distinct lack of enthusiasm permeating from the cast... some of whom probably have to do this 8 or 9 times a week for jetlagged tourists for not very much money. Anyway, it wasn't all bad, and now we've done the West End show thing.

We then had a few hours to kill before Ritz time, so strolled down through Covent Garden, past Chinatown, and into Piccadilly. Waterstone's (a huge UK bookseller) has a bar on the fifth and top floor, which just peeks above the roofs of the Piccadilly buildings, so it's London's version of a good view. We decided to fill in some time by having one of their famous cocktails. I went for a martini, which I've never managed to try before. As you probably know the taste can be best described as medicinal but I'll probably keep trying because they look so cool.


With some more time to kill we checked out Fortnum and Mason, and the windows of the Jermyn Street suit shops, and then wandered down to Green Park. This is The Boyfriend in Green Park.


Despite his expression I think he actually enjoyed the afternoon. Buckingham Palace is on the far side of the park, and we couldn't really wander so close to the Palace without having a look, so look we did. There didn't seem to be much going on but perhaps the Queen also enjoys a martini indoors late on a Saturday afternoon.

Finally it was time for Tea, and so we entered the beautiful Palm Court and took our seats. The service was outstanding and the room was amazing, but that all paled in comparison to the food. I had thought Tea would involve tea, and perhaps some small to eat. We were overwhelmed by the three-tiered tray of dainty sandwiches (including cucumber, of course), scones, and some of the most delicious pastries I've ever eaten. The scones, with strawberry jam and clotted cream, were so good we couldn't stop eating them, despite being stuffed. And of course, my Earl Grey tea in its silver teapot was perfect. (The Boyfriend had coffee.)

So thanks very much Mum and Dad, it was a special experience. I couldn't get many photos as photography was (again) not allowed, but I did break the rules and take a few, mostly from inside my handbag.


There are also some new shots up of our wander down to Chiswick House Gardens a few weeks ago, and some more new shots in the Around London set (because I can't resist all the summer flowers around at the moment).