ideal day out in London

So its counting down to my birthday, and I need to get myself a plan or else I could just sit on the couch playing video games all day… wait a minute…

No- I plan to do my ideal day out in London. It amazes me I haven’t thought of this before as a topic.
OK, so it means on Sunday night I am not drinking, so I don’t wake up with a hangover, and that means that 08:00 on a Monday morning is a sleep in!

Breakfast at the breakfast club. This place looks cool! A see a long drawn out breakfast with coffee and sun streaming through the window to halo our waitress who is bringing us bottomless coffee.

Now I will make my way via some record stores and a walk around soho- hyde park, its time for Lunch!

this place looks mean! And we will get some bloody mary cocktails (which will be the start of my newly revamped bloody mary blog). So because there are not so many people going out places like these are doing excellent priced lunch. More on this in the following blog.

Then a walk around to the south bank to either the Tate, and/or the BFI

And at the risk of doing too much on the day, here are some other things I want to do
Caledonian Canal Walk
Blues Jam
Lounge lover

And that’s it, another year beginning!

other people born on this day
VVG


Paul Verlaine
High-heels were struggling with a full-length dress
So that, between the wind and the terrain,
At times a shining stocking would be seen,
And gone too soon. We liked that foolishness.

found a photo

On a woodshed in East London.

Latest Bloody Mary Recipie

I heart the bloody mary. I plan to kick start the old blog into it as well, but I have discovered that there are only two ways to get a good bloody mary in this town; pay enough money for the bar tender to be proficient and if this is going to be a blog I really can only pay for two drinks a month... or make it yourself.
This recipe is per glass and this is the order each ingredient goes in;
two ice cubes
enough cucumber vodka to cover the ice
One shot of port
half a lid of brandy
two pinches of celery salt
juice from half a lime
6 drops of tobasco sauce
a dash of worcestor
the best fresh tomato juice you can find, although if you have time make it yourself! I have only done this once, and to be honest it tasted a lot like tomato soup. I will let you know next time I do it...
Stir well
garnish with celery and a sprinkle of pepper.

If I had some fresh horseradish I would use this, but alas I did not.

Great Comedy Moments

Last week in Photos

Hello! Had a nice week last week all in all. Good football results for everyone! as long as they are gooners haha. and Liverpool fans it must be said.

L. K. and I went to Hackney Marshes for a bike ride in the fantastic London weather. Here is the speed demon L. in action!

These are some much slower bikers in the park we stopped for a beer.This Banksy hit all the blogs last week as the stencilled one hit Hackney. Conversely it was "defaced" by some graffitti hoolagan, and so someone has come back, cleaned off the unsitely graffitti so Hackney can still have some art. Ooh the irony.

Before going to the movies last week L and I stopped in for a drink at 5th View. The tables were seperated by books to brouse, the table service was slow but friendly and they had a wide range of world beers. Considering the madness downstairs at Piccadilly Circus it was very calm and refreshing!

At Rough trade records I found this Lost poster. I am always intrigued and slightly saddedned by these. But I snapped away like an emotion tourist. If you have seen Jack let him know he is loved! Maybe give him one of these.

This is the bus restaurant in Brick Lane. I miss the old routemasters. Jumping on was always cool! And how you could pretend to be asleep for a free ride. Oh well.

Spittlefields, why have I never walked through here at night before?

I just joined up with my local library. Isnt it amazingly romantic in an old fasioned way. Things wont be like this for much longer.

words? WTF?!

After turning this blog into a bit of a photo journal, I thought I would take a step back from the vision, and revert to words backed up with links.

Taking photos is becoming an obsession, one that started over 25 years ago when I first began buying secondhand old cameras, taking them apart and making periscopes with the mirrors. L. bought me this book last night which has step by step lessons around your camera, which is reinforced by a series of projects at the end of each chapter. Good fun!

For a more hands on experience I found this in the Tate: Whats on April-May booklet. The Shoot Experience organise treasure hunts, workshops but the idea that caught my idea as the Tate shoot.

Teams are given different parts of a story and sent into the local streets to
find inspirations and take photos that respond to or represent each phrase or
word. At the end of the day all photos are collected and compiled to make an
unique photographic story board that will be projected onto the big screen in
the Turbine Hall.

You need groups of 4 and its 50 quid each group to enter. How about it?

St Patrick’s day this weekend. Trafalgar Square should turn green, but in light of the recent military clashes Boris is hoping to dedicate the festivities to Peace. With a parade and a festival I certainly hope this ends up being a very peaceful and festive day.

I however shall miss all of this and go for a walk along the Thames Path.

Another week, another blossom shot

The thing about London this time of year, is that nature offers tantalising glimpses of Summer, with punishing reminders of Winter. No one ever knows what to wear in London, is it raining or is it shining, oh great- its both. However There is nothing like, after a week of rain and grey, walking in the morning with a blue sky above you, your jackets collar turned up against the rain, and the streets lined with the first years blossoms. Its a good way to start a working day.

Protected View Series

On a burial mound deep in Richmond Park, is King Henry's Mound. It has a protected view all the way across one of the most sprawling and constantly developing cities in the world. I know you cant really see it in the pictures (*!) but trust me, that fuzzy grey area is St Paul's Cathedral.

Richmond Park Guided Walk 2

We were up early for our guided walk around Richmond Park, but we had a chance to catch an egg and coffee and hash browns at the River Cafe opposite Putney Bridge Station.

There were about 60 of us in all, the average age probably about the same number but there was a polite friendliness going around. The talks concerned park management, soil nutrition, rhodadendrons and herons.

We saw wild deer, heard great spotted woodpeckers and saw pipe smoking tweed cap wearing naturists.

The weather was changable, with looming clouds making way around the blue sky. Although it was cold it soon became obvious that beer oclock was looming.

And we saw a live wild rabbit, munching on the park like it was one big salad bar.

The Seven Sisters Road

The streets of North London were just starting to fill again after the football.

The local team had just won due to a penalty shoot out and the sound of car horns rang into the night.

The neon signs of take away food joints projected the promise of shadowy nourishment.

I walked with my camera down the Seven Sisters Road.

photos of the day

A walk in the park

We gathered at the Hampstead Heath Museum for a guided walk called "reading the landscape". It was taken by the author David McDowell who has written walking books including the Heath and Richmond Park.

In a very geological minded walk we discovered that 60 million years ago this part of the world was under the ocean, which is why so much sand sits next to the London Clay, and that pebbles washed up were from a giant river that flowed from Devonshire 40 million years ago.



Interspersed were some interesting stories about how the landscape was cut away from the heath to make bricks (1860 circa) or how the viaduct was to be the start of a handsome avenue but the good members of the public who wanted to keep the heath as it was stopped this by some canny land purchases which prevented drainage. All quite dry yet interesting information. We found parts of the Heath we had never seen, but as we should, stopped into a pub at the end!(NB This is an awesome pub but you have to book for sunday roasts! (imagine!) we got a seat but watched many people leave dissapointed.

A Monday walk into work

A beautiful Monday morning this morning. Springtime in London hits hard! Took my time coming in and took a few snaps for your perusal!








I liked how the over exposed sky turned out? seems like a polaroid half way thru developing or something?

By Kings Mall in Hammersmith every Thursday there is a market. Looks like these guys have got here a little early, this man was setting up some leather belts.

And here though they look delicious, it was a bit early for me to be eating olives.