Wandering Around

And a proper good morning to you.
It’s not morning where I am, but I thought it an appropriately genteel greeting, and one more likely to be authentic.
I woke up this morning knowing that all London could be my playground and also knowing that I was too jet lagged to take full advantage of it. And yet something could be done. I needed a good leg stretch for one thing. Because it is very important to work up an appetite, and because it’s Friday what could be better for the appetite than wine and cheese?
I have been to London many times before on my way to other places. This is the first time I have gotten to stay, and as it has been about ten years since my last visit, it is essentially a new city for me.
For google Earth fans: I proceeded east on High Holborn and down the Holborn Viaduct. My target was the Museum of London. Along the way I found a Barclay's cash machine. Here is an important travel tip. Find out what foreign partners your bank has. You can save five bucks or more a transaction—money that can be spent more profitably on food and drink. The other big distraction—I use the word big advisedly—was St. Paul’s Cathedral. I turned aside to have a look at the exterior and naturally got completely turned around and ended up walking in a circle, but the Museum of London was reached in good time.
Unfortunately a lot of school trips arrived at the same time. Nevertheless, the place is worth seeing. Entrance is free, but even if they charged admission it would be worth seeing. Exhibitions range from the Paleolithic to the Twenty-first Century. Some real treasures lie in the display cases, but what I am a total sucker for are the reconstructed rooms and streets. Don’t miss the Lord Mayors Coach either.
I hopped the tube to the Marble Arch stop and then walked south along Park Lane. Despite the presence of highly swanky hotels, this is not necessarily a pleasant street. Think LA style traffic. But at Hyde Park Corner I found my other target: Apsley House purchased by Arthur Wellesley himself and still home to the Dukes of Wellington. The House is worth seeing simply as an example of early nineteenth century taste, but his grace was a noted art collector. The gem of the collection is Velasquez’s Water Seller of Seville, and, yes, it was even more incredible in person. You can see the water drops running down the glass the boy is taking. There’s also a Caravaggio, some studio of Rubens, and a lot of the Duke’s favorite Dutch genre painters, and all of it is very worth seeing. Porcelain fans will scream with joy at the various services—most of the gifts from crowned heads—on display Another cannot-be-missed piece is a gigantic--and hilarious--nude marble statue of Napoleon that some monarch or other compelled Wellington to accept. Even Napoleon didn’t want it. I could not help wondering if Canova, a noted sculptor to the stars especially when they wore crowns, was being naughty. The figure of Victory in Nap’s hand faces away from him.
Ok, Pil, you cry. Stop with the history all ready. We’re hungry!
Very well. Let us tube back, using our highly convenient Oyster Card, to Covent Garden. It’s time for some lemon sorbet.
Feeling refreshed we go in search of CHEESE. There’s a place called Neal’s Yard Dairy, which I have longed to visit. The charming young shop man refused to sell me any cheese until I had tasted it first. The cheese is all labeled, not merely with the variety, but with the actual region, farm, and cheese maker’s names. It’s totally organic, free range, grass fed, etc. and correspondingly expensive—and Worth It. I got two semi soft cheeses, one cows milk and one goats milk. Both are rich, buttery, mild and yet with a complex after taste. When I say that these cheeses are just as good as the French cheese I had from that shop in Paris you will understand. And, yes, I will be going back. Frequently. Duh.
I interrupt the food fest to note that the Netherlands actually scored against Brazil. The Brazil goalie having decided to take a nap or something. Now they are tied. Good on the Dutch!
Cheese is good. Wine is good. Together they are Really Good. I am having a Merlot I pulled off the shelf of the local grocery store. I have adopted a five-pound rule rather than a five-euro rule, wine being more expensive in Britain.
If you have questions or requests leave a comment or shoot me an email. In the meantime I’ll make my plans for tomorrow.
Cherrio!