Well, It was a lovely day… But
that was the morning. The clouds started to build around lunch time. Then the
rain came; a drizzly, drippy, cold and sloppy mess! On an afternoon like that, there
is nothing for it but to curl-up with a few friends and a roaring fire; a place
to be catered to among friends.
That is why, around mid-afternoon,
I made my way to Waterloo, and onto a train headed for Surrey. You may ask what
the target of my travels was, but long-time readers will know that there is
only one place I could possibly have in mind: The Pub!
Not just any pub, THE PUB; The
King's Arms! But I am getting ahead of myself.
My colleague and I walked around
central London for a while, getting a look at the area of Central London around
The Eye, Parliament, and that general area for a while, and then she went off
in the direction of St. James Park and Buckingham Palace. She had said that she
wanted to spend the afternoon "walking around downtown." I spent the
rest of the morning and the early afternoon walking around and looking for
pictures I hadn't yet taken. I pretty-much walked along the Thames from
Parliament to Tower Bridge and back – my camera gear at the ready – and stopped
frequently to look at whether the view was worth shooting.
I stopped a few times to take
pictures of vacationers – one was a newlywed couple from Miami who had come
over on their honeymoon. But mostly, I kept myself plugged into my iPod,
listening to a mix of my favorite podcasts and music.
The first drops hit me around three
and, as luck would have it, I was on the Waterloo Bridge considering the view
from behind the Queen Elizabeth hall. My photographic musings were curtailed
because of the rain and I decided to duck into the nearest Underground stop to
consider my next move. Where should I go next?
As the nearest stop was Waterloo,
I thought that a trip to the pub sounded like an excellent idea. The rain had
let-off by the time I reached Thames Ditton and the walk from the station to
the pub was pleasant enough. The pub itself has changed very little in the time
I have been living back in the states. It is still, a lovely pub and they still
pull a proper pint! On a whim, I called my friends from when I lived here –
only one was around, so I invited Kevin over for a pint. We had a great time,
reconnecting and enjoying a pint.
The rain had resumed in earnest by
the time we had had a couple, so I called a car, asked him to take me to the
Surbiton Station (by way of my old neighborhood) and made my way home to the
hotel. All-in-all, I have no idea how I could have spent a lovelier day off in
London! Well, I guess a bit more warmth and a bit less rain would have worked,
but – hey! It was still a lovely day!
I stopped at the chippie in the
high road on the way home for a Cod And Chips (heavy on the Salt and Vinegar!)
so I am sitting here, reviewing my shots on my tablet this evening, enjoying
one last beer and think it will probably be an early night!
Wherever you are today, I hope that
you've had a lovely day as well!
No comments:
Post a Comment