Picture taken on 12 March 2010
When you live in London you are keenly aware just how little the rest of England matters. The centre of gravity since the Romans have drawn the line between civilisation in the south and the primitive tribal thugs to the north of Hadrian's Wall, London has been the flashpoint of global power, financial clout and the defining force for the arts, fashion and education.
For all those unfortunate creatures who are not subjects of the iconoclast Boris Johnson and have to languish outside the rubicon of civility, my blogsite occasionally serves as reminder just how dismally deprived non-Londoners (NLs) have to grapple with daily life in the absence of culture or class. How do they manage, I wonder? Then again, I don't really; who cares about derelict ASBO collectors, typically restricted to wilt as boors in AOL's Anglochat and who make up the core of the Labour camp?
The week has seven days; nowhere else is that more vividly demonstrated than in London, the city that never sleeps (roll over, New York City!). Whilst the rest of England languishes in a lazy Sunday orgy of idledom, interrupted and shattered by pestering offspring and/or not house-broken pets, London is awash with a multitude of attractions, events and venues for all to relish.
"I go to sleep when I die," - following that maxime I joined friends at midnight in Club de Fromage over in Islington. The decibels didn't really allow for the fun we hoped for, so after a few drinks we left in 2 cabbies and stayed at Emily's place until it became light - which is noticeably earlier these days than - say - just four weeks ago. A lot of things got sorted, last night... we pulled the Labour-stricken country out of recession, brought back to life a few people who'd be good for the world (Churchill, Cromwell, John Lennon, etc), settled the Palestinian trouble (by rounding up all Arabs and settling them in Fireland), declared burkha wearers potential bankrobbers, and settled a few love affairs that have led nowhere in the past. All in all, an engrossingly enchanting forward-looking exercise, with the truth-seeking lovers finding it all with the help of some excellent whites (brilliant choices, Emily!!) - in vino veritas.
Skipping fast forward to Sunday 11AM. The hard core of us took the Jubilee to Canary Wharf; the Tube station yet another brilliant example of the genius of Norman Foster and of the timeless allure of London. You gotta experience the bustling energy of the station during the week, and the contrast on weekends: still busy, but like an unwritten law at a pace that one can nearly describe as enforced quietude.
All four of us (Chantal, Emily, Geoffrey and I - often referred to as Gang of Four at work, even though only 2 really work at the same company) are sushi revelers and decided spontaneously to try something that has been a big No-No to-date: to try sushi at a food store. We went to Waitrose, and to our amazement all of us gave an emphatic thumbs-up! Only in London - don't attempt this in a neighbourhood near you, NLs!
The weather - remarkably - played along our frolicking, mild (that is 52 degrees for Londoners) and sunny(!), so we decided to take the boat to the Victoria embankment and ventured to some arts&craft shops; Chantal was looking for a Mother's Day gift, found none, so mumsy will have to settle for a Harvey Nichols gift certificate (the hampers were too heavy to carry around)... tough, eh?
We split at Knightsbridge, and with Emily in tow I checked Somerset House and we went through the exhibition of photographs on display (among them "Kate" - the picture that kick-started the career of Kate Moss in 1990 - if you want to call that a career). It was a no-fee event, under the patronage of HRH Prince William; can we claim some twisted lineage to the Royals now?
Afternoon was R&R, that's as explicit as a gentleman can reveal. To round out a consummate London Sunday we ended the day at a lovely concert at Kings Place. Who says that Chamber Music has to be weary? Not when the Fidelio Trio enthuses the listeners, who played Schumann, Liszt and Arensky. We both love piano works, and the intimate setting of Hall One provided the perfect frame, and the crowning of a day NLs can only read about... lol ... right here.
You're welcome!
Much less shy a few minutes later... LOL
Current Music: LILY ALLEN - - LDN
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