Loose Leaf Notes

As soon as we arrived in London, after a long day of travel from Italy, we headed straight for the pub.

After finding no IPAs in France and only a couple of bottled ones in Italy, it was good to be in England and enjoy a really good beer, not to mention that everyone spoke English.  We toasted to my son’s paternal extended family, who are all from England. When I asked the pub keeper about their untraditional bangers and mash (sausage, mashed potatoes and gravy) he said, “We go our own way.”

With only two short days in London, we had to work fast. We made our way to Trafalgar Square, where I remembered being when I was last in London in 1975.  I think I look like an excited kid who just met Aslan in this shot.

While in Trafalgar Square we mingled with the street performers and artists, like this man, an activist who was making a statement about the environment using coins as his artful medium.

“Joe, it’s for you.”

This part of London was like Times Square and shows a double shot of England’s double-decker red buses, which we did ride to get back to our hotel.

It looks like Joe is about to catch Cupid’s arrow singlehandedly.

London is very diverse. While walking through one of London’s Central Park-like parks, I stopped to talk to these young Malaysian women when I saw them trying to squeeze together for a selfie.

There were lots of tube rides and “Mind the Gap” announcements, which is how the Brits say “Watch Your Step.”

Can you imagine using the word “circus” in place of “street?”  We saw these shoes in Piccadilly Circus. There was also an Oxford Circus, but that doesn’t sound like as much fun.  “These are something Elton John might buy,” I said to Joe.

I kept looking for that hip fun street that I couldn’t remember the name of but remembered from 1975, and there it was! Carnaby Street!

Where do you think we went next?

Why don’t we do it in the road?  Even strangers paired up to recreate the iconic crossing captured on the cover of the Beatles’ Abby Road.  I guess I’m Ringo.

We also went to Buckingham Palace but didn’t plan well enough to see the changing of the guard maneuver.  Apart from a couple of old school guards who never moved, there were a couple of bobbies armed to the max, and when I asked them why so heavily armed, the woman cop answered, “because the Queen lives here!”

We were told she was in Scotland.

We liked the Carnaby Street area so much, we went back a second evening. The pubs overflowed into the streets.  Now we’re off to Kent where Joe is a teacher at an iBme-UK teen retreat.  Cheers (or should I say Hello Goodbye)! ______Our World Tuesday