Royal Academy of Arts

I was flying with some friends on this trip to London.




Patti and Julie are probably two of the most adventurous people I know.  They are always out seeing new places and experiencing the local culture and history, wherever in the world they may be.



The two had just returned from a trip to Budapest,
and were eager to see the "Treasures from Budapest"
exhibit at the Royal Academy of Arts.

http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/

The Budapest exhibit was fantastic.  Photography wasn't allowed

or I would have shown you a painting which I found particularly

interesting, with showed a stuffed armadillo on the mantlepiece.

Okay, maybe it's a Texas thing!

I was also interested in the "Sargeant and the Sea" exhibit, which
I enjoyed.  I wasn't familiar with Sargeant's childhood, or much of
his early work, so I received an education in those areas.

While Julie and Patti were traveling, they had
been told about a restaurant in Soho called
Mildred's.  We set out to find it.



Eventually,we did.
http://www.mildreds.co.uk

The place was packed, even at 6 p.m.  We were greeted by the Queen, and our Keith Urban look-alike bartender.




We didn't have reservations, which you obviously need, so we sat in the bar.  The only bad thing I can say about Mildred's is that it is very noisy, which may not be true, if you sit in the dining room.

Our food was delicious.  Patti and Julie ordered different entrees and shared.  Melissa and I ordered the same thing, a sweet potato and cashew nut curry.  I loved it, but Melissa would have liked her's to be spicier.

.

I would like sometime to try the restaurant across the street.

It looked very charming and romantic. There were actually several
restaurants on Lexington Street that would be fun to visit.
http://www.londontown.com/LondonInformation/Restaurant/Andrew_Edmunds/2eb1/

After dinner we returned to Gloucester Road,
and to the beautiful bar at Baileys Hotel, for
an after dinner drink.

A perfect finish to a wonderful trip.
http://www.millenniumhotels.co.uk/millenniumkensington/index.html

Views of London

I have spent a couple of quiet trips in London, just wandering around the neighborhoods. 

I have had a room on the top floor of the hotel, with a wonderful panorama of the city.

Just watching the changing light over the city is a pleasure.  The sky was gray when I first arrived,

changed to a vivid blue,

then a glorious gold washed over the scene.

In the foreground of the photo below you can see the Natural History Museum

http://www.nhm.ac.uk/

Admission here is free, and I sometimes walk over for breakfast or lunch.  They have several great restaurants, and you can browse whichever exhibit interests you, before or after a meal.  The architecture of the building is alone worth the trip.

The white tower behind the Natural History Museum is the Victoria and Albert Museum.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria_and_Albert_Museum

This museum also has magnificent architecture, constructed over time using several different styles from different periods.  There is a great restaurant inside, and admission is free. 

The Science Museum is in the same area, free admission, hands-on displays, and a fantastic childrens floor worth borrowing a kid for.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science_Museum_(London)

One trip I had a lovely view of St. Jude's Church.

If you click on the photo and enlarge it, you can spy on two rooftop gardens.






This church ceased to be used several years ago, and I despaired that it was falling into ruin.








The church is truly beautiful

with intriguing architectural details

and beautiful grounds and gardens. 

I was so pleased to see scaffolding around it on my last trip, and I've been told that it will become a school, I believe of theology.  It will be interesting to watch the progress.

On my last trip I ate at a restaurant that I had been hearing about from fellow crewmembers. They have a set menu for 10 pounds, with 3 courses of your selection.














I loved the cozy atmosphere,

and the very friendly staff.  The food was
really excellent.  I chose a chicken liver
appetizer, and a lamb wellington entree.




I had to take my apple tart with me, and
enjoyed it for breakfast with my coffee
the next morning.

http://www.thelittlefrenchrestaurant.com/

Near our hotel is a wonderful French bakery called Paul.  I was so pleased when they opened in London.

Everytime that I come here, I make sure that I stop in for a rhubarb tarte.  It is wonderfully tart and tasty,
and, with a frothy latte, the ideal pick-me-up when I arrive after a long flight and want to keep going.

http://www.paul-uk.com/

One more thing that I truly love about London is the variety of people you meet, and the many types of food that are available.  So many ethnic groups and nationalities blend and always make it an interesting adventure.

Many of the young people who work in the restaurants are from other countries.  Some are in London to attend school, other to work and/or get a better command of the English language.  I always enjoy chatting with them and hearing their stories.

September in London

I am back in London, after spending most of the summer flying Honolulu. The change is nice, especially the cool weather.  I am glad to be wearing sweaters and gloves, while it is still in the 90's in Dallas.  I am flying with my friend, Rebecca, on this trip, and we have decided to take a quick nap then head out to dinner and  to an art festival on the southbank of the Thames.

We took the Tube to Oxford Circus,

and walked through the Saturday

crowds toward Regent Street.  We

avoided temptation by walking past

Liberty of London without stopping. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_%26_Co.

We did make a stop at H&M, my favorite clothing store in London, and made a few purchases.  This store is very young and hip (of which I am neither) but I can always get ideas, and find a few great pieces to update my wardrobe.
http://www.londontown.com/LondonInformation/Alexa/HM/337b/b











We ate an early dinner at Piccolino,
http://www.piccolinorestaurants.co.uk/heddonstreet.html
where anyone who reads my blog knows that I had to have some of my favorite chicken livers.










We walked through Trafalgar Square





to Villiers Street and enjoyed a glass of "old wood tawny port" at Gordon's Wine Bar,

 where Rebecca was almost too tall for the old cellar's ceiling.  http://www.gordonswinebar.com/


We decided to walk through Victoria Embankment Gardens,
just before they locked the gates for the night.  The gardens
are really peaceful in the evening, without the daytime crowds.

We stopped for a moment to pay homage to Sir Arthur Sullivan
at his lovely memorial statue.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Sullivan

We walked toward
St. Paul's Cathedral,













and crossed the

Waterloo Bridge,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterloo_Bridge








while the sky changed
colors,

and the lights came on around the

Hungerford Bridge.

The art festival was on the southbank beneath the
Royal Festival Hall, on both sides of Festival Pier.

We browsed in some of the kiosks, but by now we were beginning to feel the lack of sleep,

so we posed for
photos on the
Hungerford Bridge,
and headed back
to our hotel.






























http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hungerford_Bridge_and_Golden_Jubilee_Bridges

The Hungerford Bridge has at times been called the Charing

Cross Bridge, and I have seen Claude Monet's impression of

 it at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum in Madrid. 

Although I love the painting (who can argue with Monet), I find the
view is even more beautiful when seen in real life,  from the

Waterloo Bridge, on a fall evening.

                               

Paddle Boating

I'm back in Honolulu and flying with a great crew, including my friend Ron.  He writes a wonderful blog about his travels at 

http://ronno1976.blogspot.com. 

He is famous among his friends for his photos of his feet around the world.  You never know where Ron's feet might show up.

Here they are on Waikiki Beach.  

We met some of our crew at the Top of Waikiki for $4.00 Happy Hour,

appetizers and, of course,

my favorite steak on a rock.

http://www.topofwaikiki.com/

I got back to my room just in time to watch the fireworks display from my balcony.

The next morning, Ron and I set out to go paddle boating at Fort DeRussy Beach, posing along the way with Diamond Head behind us.

We rented our paddleboat and got the hang of manuevering it.  Compared to kayaking, you do a lot more work, for a lot less result.  We were also restricted to a certain area, and couldn't go out as far you can in your own kayak.

But it was fun to be out amid all the activity,

looking back at the beach.

















I had purchased a waterproof camera, and the photos aren't that great, but it recorded the memory for us.  And I got a shot of Ron's feet with Diamond Head.

After our paddle, we went to the Hilton Hawaiian Village and the Tropics Bar and Grill for some lunch.

http://www.hiltonhawaiianvillage.com/dining/tropics_bar_grill.cfm

Seems like we had worked up an appetite.






We walked through the Rainbow Bazaar, 

window shopping and enjoying the artwork.

The Rainbow Tower rises above the Hilton Hawaiian Village,

and over the Lagoon on the opposite side.

I think this lagoon is an excellent spot to try my hand at paddle boarding on a future trip. I'll be flying London next month, so for now I am saying "Aloha" to Honolulu.