January and February, why are you so sluggish?

Tuesday, 22 January, 2019

You don’t hear so much about the February blahs in London. But in Toronto they were a big thing. And, yes, I know it’s not actually February yet but January seems to have the same feeling.

Grey January skies
Grey January skies and the tree is looking different than other years

Days and days of dull, leaden skies. I miss the blue skies and snowy days in Toronto sometimes. I don’t miss the cold or slush. And I definitely don’t miss the freezing rain and ice. But I do have days where I feel very sure I suffer from SAD and so I light daytime candles and have yellow or white roses to lighten my mood. Sadly, I also eat chocolate – my jeans are telling me maybe a little too much.

Actually, I also feel sad. And there it is.

There are no explorations to talk about today but perhaps the photos will show a bit of my regular life.

Spring is coming and the foxes came back
Spring is coming and the foxes came back

In February I am going to a wedding in Leicester. It’s something to look forward to. In April my sister Ruth, nieces Suzanne and Adrianna, and great whatevers Seamus and Fiona are coming to London. Am I looking forward to it? Hmm. Yes and no. It’s always nice to see familiar Toronto faces in London and I enjoy planning things and working on maps and itineraries, whether or not they are used, but family things can be chaotic. So it’s a mixed bag and I hope mostly positive.

Adrianna is also going to Budapest so there’s an added level of planning and writing up ‘sort-of-guides’ for her. It also made me think about Budapest and the things I miss about it. Most cities have things I miss but not enough to  go racing back. In the case of Budapest, there are just too many other things I need to do or be available for this year to follow my impulses to book myself a ticket. Continue reading “January and February, why are you so sluggish?”

New Year and the ballet

Wednesday, 2 January, 2019

New Year in London is a big deal – just not for me! I usually stay home and don’t do much but I was busy nonetheless. I popped out to the pub around 7pm and chose a pizza – my first one from there – to take away. They took a long time to make it so I was suspicious. I kept remembering how fast the pizzas were made in Torino so what were they doing back there?

The pub has been taken over by a local craft beer company
The pub has been taken over by a local craft beer company

I decided to go the whole way and make it a junk food night so also went to buy some wings and fries. Another long wait and second thoughts later, I arrived home with pizza, five chicken wings and fries. None of it was worth eating but at least I wasn’t hungry after picking at it. I’ll never learn that these things are rarely worth trying! I watched the fireworks on TV and some out of the window and fell into bed. Happy New Year!

On January 2nd I had tickets for a ballet. It was meant to be a surprise for Krish but he wasn’t in the mood so I asked my friend Juliet if she was up to coming and she said yes. But first I was going to take myself out for lunch and then wander around a bit at Angel, which might be pretty at Christmas.

I wanted to try the BunBunBun newly opened location in Dalston so allowed plenty of time to get there and eat and set off again.

BunBunBun, Dalston - a spare setting
BunBunBun, Dalston – a spare setting
Bun Cha, my lunch
Bun Cha, my lunch

I ordered the Bún chả Hà Ná»™i –‘Served as it is served in Hanoi [grilled lemongrass pork, mini grilled pork patties in a meat broth with a crispy spring roll]. sounded intriguing. and it was.’ My whole review is here! I’ll go back and try something else soon to see if the rest of the menu measures up. I’d love to do a foodie trip to Vietnam. Continue reading “New Year and the ballet”

Christmas Lights in London

Thursday,  27 December, 2018

There are two enduring memories of going to the west end at Christmas as a child and teenager. The beautiful windows, especially at Selfridges, and the magic of Liberty at Christmas. I’d have saved some money and off I’d go. I remember nothing of the window displays now other than they were beautiful, and so many of them. I’d always feel I could go window shopping on Oxford Street and not care if I bought a thing. The looking was even better than buying – since it was unlimited. Then Liberty always felt like a hidden treasure. Even today I know people who aren’t sure where it is or say they haven’t seen it.

This year I hadn’t made it down to the west end, ‘up west’ as they say. I made a plan to get there before the lights were turned off and I knew I couldn’t see it all in one trip. So I planned two. Part one would take me from Covent Garden to Chinatown, Soho, Regent Street, and Oxford Street. Part two would take me to Piccadilly, Bond Street, then New Bond Street, and up to Selfridges. Even then I wouldn’t see it all. No Trafalgar Square, no Marylebone…but that’s OK.

I don’t think I went to Covent Garden when I was younger. If I did, I don’t remember it. At any rate, it would have been a wholesale market and not that interesting to me. Now I know it really well and, although I put it low on my list because of the crowds of tourists, there are some things I do like about it and some shops you can’t find anywhere else – it is where the most concentrated collection of shoe shops is, so yes I do go sometimes. This time it was about the shops and the lights and the little inside courtyards I wanted to see.

At Seven Dials, and not quite dark enough to appreciate the lights
At Seven Dials, and not quite dark enough to appreciate the lights
Covent Garden Market Hall
Covent Garden Market Hall
Inside the Hall is the Apple Market
I loved the mistletoe lights
I loved the mistletoe lights
…and these large silver baubles
But the throngs of people make it a lot less magical
But the throngs of people make it a lot less magical
..so it's nice when you step outside a bit and see there's magic after all
..so it’s nice when you step outside a bit and see there’s magic after all

Inside Pollocks Toy Museum shop
Inside Pollocks Toy Museum shop

Continue reading “Christmas Lights in London”

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Christmas Eve – Monday, 24 December, 2018

Even a found Christmas can be dull and gloomy and it was like that when I headed out to Brick Lane on the Saturday before Christmas – Christmas Eve Eve! I visited the hairdresser and trusted my head to her. I came away wondering just what she’d changed – there was very little hair on the floor and more time spent on diffusing and perfecting my curls than cutting – but the back did look better, I’d had a good time, and I wasn’t upset. That’s a major achievement.

I stopped at Ambala for some samosas and grabbed a chicken tikka roll for some lunch. But the view from Whitechapel was dismal.

The East London mosque
The East London mosque
The gloaming!
The gloaming!

My friend, Judy, sent me a message when I got on the bus and we switched to talking for real (yes!). The whole of Cambridge Heath Road and Mare Street was the same dismal grey as Whitechapel Road had been. And then we passed Mare Street Market and the lights caught my eye. I had to get out to look more closely.

Inside was a real Christmas grotto. I wandered around and enjoyed the atmosphere, everyone laughing and everything glistening.


Continue reading “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!”

Festivities and Hackney Festive Light Switch On!

Sunday, 2nd December, 2018

If November was dark and rainy, December is starting off very mild and even sunny sometimes. And it’s getting pretty Christmassy!

On upper Well Street, the florists are bringing out their Christmas best
At St Paul's church, the yellowed leaves are a nice mix with the trees on the tree lot.
At St Paul’s church, the yellowed leaves are a nice mix with the trees on the tree lot.
And this Turkish kebab place is accidentally festive!
And this Turkish kebab place on Kingsland Road is accidentally festive!

Check these daylight hours, though! By 3pm twilight creeps in and between 4 and 4:30 it’s just like night time. Yesterday I was thinking that, if I were working, it would be properly dark by the time I headed home. I’m not sure if other years have been so dark but they must have been. There’s just more cloud this year…?

Is it really December?
Is it really December?

However, December has lots of promise. I started jotting things down on one of my quickly drawn up calendars – I like to do this on paper and revise it almost daily. And this week there will be two workshops (one a serious mental health one, and one a fun Christmassy one) two family visits and there’s company coming over for dinner, if Susanne doesn’t succumb to her threatening cold. And Hackney is having a Festive Lights event, marking the first night of Chanukah and turning on the lights of the Christmas tree. I love lights and candles so I’m in!

Hackney's invitation!
Hackney’s invitation!

Continue reading “Festivities and Hackney Festive Light Switch On!”