London Still Rocks!

S ome London Museums A-Z (LoMAZ) members have developed a new group - Museum, Arts & Culture Socials - and I headed with them yesterday to see The Symptomatic Surreal , an exhibition at the Freud Museum , which is Freud 's actual final home. Meeting beforehand at the Garden Breakfast Cafe .  That far away, I had to take the Tube - and wow, fourth time lucky! Three times in a row, I couldn't take the Jubilee Line because of severe delays - I was lucky to be able to take it yesterday, not sure what other route would have been practical! (There were only minor delays..) As Camilla, the organiser, remarked when she arrived, she'd arrived early because she knew I was always early, and I still beat her to it. ;-) Happily, the cafe does wine - red or white, as the lady behind the counter asked me. I also had a ham & cheese panini (excuse me, mozarella & parma). Which was burnt on the bottom, and tasteless on top. Ah well, the wine was good, and I had a second...

Last night was with CT, at a concert called Sirens , with an all-female group singing classic numbers in the Emerald Theatre . Booked to eat in L' Ulivo beforehand. Well, those road works outside my estate are ongoing, and TFL is adamant that the #188 , which I would use, isn't running past my house. Which is rubbish, because traffic is now flowing in that direction, and indeed I caught that bus on Thursday, outside my house, to go to work! Buses Due was down - has been for weeks now, and I do wonder whether it'll ever work again. Still, I let myself be persuaded by TFL, and walked on to where I was supposed to be able to catch it.. only to see it sail past me before I got there. Lovely. So I had to catch another bus, and change, and then the second bus didn't come and I had to walk the last bit.. So I was a few minutes late to the restaurant. Not a problem, and I was seated a bit more centrally than usual - which might be why it was a bit easier to get service. ...

Yesterday, I was thinking of Life Support , a documentary about the medics operating in Gaza . Evening showing is in the Rio Dalston . But then I saw there was a comedy showing in Riverside Studios , called The Big Dog , about a married stockbroker whose savings are cleared out by a dominatrix. Thought I might have a look at that instead. But gee, it turned out to be one of those really changeable days.. because it turned into sort of an unofficial London Museums A-Z  (LoMAZ) day! Second in a row, then. One of  the organisers, Shelley, decided to do something for International Friendship Day , and we were to meet at Between the Bridges ! a free event with street food and such. They created a WhatsApp group for it - and 27 people joined.  I headed from the office on foot.. at least it's mostly downhill, what with that heavy laptop bag n all. I tell you though, I did not appreciate the overhead walkway from Villiers Street to the bridge being closed, because of ...

Yesterday , I was back with CT for Ludwig: Unfinished Business , a comedy about Beethoven , showing in the Playground Theatre and performed by an actual pianist . Another Fringe preview. Eating in The Pavilion beforehand - and it's a good thing they reminded me on Monday, because I'd totally forgotten! Over an hour, no matter how I got there.. unless, perhaps, I flew, which wasn't practical. So, Tube it was.. and WOULD YOU BELIEVE IT, severe delays again. Signal failure again. How long has it been since the Jubilee Line was usable?! Took the Northern Line , therefore, to connect to the Central Line - which wasn't too bad; the aircon wasn't great, but it was there, and I got a seat after a couple of stops. A long and, frankly, boring walk to the pub followed - lots of terraced houses and gardens, a sports pitch, and a big flyover. The pub itself wasn't crowded - the youngster serving me hadn't a clue where to look for the reservations, so just gav...