Dinner

Tonight, back with CT - to learn to sing showtunes with Ensemble at the Prince of Wales Drury Lane! Eating there beforehand. Think the throat is OK after last night..

Well, the throat is OK - but wow, I've been tired! The heat hasn't helped - it really does seem to have remembered, suddenly, that it's summer, and with in-between temperatures, it's hard to know how warmly to dress. I had to go for a nap in the afternoon. Then the bus was delayed - and stifling - and again, it didn't help that it was really crowded. Or that, as a result, I had to sit upstairs - where it was even hotter. It finished early.. but actually, that turned out to be a boon, as it transpired that I was just as close to where I needed to be, without the extra bus journey - and the breeze when I got off was a real relief! The coat was hardly necessary, all day.

Sadly, I had to evict a couple from my table - which was right under the TV. So I was in proximity to the football, if not actually paying attention. I had the karaage chicken again - I certainly didn't feel like a heavy meal - and decided just to go for a couple of sides with it; it worked out cheaper, and honestly, there wasn't a second small plate that I didn't think would be drowned out by the overpowering taste of the chicken! I had garlic ciabatta and onion rings, which I figured I'd enjoy. And one - one - glass of wine.

The garlic bread was gorgeous! I remember the taste - must have had it before. Anyway, I decided to finish that before I started the chicken, not wanting to overwhelm it. And I was very well fed - I do love that chicken, but as I say, the taste is very strong - it's very salty - and I wouldn't eat a second in the same session. Now, I did finish five minutes before the choir was due to start, upstairs - think I spotted some folks heading up - but.. honestly, I felt a bit fragile, and the last thing I wanted to do was scurry upstairs, right before the thing started. Especially as CT likes you to be there half an hour beforehand.. And neither did I think I'd be up to an evening socialising with new people, or giving my all to a choir. So I passed. It's a shame - if it'd been half an hour later, or I hadn't had such a late night.. hope I come across this again, it does sound interesting! Well, the extra free time this evening did afford me the opportunity to shop - and have another nap..

Tomorrow, back with TAC for another talk at The Conduit - this one is Survival and Sisterhood in the Age of the Taliban, and is the story of the captain of the Afghan ladies' football team. It'll be really interesting to hear from an Afghan woman personally. And I've booked for Bella Italia St. Martin's Lane again. Should be better able to manage this.

On Wednesday, back with London Literary Walks for The Chaucer Walk. Meeting at The Bell, and I'm eating there beforehand again. So I'll leave my office visit to Thursday.

On Thursday, back with CT for an LSO concert at the Barbican. Which gives me an excuse to head back to my old stomping ground of the local Cote! Except I'm not.. I hadn't realised I'd double-booked! I'm actually off to a talk called In Defence of Human Rights - part of the How-To Academy, at the Francis Crick Institute, thus fulfilling my year's requirement with TAC. So I've had to cancel the concert. Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend.

And next Monday, back with Up in the Cheap Seats - this time, for an interesting-sounding play called Visit from an Unknown Woman, in Hampstead Theatre..