“Oh that I were a man…” London Walks # 7: Bloomsbury

Today was a great day. A wonderful, mixed-weather, jam-packed day. I loved every part of today, except…sorry Professor Miller, my history class this morning. But hey, we were talking about the scientific revolution and inventions and such, and we all know science is at the bottom of my favorite subjects list. I don’t think it quite makes it on the list, actually. After class, I went on a nice run through Kensington Gardens. I love including a quick run around the Albert Memorial in my route. I go there first, and do the rest of my run on the trails through the park. I love how massive and ornate it is, and I am always a sucker for the romantic love story between Albert and Victoria. It was rare for a royal couple back then to be as in love as they were. I try to ignore the fact that they were first cousins…that kind of puts a damper on the romance. So I pretend it’s just not true, and I admire the Albert memorial, which was built after his tragic death from typhoid.

The "Americas" corner of the Albert Memorial

A couple weeks before I left for England, my boyfriend’s mom, Susan, told me about a chef named Yotam Ottolenghi, who was featured on Martha Stewart. He has restaurants in London, so I decided to try one today. It’s mainly a take-out restaurant, with salds, meats, and deserts displayed. You tell them which things you want and they fill up a box and charge you by weight. Everything looked incredible. I had lots of different vegetable dishes, including egg plant (which they call aubergine here), broccoli, carrots (my favorite!), bell peppers, and yam. I had a tiny piece of seared ahi with chili jam. And for desert ( I could NOT pass it up here), I had the most delightful chocolatey thing I have ever consumed. Flourless chocolate cup with sour cream and cherries. Need I say much else? It was the best food I have had in London. I highly recommend this place. It’s a bit pricey, but worth every pence! I honestly haven’t been so satisfied since I have been here. I was amazed at the spices and flavor! And the chocolate…was heavenly. Since it was such a beautiful day, we took our treasures (the food) to Holland Park and had a sort of a picnic. Usually our days are go-go-go, so it was nice to sit, relax, and enjoy our food, the weather, and the beautiful green park.

My new favorite restaurant! Thanks Susan!

At Holland Park with my delicious meal.

Next, a few members of the picnic crew realized that time is ticking and we have to start fitting walks assignments in wherever we can. So Sarah, Scott, and I embarked on the Bloomsbury walk. I really liked the areas we covered on this walk. I had never been to most of the streets before. Most of the streets were very quiet, probably because today was a bank holiday. We passed Charles Dicken’s home, where he finished three of his books. They are Nicholas Nickleby, Oliver Twist, and Pickwick Papers. We also passed the British Museum, which I MUST explore before I leave London. It has EVERYTHING! The Rosetta stone, real Egyptian mummies, and more. I loved the gardens that are throughout the city. They are nice breaks from all the busy streets and buildings in London. This walk had a couple, including Brunswick Square and Russell Square.

Sarah and me in front of Charles Dicken's home turned museum

About half way through our walk, the sun disappeared behind clouds. By the end of our walk it was raining mist. It was still a pleasant experience, and I enjoyed it.

But wait, the pleasantness doesn’t end. After dinner (which wasn’t so pleasant…shepherd’s pie, ick.) a group of us hopped on the Tube to the Globe Theatre to see Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. So I know I said I loved As You Like It, which I did. But, tonight’s play was absolutely hysterical! We were all dying laughing! The actors are all amazing and hilarious and really play with the audience. I would definitely recommend seeing a play at the Globe for anyone who is going to visit London. It is a must do. And I love standing in the front, where you can actually see their facial expressions. You get more of an authentic experience too, because the ground is where the peasants watched the plays. Although today, thank goodness, it isn’t stinky and grotesque down there. Just fun. And tiring, but worth it. Geoffrey the Butler, from the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air acted in the play. He was great! It was fun to see him in such a different role. Is that what all actors do when they get too old to play their old characters? They retire to Shakespeare? Beatrice and Benadic, the two haters of love, were hilarious, and I loved all of Beatrice’s many soliloquies and monologues. “Oh that I were a man….I would eat his heart in the marketplace!” She was crazy funny. She used to star on some British tv show apparently. It was raining throughout the entire play. But it was a light rain, so it didn't bother me. Plus, the play was so entertaining, I probably wouldn't have even cared if it was pouring!

Butler Geoffrey from Fresh Prince! He was grand. Pictures were strictly prohibited...good thing I had my phone so I could sneak this one!

Tomorrow, I go to Windsor. Maybe someday I will blog about my time in Lincoln, York, Edinburgh, and the Lake District. That is where I’ve been for the past week! But time is ticking and I don’t know how I will fit everything in before I leave London! I don’t think I’ll be getting much sleep from now on…