the BL, as the locals call it...

Having visited London twice before, and lived here for a year, I finally got around to (doing my duty) and visit the British Library!! The locals refer to it as 'the BL'.

I didn't do my research very well [irony noted], and when I rocked up to the information desk for a map, I was amazed to discover the treasures on display.

I peered at Shakespeare's notebooks, the Magna Carta, the Gutenburg Bible, some of Jane Austen's letters, Leonardo da Vinci's workbooks, original Beatles lyrics, the Beowulf book/poem thingo and classical music scores (from someone famous I can't remember, sorry mum!)

There was also an excellent exhibition - about the Ramayana, which is essentially an Indian love story. (Prince Rama marries Sita, Sita gets kidnapped, Rama enlists the help of Hanuman the monkey to find her, which he does). It's a very long story, and on display were about 120 small traditional Indian paintings telling the story. It was really lovely (I still want to go back to India).

After that I needed tea and cake, and on the way to the cafe I came across the Kings Library. It was a collection of really old volumes, donated by King George III - and it's housed in an amazing tall glassed tower in the middle of the library. This is what I looked at while I sipped my tea (pic right).

The rest of the weekend was relaxing - we had another bank holiday on monday, so we went to Khanh's for lunch and she cooked us the most delicious laksa.

Things are starting to slow down now, in some ways, with only 5 weeks to go. I'm working 4 day weeks to use up my annual leave (someone has to do it!), but there's still lots of sight seeing to do and I've got lots of grouse things planned. Stay tuned...

captain cook's land legs...

The no.1 thing on my must-do list, was to visit a place called Whitby (up on the north east coast of England). Everyone had recommended it - Dracula was filmed there, and Captain Cook sailed from there. It’s a town that sits high up on cliffs facing the ocean, and is divided in half by the Esk River. I took a train on saturday morning and arrived four hours later.
I found my B&B, then went for a walk into town. This is the view from my street (pic left). It’s a town famous for sailing, fish’n’chips, Bram Stoker, and an 800 year old abbey. On Sunday I fortified myself with a full English breaky (sausage, egg, bacon, tomato and mushrooms!), and set out for a full day of sightseeing.
It was a bit chilly up there, but I took a walk along the beach – and came across these colourful beach huts (not as nice as our Brighton ones!), and seagulls enjoying the tide out. I walked across the bridge to the other (older) half of the town with cobbled streets, and went to Grape St where there was a Captain Cook Museum in the house where he was apprenticed when he was young. The museum was good, but it reminded me of being at school (I went to primary school in Sydney which meant I learnt about Captain Cook and Botany Bay – not about Ned Kelly!). But it was amazing to stand where Captain Cook's land legs had stood, 300 years ago.
After lunch I walked up 199 steps to an old abbey built in 1200-something, and I think was where Dracula was filmed. Twice a year Goths from all over England come to Whitby to celebrate Dracula and all things, well, gothic.
It was a very picturesque weekend away. I had considered following in Captain Cooks sea legs and taking a boat home (I really don't want to fly!), but after my Norway experience, flying will be too easy....

precious sunshine...

We've had a whole week of sunny 24 degree weather. It's been perfect! It'll be cooler by this weekend apparently, but at least my pasty scone-like skin has seen sunlight... Last summer I was amazed that men ran around everywhere in shorts and no top, but having spent a winter here I understand that sunlight is so precious and you have to absorb as much as you can, whenever you can (I do draw the line at topless).

I went on another guided walk on saturday, around Westminster. It was great to hear about the houses of parliament, Guy Fawkes, William Wallace, and to see things like the entrance to air-raid shelters underneath parliamentarians homes! (pics right) Afterwards some friends and I went to a pub across the road from Downing St for a beer, and ended up eating McDonalds in Trafalgar Square for lunch.

Sunday was another day spent in the glorious sun. I went for a huge walk around Chiswick and along the Thames, and we stumbled across Hogarth House (which is mentioned in Virginia Woolf's 'Mrs Dalloway'??) and where I got to walk on their lovely soft grass in bare feet. We ended up sipping summery cocktails on the High St, after which I stumbled home and spoke Swahili to Anna for a while... Great way to spend a sunday!

a stroll around little venice...

I love Venice, but no I haven't flown to Italy for the weekend...

It's a long weekend here (we have two in May), and the weather has been fabulous. I think I'm almost thawed out!

Anna and I went on a walking tour on sunday - like a real one with a guide - to a part of London dubbed Little Venice. It's a posh area where lots of famous people live, and Regents Canal runs through the middle. It's very beautiful, and people live on the canal in very narrow boats. They can travel all over England on these canals (even to the supermarket, apparently!).

The guide walked us around for 2 hours, giving lots of tid-bits of information. In the top right photo you can see lots of pineapples outside the houses - this was a show of wealth 150 years ago. Back then a real pineapple had to be imported from the tropics and cost £10, equivalent to £35,000 now, so you were incredibly wealthy if you could serve your friends pineapple at afternoon tea.

During our stroll we spied 10 little ducklings! They all seemed so intent on their paddle, except for one, who's eyes are wandering to the left!

beef cheeks...

It's been an excellently busy week. Carolyn White came to stay with me, and we got up to all sorts of sight seeing activites. Spread over 5 days, we went to see the Tutankhamen Exhibition, caught a big red bus to Oxford St, walked (both our) little legs off to get to the Globe Theatre (which happened to be closed that arvo!), went to the Portrait Gallery, the theatre, did the Chiswick High St, braved the Brick Lane markets and had Carribean for lunch, and went to the V&A Museum (pic of Caro, left). Phew!

But the piece de resistance was on sunday night - we went to Gordon Ramsay's pub in Chiswick, the Devonshire. It was lovely. I was expecting to be sworn at, but thankfully the great man wasn't in. The pub had a menu of traditional British food, so I had the pork sausages and mash, with a side of cauliflower and stilton. Mmm. I did see another curious item on the menu - beef cheeks... I didn't care what end they were from, I wasn't going to eat them!! Mike ordered them and said they were delicious.

Photo to the right is a street near the Devonshire - everything is in blossom.

Weather update : we had 22 on the weekend, I was so excited. Finally the cold seems to be lifting...!