At Home in London
Jason's parents have been with us this week, going and doing while Jason's
been working hard and I've been mostly resting and trying to recover
completely from my medical adventure earlier in the week. I did get out
with Steve & Trish on Thursday morning to finally visit the Sir John Soane
museum, which I'd been eager to see. Soane was an architect in the late
18th and early 19th century. He bought and redesigned a block of four
houses in Gray's Inn Fields and filled them with his collection of
antiquities and paintings. The rooms are whimsical and charming,
interconnected to create a maze of wonderful spaces. The collection
includes the original paintings of the Rake's Progress and Election series
by William Hogarth, zillions of Roman artifacts and even a sarcophagus--that
of Pharaoh Seti I.
We had hoped to take Steve & Trish to YMing, but they were booked on Friday
night, so we ended up back at The People's Palace. The food was amazing, as
always. After choosing his favorite starter--spiced smoked herring--Jason
decided to branch out and try their slow-roasted belly pork with clams and
turlu turlu (a South African inspired roasted ratatouille--listening to the
waiter describe it was a real treat), but I stuck to my standards, while
Trish had carrot soup with lemon thyme and creme fraiche followed by the
salmon with tomato and fennel, and Steve went with the baked goat cheese and
their fantastic rump of lamb with chorizo and black bean salad. For dessert
we shared the selection of raspberry desserts (a mousse, a jelly, a creme
brulee and a sorbet) which made a light sweet bite to top off the meal.
On Saturday morning the three Merrills picked up a rental car and headed out
to the Salisbury area. They spent that day around Stonehenge and Sunday in
the Avebury area, tramping about the plains and hills and exploring the
pre-historic remnants.
Meanwhile, I stayed home, caught up on some chores, talked to various folk
and generally took it easy. The highlight of Saturday night was watching
_Josie & The Pussycats_, a very silly fluff of a movie. It was a weekend
for light entertainment, as I joined Jo on Sunday afternoon to see _The
Guru_. That was also fun, but left me wondering who pulled what strings to
get it made.
After the movie, Jo and wandered down Oxford Street and found some fun
clothes at Evans before stopping by Tootsie's for burgers. I came home to
call Beckie on her birthday and before I knew it, Jason was coming in the
door, having taken the train back and left his folks to explore further on
their own.
been working hard and I've been mostly resting and trying to recover
completely from my medical adventure earlier in the week. I did get out
with Steve & Trish on Thursday morning to finally visit the Sir John Soane
museum, which I'd been eager to see. Soane was an architect in the late
18th and early 19th century. He bought and redesigned a block of four
houses in Gray's Inn Fields and filled them with his collection of
antiquities and paintings. The rooms are whimsical and charming,
interconnected to create a maze of wonderful spaces. The collection
includes the original paintings of the Rake's Progress and Election series
by William Hogarth, zillions of Roman artifacts and even a sarcophagus--that
of Pharaoh Seti I.
We had hoped to take Steve & Trish to YMing, but they were booked on Friday
night, so we ended up back at The People's Palace. The food was amazing, as
always. After choosing his favorite starter--spiced smoked herring--Jason
decided to branch out and try their slow-roasted belly pork with clams and
turlu turlu (a South African inspired roasted ratatouille--listening to the
waiter describe it was a real treat), but I stuck to my standards, while
Trish had carrot soup with lemon thyme and creme fraiche followed by the
salmon with tomato and fennel, and Steve went with the baked goat cheese and
their fantastic rump of lamb with chorizo and black bean salad. For dessert
we shared the selection of raspberry desserts (a mousse, a jelly, a creme
brulee and a sorbet) which made a light sweet bite to top off the meal.
On Saturday morning the three Merrills picked up a rental car and headed out
to the Salisbury area. They spent that day around Stonehenge and Sunday in
the Avebury area, tramping about the plains and hills and exploring the
pre-historic remnants.
Meanwhile, I stayed home, caught up on some chores, talked to various folk
and generally took it easy. The highlight of Saturday night was watching
_Josie & The Pussycats_, a very silly fluff of a movie. It was a weekend
for light entertainment, as I joined Jo on Sunday afternoon to see _The
Guru_. That was also fun, but left me wondering who pulled what strings to
get it made.
After the movie, Jo and wandered down Oxford Street and found some fun
clothes at Evans before stopping by Tootsie's for burgers. I came home to
call Beckie on her birthday and before I knew it, Jason was coming in the
door, having taken the train back and left his folks to explore further on
their own.