Checked out of the hotel and made my way to moga to get my hair cut this morning. Mr Koh is no longer there, so I just asked them for whoever was free as all the stylists are good. It’s official, I am a creature of habit. Even after so many years away, I go back to the places I know.

Had a few things to buy, but mostly I had oodles of time on my hand. Emailed J to ask if she would like to join me for fish’n’chips dinner — she offered last night, but I wouldn’t have had time to get back to Victoria.

So I walked for 4 hours. From Bond Street all the way to Foyles, where I finally bought Potter 7, as well as a couple of City tell-all books. Had an internal debate about where to go for late lunch. If I let my feet direct me, I’d end up at belgo again. The choice finally came down to chinatown or jacket potato at covent garden. The jacket won. I had it with beans and sour cream. it was fantastic. It was only later that I realised I could have gone to Stockpot. Had frozen yogurt at snog, I guess their selling point is their name.

London has changed somewhat. The Swiss Centre is no longer there; my favourite second hand book store had moved; Lillywhite’s has gone downmarket. Most of the department stores are still there, and there are at least 3 Uniqlo stores. I bought the snowglobe that Car asked me to. And for some odd reason, a west ham scarf and a chelsea shirt with frank lampard’s name on the back. Looked at getting an england world cup shirt, too expensive at £40.

Ended back at Bond Street, having walked a full circle. Took the tube back to the hotel, picked up my luggage and headed to J&R’s home. We had dinner at the golden hind, which apparently is quite famous. I had haddock, chips and mushy peas. It was byo, so we took a nice bottle of wine.



Flight tomorrow morning is at 8am, so I’d made a reservation at yotel, a japanese capsule style hotel at terminal 4. It’s very interesting. The corridor was like a space ship, and inside it was…purple lighting. Tiny space, every inch of what they call the cabin was functional. A bed inside what looks like a pod, a folding table, folding chair at the back of the door, a narrow glass-walled en-suite shower. Free wi-fi. For my purpose, staying overnight at the airport, or for transit passengers, this is perfect. I dealt with mafia wars stuff, watched election stuff and felt comfortable in the bed. I’d stay here again.

The purpose of the trip is to attend the global team meeting. The composition of the team has changed a great deal since my first meeting. I have my thoughts on how things seem to be going, and some people share those thoughts. However it’s not the way the wind is blowing, so I have to go with the flow.

Dinner was at the hotel restaurant, which was super convenient and very thoughtful of the home team. Menu was pre-selected: artichoke mousse, sea bass, raspberry dessert — safe and suitable for a group of almost 20. A few of us stayed behind to chat, and moved downstairs to the bar for a final drink.

The idea was to check into the hotel then go check out new shirts at hard rock café and get tickets for wicked later this week. But lunch with J&R didn’t finish till past 3pm, we were talking so much. I had to hurry to the hotel, there wasn’t enough time to get the tube, had to get a taxi to piccadilly circus by 5pm to catch drones as part of the sci-fi london festival. I know I’m supposed to gush lovingly about the film, but truth is, it was okay and I fell asleep several times. It was shot over 2 weeks in an empty office building and is all about discovering that your best friend and girlfriend are both aliens and eventually there is a “save-the-earth” scenario. I could see how it would attract a cult following, with its deadpan humour and obviously actors, writers and directors who put a lot of care into it. May be one of these days when I’m less tired I’ll give it another chance.

Running back at the hotel on the treadmill. Dinner was salt beef sandwich from the Brick Lane shop. The internet in the room is free but slow (there is high speed, which costs money), good enough for me.

Flight was a little early. I got off the plane quickly and by the time I retrieved by suitcase there was still no one at the luggage carousel. Huh. Must have been a planeload of Americans still going through passport control. Heathrow Express and a ¥6 taxi ride later and I was at the house of my friends J&R. They’d recently moved from Chicago and was still in the “let’s explore” phase of living in a new city.

They also didn’t have a car so we took the bus to Camden to walk around the market. It’s grown since I was there last, with new sections and way more stalls. It was a pleasant way to spend an afternoon, albeit with all the crowds that are there on a sunday.

I took them to chutney mary for dinner. I last went there with mm in 2005 or 2006. It was a great meal. R is a wine expert and ordered a terrific verdelho with the main meal and a riesling for dessert. Bill came to over £200 cos of the wine but thoroughly worth it. On the walk to Fulham Broadway tube we stopped and looked at estate agents windows. Wow, property prices have gone way up.

My flight was at 4.35pm, and I gave myself 2 options: a) check out, leave the luggage at the hotel, go to Oxford Street and come back; b) check out, leave the luggage at Paddington, go to Oxford Street then get on the Heathrow Express. I opted for (b) cos I didn’t fancy trekking back to Liverpool Street, there wasn’t a lot of time anyway. What I didn’t account for, was that it costs £8 for left luggage. That’s too expensive!



So I ended up hanging around the station. Had a very nice plum tart and tea at paul. Took my time, didn’t do anything to hurry up.

Had plenty of time at the lounge. Even though I was flying AA, I went to the CX lounge instead. Ate some food, drank lots, watched the cricket, talked to mm. It’s funny, Mum couldn’t decide on the colours for the flooring and tiles, and couldn’t find me cos I was in London so she called mm! Very wifely. Hehe.

Flight wasn’t full but someone sat next to me. I had the first seat in business class. Watched He’s just not that into you, napped for a bit, listened to the radio, watched the flight path. It was a long fly-in, overshot Chicago, almost to Iowa before turning back! Must have been a long queue. Immigration and customs were quick, I got a talkative taxi driver, was home by 9pm. Went to the supermarket, initially to get milk and ended up getting loads of other stuff. I’m glad to be home.

The big meeting was finished by lunchtime, then I had other meetings in the afternoon. Those were done by 4pm, so I was able to get back to the hotel. Called mm, then went running, then went to get dinner — salt beef bagels from Brick Lane, of course. The rest of the evening was watching tv, nothing special.

Long day of meetings and a full agenda. Working lunch too. Different team dynamics from before, with new additions. The old team still stuck together, which was good.

Dinner at Devonshire Terrace, where for cocktails we had Pimm’s. ahhhhhh, Pimm’s. I had pea and mint soup (very large bowl, too salty), salmon fishcakes (niiice) and apple & blackberry crumble (also too large portion). Then J, P and I sat at the hotel lobby bar, with free wine and olives, and talked till we were ready to drop. It was great to chat. Some good news, but not the right time to disclose.

I’m not used to “only” 7 hour flights, which was how long it took from ORD to LHR. Quick dinner, watched The International then I made sure to get some sleep. Woke up an hour before landing and had some cereal for breakfast.

Tube strike today, start of 48hs. It’s been a long while since the whole Tube was closed. A car picked me and my colleague up from T3 and it took one hour to get to Chiswick roundabout, and 2.5hrs to get to our hotel. Staying at the Andaz at Liverpool Street, which I stayed in when it first opened and was known as the Great Eastern.

Went to the office for conf calls and meetings. Wanted to get salt beef bagels but the walk is too long. Went running, ordered room service sushi and now watching England vs Andorra. Woot, football!

Nowadays I’m so used to shops being open all year round, even on Christmas Day — shoppers paradise means retail trumps everything. I almost can’t remember how London is, nothing is open, no tube, no bus, no shops (apart from small corner shops may be). So i was intrigued to find via mefi phootographs by IanVisits, who took the trouble of photographing London early on Christmas Day. The resultant flickr set, abandoned london is very eerie. To see places like Trafalgar Square, Oxford Street totally empty, it’s like something out of a science fiction movie.

Imagine this.

The oldest rapid transit system in the world. 11 lines, 268 stations. 400 km (250 miles) of track. Over one billion passenger journeys per year. 55% above ground.

The Tube. Not known by any other name.

Here’s a train on the Hammersmith & City line at Barbican station, taken on a Saturday morning. The whole Circle Line was closed that day, together with a huge chunk of the Metropolitan from Wembley Park and a smattering of odd stations. I mean, give it a break, it’s almost 150 years old.

Had half a day to spare before needing to go to Heathrow so I took the opportunity to walk around and take pictures of places and things that I’d taken for granted when I was young. First I walked from the hotel to Liverpool Street past my old company then through Moorgate and back to my old school. Some of the old shops are still there — like that Boots next to Moorgate station.

 

The school looks the same too, as was the sign for Cripplegate Without on the wall of St Giles Church, one of the remaining old use of ‘without’ I think.

 
 

Took the tube to Hyde Park Corner to the Hard Rock Café with the sole purpose of getting a new London HRC polo shirt. More about that in another post on my HRC polo shirt collection. I’d actually never walked around Wellington Place on foot, because that’s such a touristy thing to do. The New Zealand war memorial is new, and is very poignant. From the HRC I walked all the way to Piccadilly Circus to another tourist mecca — the Eros statue, Leicester Square and Chinatown. The familiar restaurants are still here, including our old favourite. Except instead of noodles it’s now a §8.90 buffet place. The second hand bookstores on Charing Cross Road were unchanged too.

Lunch at Belgo, where I had moules provenç with frites that looked more like chips. Washed them down with a Chimay Bleu beer, and tried the Floris Apple beer too. The apple beer tasted of cider, nothing special.

By then it was almost time to head back to the hotel. By bus again, and it being a nice day looking out of the windows was clear.

Here are some uniquely London things: the traditional red phonebox and the open platform routemaster buses. Not many of either left.

 

More pictures at the flickr set. And I edited monday’s post to add a few food pics.

On a grotty, grey, drizzly November day, I am a Londoner again.

I left 13 years ago to follow…someone, something, some unknown dreams. I last visited the UK 4 years ago. I was afraid that I’d feel out of place, unfamiliar. That I won’t recognise the streets, that I won’t know how to navigate the tube, or not know what food to order.

None of that. The flight arrived at 4.40am, and I was through immigration quickly — there are counters now, where your passport gets scanned rather than just glimpsed at by an officer. Terminal 5 reared its ugly head again, as my luggage took forever to get to the carousel — the fact that it’s priority didn’t seem to matter to the baggage handlers. Well, I had time.

Staying at the Crowne Plaza Shoreditch near Liverpool Street. Was all checked in and unpacked by 7am. What to do, what to do? Time to get back to old habits.

Londoner #1: bought drinks and crisps from the Tesco Metro across the road. Walkers for mm and Quavers for me.
Londoner #2: walked 10mins to the bagel place at Brick Lane to get salt beef bagels. Yes, far too early in the morning, but I don’t care, it’s been years. We used to drive all the way from home in the middle of the night to get those salt beef bagels, so walking over from the hotel was no big deal.


Londoner #3: bought a Oyster Card, though I eventually got a one day travelcard instead. Tube to Oxford street. And no, there was no problem in navigating the tube. Shed a tiny tear when I noticed it was a West Ruislip train I got on.
Londoner #4: shopping shopping shopping — underwear form M&S (hee, tmi); Christmas pudding for Mum, also from M&S; bathroom scale from John Lewis. Now I have to explain why I go all the way to the UK to get a bathroom scale, and the answer is very simply — I need scales that are in stones, meaning UK only.
Londoner #5: late lunch at John Lewis, where else? Scallop risotto and lemon & sugar crepes. The crepes did not taste the same as I remembered, a little disappointed.
 

Londoner #6: took the bus back to the hotel cos I wanted to watch the streets. It started raining though so the windows fogged up. Got asked the way by my neighbour, a tourist from Eastern Europe. And I knew how to direct him!
Londoner #7: got dark by 3.30pm, 4-ish. And like everyone else, I shrugged it off.
Londoner #8: whinging about the lack of TV channels. I’m so spoiled by the choices in the US. heehee.

Bought some vegetable and guacamole dip for dinner. Didn’t feel like a lot. 40mins running at the hotel gym. The thought of weight training went out of the window cos the hotel only has 2 treadmills, 2 ellipticals and a rowing machine. Gonna be an early night tonight. I had a nap early this morning but there’s no harm to get more rest.

God, it feels good to be home.

I was gonna report on how my day was — normal, went to dinner with SC colleagues and tried out a combination hotplate, steamboat and … iced hotplate to make your own ice cream on, very cool.

But what of my life. How can it be compared against the horrible bombings. It brings it home to me, that they were at Edgware Road, Moorgate, Aldgate and Russell Square — these are places I know so well, so close to home, school, college, work — I have no words. All I want to do is cry.

I was there, watching it on TV. I hadn’t been following it, but with so much hype, and it taking place in Singapore, I can’t help but notice it.

I was so happy when London won, and yes, I did jump up and down when it was announced.

Drove over to St John's Wood today to go to the estate agents. Boy was it a nightmare to park, as usual. Set up appointments and then had a tea and cake break before driving back over to Lakeside. The trick was to avoid the congestion zone meaning driving along a very slow moving Euston Road. Then we hit total blockage coming up to the Dartford Tunnel, so boring.

Lakeside had been renovated, less gloomy than I remembered. We hit the shops but came away mostly empty handed, until we reached Marks and Spencer's, where we spent a good hour. Bought some clothes, hehe.

M&S dinner -- chinese style chicken wings, fruit, dessert. Yums. Brings back memories.

She wanted to go househunting and I'd sort of promised. But we woke up and it was a rare sunny day and I didn't feel like spending it in strangers' houses. So I asked if we could go to Whitstable instead and of course she agreed. She could never resist me.

The advantage of living in East London is, we were so close to the A2. No need to trek all the way across town, now with congestion charge. And sooner than normal, we were there.

It's so strange that we discovered Whistable only when we'd left the UK. Before, we headed straight for Margate, at most stopping at Canterbury. How many seafood lunches misssed? And seafood we had, a very nice fish pie, very fresh oysters, a rather disappointing hot mixed seafood main course, and a totally great lemonn tart. I had a traditional beer, she had an English white (pretty decent, surprisingly).

We walked around the town centre a bit, visited the small shops. She bought a pair of shoes and we bought some sweets from a traditional by-the-jar sweet shop.

Half an hour to Margate and boy has it changed. We were disappointed at how run down it'd become, the amusement arcades not offering much anymore. We did the rounds, then headed back.

Went to Sainsbury's and bought salad, bread, eggs, ham. Pizzahut for a small pizza. That was our dinner, at the hotel room, cozy and happy. I was still missing Zurich and was still waiting for the "home" feeling to come back.

So our flight was mid-afternoon, so we had the whole morning, as long as we set off for the flughafen at 1.30pm it was fine.

Time to give Zurich its turn. Didn't drive, took the tram, first stop Globus, to look at the beautiful kitchen stuff. I told her that I could have anything, anything on that floor and I'd be so happy.

Then to another highlight -- chocolate at Sprungli at Paradeplatz. Difficult to believe it was my first time, usually when I'm at Paradeplatz it was to get the tram home, not much thought of lingering and getting anything to drink. It was really fabulous. They so need to export their chocolate abroad.

Walked down to the lake and up the other side. Finally couldn't resist the temptation to walk into a Navyboot at the Niederdorf. She bought a handbag of unstated quality, I drooled at the shoes.

And all of a sudden, we were back at our friends' place hauling our suitcases down to the car. We were really leaving, and I'd never felt so sad. It was like leaving home. And a part of Zurich, will always always be home.

It was a shock to be in London. First of all, after a week of sunshine and clear skies we were faced with the usual British grot. Then Hertz gave us a Japanese station wagon which she didn't want to drive (too big), finally we got our Focus but it was 3-door and I was too tired to argue anymore.

It was strange not to have a home or someone's home to go to. We booked the Ibis hotel, out there near Docklands. But getting there was a big gigantic boring hassle. Huge traffic jam at Embankment, bumper to bumper till Liverpool Street. Then another solid mass out by Isle of Dogs, I had to do a U-turn and get into the Isle of Dogs itself. We didn't know exactly which Ibis it was and of course, ended up at the wrong one. When we eventually found the right one it was quite late already. It was at ExCel, a new exhibition centre all the way near City Airport, totally in the middle of nowhere, not even a local high street to have dinner, we ended up eating at the hotel.

The room was clean but very basic. The bathroom was well designed though, the shower was small but with inwardly opening glass doors and wooden decking there was no squick factor. All bathrooms should be designed that way.