Day 5 & 6 - England

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I am impressed that i blogged 4 days in a row, now i have to blog for the least 2 days and try to remember the highlights from each day.

Wednesday - On route to the centre i decided to jump off the underground at Knightsbridge and take a look at Harrods. The place is huge! loved the lower floor especially with all the foods, particularly the fish counter and cheeses. I have to admit i got lost on the other floors, in fact to the extent that i considered downloading the Harrods app for the iphone to find my way out! my jaw dropped why i found myself on the floor that contained designer pet clothing, a facility to groom your pets and unbelievably a pet spa. My 2 cats Fern and Fachine do get it tough (reminds me - i must email them later!).

I was desperate to have lunch at Kimchi, a Korean place on the strand. Not surprisingly i got lost and ended up in Leicester Square surrounded by huge cinemas and casinos. I was tempted to pop in for a game of no limit Hold-em. My hunger increased as i found myself in Chinatown, the smells were exquisite. Eventually via a chocolateria i found Kimchi and ordered Kimchi and spicy beef noodle soup. It was very spicy and was so delicious. I then left with tears in my ears and a streaming nose (the chillies).

I managed a little 'hot climate' clothes shopping and then boarded the train and went to Kew Gardens. Rebecca Upson (Dr) very kindly emailed a map which i could then view on my phone and lead me to the herbarium (Kew Gardens are very large). Of course technology lets you down when you have no battery power. Coffee in starbucks and a charge of the phone soon got me back on track.

Had afternoon tea with the overseas territory crew and Richard Lewis gave a thorough tour of the herbarium. Richard found me an FI specimen which was great. The top sample was submitted by the famous Charles Darwin, followed by one from Hooker. Hookers Point is named after Hooker and i believe he is the second director of Kew (the first being his father). I thought it was then magical to see 150 years later an entry from Rebecca. It would be amazing to look back in 100 years and see if Rebecca has trumped the theory of evolution or become a director of Kew. Maybe we should change Mt Usbourne to Mt Upson with all of the studies Rebecca has undertook on that Mountain (of course i am joking, no disrespect meant to Usbourne). We then had a meal in the pub and a few Guinness's before leaving back to Putney. I will return to briefly see the gardens on saturday.

Early start on Thursday and went straight to the Tanzanian embassy. Submitted an application for a visa (i know these can be obtained at the airport, but after a long flight I prefer to have that out of the way.

Then i picked up my DSLR which has had a sensor cleaning. The camera i am told does need a complete cleaning, lets hope it does the job in Tanzania, photoshop could remove the dust marks in the future if needs be, very time consuming though.

Thankfully i successfully managed to get the remaining clothing that i needed. It wasn't cheap i had to go to North Face and Craghoppers. Unfortunately i have just timed this a little badly as the winter season fashion has replaced the summer fashion and i have just got the tail end of sales. There are still bargains if you are short, XXXL or have go-go-gadget type arms.

I then met Sam and Michael Reading (Pinsent Mason) for lunch at Burrough Markets. It was great to catch up with Michael who is very well and the market is fantastic. There are stall after stalls selling meats, cheeses, fruits and veg, cooked foods etc. Zebra burgers were the most unusual spot (or stripe) of the day. We then got a coffee at a place called the Monmouth. It is reputable as serving the best coffee in London. It did not disappoint. After a quick diet coke i left Sam and Mike to continue their lunch time pints and headed back to he embassy to collect my passport.

After collecting my passport i returned to Putney to see the dental hygienist. After a gum irritation the dentist on wednesday suggested i get an MOT by the hygienist. I was there for an hour! thankfully i spent the first 5 minutes sweet talking the Hungarian lady as the treatment was to say 'pretty full on'. In fact i did get complimented when she commented "normally when i go in that deep around the gums, people stop me and ask for a local anaesthetic". I kept gripping to the chair muttering to myself short term pain for long term gain. Anyway now i have new underwear and a clean set of teeth, what a catch! it is a shame fashion week is over.

Last night i met up with Mrs Churchill. I don't think any relation to Winston, but our very own married Roz Harris. I had a great evening enjoying a pint in the local pub. Unfortunately Roz tried getting me to the top of Sushi Samba to see the city at night but my dress code was not suitable. We went for an Indian curry which was so delicious. We ordered a Monkfish masala, King Prawn bhuna, taaka dhal, pashwari naan and rice. This was after a mixed platter starter and was all washed down with a bottle of cobra. It was great to catch up with you Roz, enjoy the honeymoon and next time it would be great to have a beer with Church also.

Very tired after two long days i slept like a log!

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Comments

[Peter]

You're bringing familiar places like Borough Market back to life. Thanks. More Tanz tips - bean bag to rest camera on in vehicle; ziploc bag to keep out dust; wet wipes to keep fresh; hat to protect from sun; some malaria meds go down better with fat, so taking with breakfast helps. cheers