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lupestripeThe sense of forboading after arriving back from a perfect holiday is often hard to alleviate but a couple of furs and a few days managed to do that... until I got back home to Middlesbrough and careered head-first in the same drudgery that often passes for day to day life.
I found myself with a day to kill in London on Friday after the friend I had met in Singapore and who had flown back to the capital was unable to visit me due to work commitments. So his guide book and towel are now mine mwah ha ha. A few texts later and![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
blacksnip phoned me whilst I was on the toilet at St Pancras Station (and what a fine toilet it was too). As luck would have it, he was on his way to London and had a couple of hours to kill. Cue meet up. So after collecting my house keys from an office in Barbican (don't ask), I headed to Liverpool Street to meet the horsey.
I met him in The Wren pub and as I was half an hour early, I was mostly down my pint of Guinness before he came. Still, we had another pint each and we talked about our respective lives over the last month. We then headed to the Founders Arms near the Tate Gallery, which is famed for its fish and chips. It didn't disappoint and there were mushy peas too. Certain plans are afoot (or should that be a-paw - more later) and we also saw someone dressed in a purple cow suit who was entertaining the locals on the South Bank. The suit was good quality but the character moved as if it was the wearer's first time in suit. A member of the 'Cow Crew' was on hand to look after him. We also grabbed a 99 which we paid £2 each for - but it was worth it because it's the sign of a British summer. That and the predictable downpour.
Bidding goodbye toblacksnip , I then boarded the worst train I have ever been on, bound for Nottingham. I have already written about that experience, suffice to say that chatting to the Saudi man about life in the peninsula and how he was a Muslim who drank alcohol was enlightening. By the time I got to Nottingham I was knackered but happy to see my Wolfie *wags*.
The weekend was a good one, one of relaxing and catching up. We went out and about in Nottingham on Friday and ultimately got lost. We saw someone dressed as a kangaroo advertising Walkabout yet he wasn't bouncing on anyone. Still, nice work if you can get it. We also saw a lot of people in lurid pink and yellow hot pants that may have been sponsored by Stabilo Bros. Also, a lot of hen and stag parties were abound, the scourge of British society.
Saturday saw us visit Nottingham Castle, the abode of the Sheriff of Nottingham. There was a statue out front of Robin Hood but they didn't get the fox characteristics right - sadly he looked distinctly human. The view over the city of Nottingham was breathtaking as you stood on the castle ramparts but as the castle was destroyed for it being a Royalist stronghold in the Civil War, now all that remains is a stately home type house. In it is a rather lame exhibition, one of those Arts Council things that doesn't tell you all that much, but at least the room dedicated to the Nottinghamshire army regiments were reasonably interesting. Outside the pub, there was a pub called The Castle which served an excellent pint of Kirin, one of the few places to serve Japanese beer on tap. I also bought a fox plush dressed as Robin Hood but his smock was so small, it was more like a ruff.
We also spent some time in The Pit and The Pendulum. The barkeep there knew about the furries and was perplexed at the appeal. We confessed our furry nature and he said that he had started noticing them three to four months ago but they kept themselves to themselves. The Pit is done out like a gothic or medieval dungeon - which is great in the dark and dingy basement but on the ground floor, it is spoiled by the light. Manicles and torture devices adorned the walls whilst the seats were thrones and the toilets were hidden behind a medieval style bookcase. The drink selection was average whilst the music selection was fantastic. In a way, it was how I would like my dream dungeon to be, only with better alcoholic beverages. Still, being the sub, I doubt I will get little choice on that...
Apart from that, we went to a Turkish restaurant and tried Gorek, proper kebabs and traditional Turkish desserts. All were lovely and we got a free liqueurs at the end - Wolfie drank both as liqueurs make me sick. The meat was so tender in the main course - I think it's something I will be eating again - it's great to try new flavours and cuisines.
I found myself with a day to kill in London on Friday after the friend I had met in Singapore and who had flown back to the capital was unable to visit me due to work commitments. So his guide book and towel are now mine mwah ha ha. A few texts later and
blacksnip phoned me whilst I was on the toilet at St Pancras Station (and what a fine toilet it was too). As luck would have it, he was on his way to London and had a couple of hours to kill. Cue meet up. So after collecting my house keys from an office in Barbican (don't ask), I headed to Liverpool Street to meet the horsey.I met him in The Wren pub and as I was half an hour early, I was mostly down my pint of Guinness before he came. Still, we had another pint each and we talked about our respective lives over the last month. We then headed to the Founders Arms near the Tate Gallery, which is famed for its fish and chips. It didn't disappoint and there were mushy peas too. Certain plans are afoot (or should that be a-paw - more later) and we also saw someone dressed in a purple cow suit who was entertaining the locals on the South Bank. The suit was good quality but the character moved as if it was the wearer's first time in suit. A member of the 'Cow Crew' was on hand to look after him. We also grabbed a 99 which we paid £2 each for - but it was worth it because it's the sign of a British summer. That and the predictable downpour.
Bidding goodbye to
blacksnip , I then boarded the worst train I have ever been on, bound for Nottingham. I have already written about that experience, suffice to say that chatting to the Saudi man about life in the peninsula and how he was a Muslim who drank alcohol was enlightening. By the time I got to Nottingham I was knackered but happy to see my Wolfie *wags*.The weekend was a good one, one of relaxing and catching up. We went out and about in Nottingham on Friday and ultimately got lost. We saw someone dressed as a kangaroo advertising Walkabout yet he wasn't bouncing on anyone. Still, nice work if you can get it. We also saw a lot of people in lurid pink and yellow hot pants that may have been sponsored by Stabilo Bros. Also, a lot of hen and stag parties were abound, the scourge of British society.
Saturday saw us visit Nottingham Castle, the abode of the Sheriff of Nottingham. There was a statue out front of Robin Hood but they didn't get the fox characteristics right - sadly he looked distinctly human. The view over the city of Nottingham was breathtaking as you stood on the castle ramparts but as the castle was destroyed for it being a Royalist stronghold in the Civil War, now all that remains is a stately home type house. In it is a rather lame exhibition, one of those Arts Council things that doesn't tell you all that much, but at least the room dedicated to the Nottinghamshire army regiments were reasonably interesting. Outside the pub, there was a pub called The Castle which served an excellent pint of Kirin, one of the few places to serve Japanese beer on tap. I also bought a fox plush dressed as Robin Hood but his smock was so small, it was more like a ruff.
We also spent some time in The Pit and The Pendulum. The barkeep there knew about the furries and was perplexed at the appeal. We confessed our furry nature and he said that he had started noticing them three to four months ago but they kept themselves to themselves. The Pit is done out like a gothic or medieval dungeon - which is great in the dark and dingy basement but on the ground floor, it is spoiled by the light. Manicles and torture devices adorned the walls whilst the seats were thrones and the toilets were hidden behind a medieval style bookcase. The drink selection was average whilst the music selection was fantastic. In a way, it was how I would like my dream dungeon to be, only with better alcoholic beverages. Still, being the sub, I doubt I will get little choice on that...
Apart from that, we went to a Turkish restaurant and tried Gorek, proper kebabs and traditional Turkish desserts. All were lovely and we got a free liqueurs at the end - Wolfie drank both as liqueurs make me sick. The meat was so tender in the main course - I think it's something I will be eating again - it's great to try new flavours and cuisines.
In the end, it was a very relaxing weekend and a great introduction back to Blighty. It was also great to see my wolf again after three weeks. Yep, a fantastic weekend indeed :-)
