London: 13 May

(missed posting this which should come before the post on Amsterdam)

Today we did all the tourist spots and London seemed more London than the day before. I was walking on Westminster Bridge when Big Ben rang and it suddenly hit me: I am in London! Hub wasn't taken by Big Ben but by the fact that "This is the spot where the CNN reporter always reports from" so I made him pretend he was reporting on the bridge and took his photo just when a double decker drew up. Cheesy tourists.

I won't bore you with all photos of Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace and all those famous buildings but look at the sky in this photo. I loved it, no sun :D, but didn't like the rain. Btw,  Piccadily Circus was such a let-down. We got off the station, saw the fountain and didn't even recognize it. I walked further on and asked and the lady pointed me back to the small fountain in the center of the roundabout. 

Part of the fun as cheesy tourists is the freedom of getting excited whenever we see a familiar London icon such as the red telephone booths, the London Eye, the Guards at Buckingham Palace (a very boring looking building) etc. After reading and hearing so much about London, seeing the famous structures and buildings was like meeting an old new friend. 

It was chilly and drizzly, perfect English weather. We tracked up and down looking for an authentic English restaurant but all we could find was kebabs, pizzas, sandwiches and fish n chips. Finally, we sat al fresco at one of the pret a mangers and had sandwiches and coffee. Not bad for a chain store. We then stalked the new Prime Minister at his office, checked out Fortnam & Mason (not a big store but has that old specialty fine food store atmosphere and fantastic displays of beautifully wrapped food and kitchenware; reminded me a little of Singapore's Tangs) and stumbled into an English pub where we had a tasty steak n kidney pudding (smart of them not to call it a pie because the pastry was hopeless) and a beer for only £5.10 + £1.99 respectively, no tax. And if you said "Ew" to kidney, it was delicious. Everybody should try a little cow pee once in a while. I think it was Anthony Bourdain who first said that and I second it. 

It rained again and we ducked into the National Museum at Trafalgar Square to rest our aching feet before heading back to N's house for a delicious dinner of roasted duck, fried butternut squash, a stir-fried mixed veg dish and home-cooked soup (sharks' fins/spaghetti squash, which had strands all the way to the skin, real yummy) that was very comforting. Dessert was again lots of raspberries, blueberries and strawberries with cream and ice cream. Loved it.