London, Part the Second

We finished off a fabulous day with an opera at the Royal Opera House at Covent Gardens. It was everything an opera house should be: lots of posh upholstery and gold leaf and a gigantic royal coat of arms over the stage. We saw Cosi Fan Tutte, one of Mozart’s opera buffa, set in modern day Italy. I was a little leery of the modern setting at first, but as soon as they started singing I was convinced. Dressing the characters in suits and putting Starbucks and cell phones in their hands took away a lot of the cultural barriers if you will that make opera so elitist. They became characters that the audience can recognize and even maybe relate with. The orchestra was excellent and included a period piano forte. It was perfect.



The next day was our last (sniff). A bunch of us started with a proper English breakfast, aka GREASY PROTEIN. I am used to orange juice and toast for breakfast, so the sausage and egg sandwich I ate was delicious, incredibly filling, and a welcome change from our lighter Continental fare.



Shaina went for the whole nine yards, including beans, bacon, sausage, eggs, and toast. Tasty.



Next (after stocking up on mint Aerobars- yum!) came a short cruise on the River Thames, something I recommend to anyone. It’s a nice way to see the sights and get great pictures without worrying about traffic and everything else.

The Tower Bridge. Note the towers.



The HMS Belfast



A cool old pub where the Bard himself hung out.



The Globe Theatre! All the world may be a stage, but some stages are cooler than others.



London Bridge did not fall down.



The London Eye (which occasionally doubles as a transmitter for massive plastic monsters)



Big Ben, Parliament, and Westminster! 3 for 1!



We finished off the day with a visit to someplace I’ve wanted to visit for years: Portobello Rd.! Why would I be so excited about a road you ask? Number 1, it’s in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.



Number 2, well, just watch Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Portobello Rd. did not disappoint, even though there was not a single solitary soldier or sailor or pilot or anyone dancing. Antique book vendors, jewelry, posters, Hobknobs, watches, anything and everything a chap can unload in fact.



After another delayed train ride we were back home in Paris (and geeking out a bit about calling Paris “home”). Even after only two days in London I missed French food so much, and speaking and hearing French and old buildings and tiny streets and everything else. It’s good to be back.

(p.s. I've tried putting links in this post to youtube videos etc. Anything blue should take you to another website or clip or something. Let me whether or not it works.)