And we're stopping

Ok, here's what I did on Friday...

Starting at Heathrow Terminal 4, at a little after 9am, I met Matthew and Kevin off the plane from NYC. With scare a moment to greet them or rest I immediately dragged them straight to the tube to begin the tour. The challenge I'd been set by Matthew was to introduce Kevin to London proper. In a day. Less than a day, in fact, since some of Matthews family would be in town later and dinner plans had been arranged for 5.15 that evening at the Rainforest Cafe. Given such a short time frame, I could only think of two possible options: pick out a few of the most famous landmarks and try to spend some quality time at each, or drag two jet lagged tourists on a whirlwind tour of everywhere. Everywhere it was. I'm a merciless guide.

So from the Piccadilly line we stopped off in Knightsbridge to have a quick peek at Harrods. I'll admit my ulterior motive here was to visit the small pet shop on the second floor, which, the last time I was there, housed some of the cutest puppies I'd ever come across (they were all in an enclosure together, and one puppy in particular took great delight pouncing on the others as they tried to sleep. I felt a great affinity for that one...). Alas there were no puppies that day, although the lop eared rabbits were rather friendly as was Harry, the macaw in residence. We did a quick tour of the rest of the store, well of my favourite departments at least, which included the toy department, consumer electronics and the food court. Much to my simultaneous dismay and delight I discovered that Harrods not only sell Krispy Kreme donoughts, but they produce them freshly in the store, in a little Krispy Kreme storelet. I only encountered Krispy Kreme for the first time just a few short weeks ago and quickly discovered that they're only marginally less addictive than crack cocaine. Now that I know of a supply in London I may have to venture back on a regular basis (particularly since they offered my a free donought, freshly off... whatever it is donoughts come off of. It was yummy. I want more.)

We exited Harrods stage right to venture into Harvey Nicols for a quick peek around the mens fashion section where I discovered a rather lovely leather jacket that I was immediately smitten with until I checked the price tag and found that it cost £2330. We left Harvey Nicols shortly after that.

And then onwards, onwards we went again. Back on the Piccadilly line to... Piccadilly, the Circus this time, home of the statue of Eros as well as a not inconsiderable amount of neon (and I a remember rightly, one of the largest video screens in the world, which appeared there last year. Still advertises coca cola though...). From there we ventured westwards towards Green Park, which unfortunately, as with most of the parks in London just, now is little on the barren side. It's lovely come spring, though I'm sure that was of scant comfort to my guests. Still, the park was only a means to an end, since on the other side of it lies Buckingham Palace which was our next destination. By dint of good fortune (because I certainly didn't plan it), we caught a parade of guardsmen, replete with a brass band and throng of appreciative tourists. My knowledge of such things is a little lacking, so it may have been the changing of the guards or something else entirely - one of my weaknesses as a guide is that whilst I may know where near everything may be found, I can oftentimes tell you very little about it beyond it's name, and occasionally not even that. Still Matthew and Kevin didn't seem to mind, and once the guards moved on so did we.

Another park this time, St James Park, and through it we went. It was a slightly more scenic detour than Green Park, since it contains more interesting features such as a pond and a bandstand is generally much more picturesque (I first saw the park on a misty summers evening and I retain fond memories of it). From there we hit the Mall which led us through Admiralty Arch and then into Trafalgar Square, where I couldn't resist a quick clamber over Nelsons Column before dashing on to the National Gallery (ok, I interrupted the dash for a spot of pigeon scaring). I'd love to say we toured the gallery properly, but as time was pressing on, all I could do was show Kevin and Matthew the edited highlights, which for me are the Van Goughs and the Seurats as well as a little of the interior (the National Gallery is beautiful building). I was never fond of Van Gough as a child, but I've come to appreciate his work a great deal more in recent years (which I'm sure my old art teacher from high school will be delighted by). Seurat on the other hand I've always loved since the moment I first saw a picture of La Grand Jette.

Leaving the gallery almost as soon as we arrived, I then moved us down Whitehall and past Downing Street to Westminster and the Houses of Parliament, just in time to hear Big Ben chime one o'clock. Across Westminster Bridge, site of the now infamous Daleks photo (as well as the other infamous Daleks photo), I allowed Kevin and Matthew a brief respite on the London Eye, to take in what really is a marvellous view of the city. All good things must end though, and before long it was onwards, ever onwards to the Tate Modern, since I could hardly resist the chance to show off The Weather Project, which remains my favourite exhibition in London currently (alas, it will be gone in a few weeks time). We also peeked in a the Globe Theatre next door before proceeding across the no-longer-bouncy Millennium Bridge to St Pauls Cathedral. Unfortunately, as with a lot of London just now, St Pauls is covered with a considerable amount of scaffolding just now as the building is being cleaned and repaired, which spoils the views of it somewhat. Still we had a brief glance inside and then headed off down Fleet Street and the Strand, passing by Royal Courts of Justice and Somerset House.

The day was wearing on by now, but I still had few more sights to get through. Turning right on the Stand took us through Covent Garden and from there we veered into Forbidden Planet (Kevin insisted! It wasn't my idea honestly, although I didn't exactly object to it), before landing at the British Museum, where we had just enough time to glance at the Egyptian Hall (I just like to show people the Rosetta Stone), the Elgin Marbles, not to mention having a quick wander around the Great Court and the Reading Room at it's heart. Again it was shame we had so little time to venture around the building, since there's so much worth looking at. But with that my work was near done, my only remaining task being to deliver us all to the Rainforest Cafe at 5.15, where dinner had been booked my Matthews dad and his family were waiting. We arrived at 5.15 exactly. I was moderately proud of myself that everything seemed to have worked out so well.

It was an immensely fun day. Despite having hardly had a moments rest for the entire time both Matthew and Kevin were terribly good sports and were content to follow my madcap wanderings with nary a word of complaint (I blame the exhaustion for that ;) and both were excellent company throughout. I do wish time had been more on our side, but I can honestly say that we saw the exteriors of a great many beautiful buildings.

Oh, but the evening still lay ahead. Dinner was also a pleasure. I believe quite wholeheartedly that all families are insane, but it's always nice to experience another family's madness (it makes you feel better about your own ;) They're a great bunch who have not the slightest compunction against welcoming others into their fold. They're also a generous bunch, as Richard, Matthews father, insisted on paying for dinner, an act of generosity that I really must repay. And finally, (finally!) after one of the longest and most interesting days I've had in quite some time everyone headed off to the Palladium Theatre where we went to see the stage production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. I caught this last year with Nicky, my brother, and it's a hugely enjoyable experience which is currently home to several British tv stars of yesteryear, such as Gary Wilmot, Russ Abbott and Sandra "Trillian" Dickinson. It's a good show with enough to entertain the adults as well as the children. You will believe a car can fly :)

Which brought us to the end of that day.

And then there was Saturday.

To be continued...