London in the weeks leading up to The Games Having spent the last 7 months in the Gulf, and having a week pass from my wife, back in the UK for two weeks, I left home and an finished changing en route to see Jennie at Wigs R Us in Southport where I had an appointment for a new wig By now, I have it down to a fine art getting changed and made up at the side of the road and so it was that morning arriving in Southport only 10 minutes late for my 11am appointment dressed in jeans, flat shoes and a matching purple top. Jennie doesn’t usually open on a Monday but because of my circumstances she had made a special effort and as usual greeting me warmly as a long lost friend. Chatting away we discussed my requirements whilst enjoying a cup of tea and biscuits and spent some time catching up with each other since the last time I had been there some 17 months earlier. We then spent the best part of 3 hours trying on various wigs etc until I chose 2, one of which required cutting to suit my face /head shape. Finally having paid for my purchases I was on the road again southbound to join my good friend Sue Richmond in London for the next few days. I didn’t think twice stopping off for diesel and then at the services on the Toll Road where I enjoyed a latte, sandwich and a muffin! Whilst reading a copy of Elle I had picked up from the shop. I had a long conversation with the lady who served me and ongoing as she tidied up the tables around me – again not once did she falter and address me as anything else other than as a woman. The café was very busy and I had exchanged pleasantries with a woman in the queue as we waited to be served. All very ordinary and a wonderful feeling being accepted. Make no doubt about it I do not pass especially if talking and as my friends know I talk a lot and to complete strangers lol! Back on the road after using the facilities, I got caught up with the traffic eventually getting to Sue’s at 8pm. We enjoyed a nice meal and bottle of wine whilst establishing our itinery for the following few days before retiring to bed. Up nice and early, nice feeling waking up as Emma wearing a Janet Reger chemise, wash, and make up on, dressed in jeans and woolly top (weather as usual was variable!) We caught the overland train into London and walked across Waterloo Bridge to check out the tickets for a show, managing to pick up two for The Hurly Burly Show the following evening before stopped at our usual coffee shop for a latte and a Belgium chocolate shortcake – low fat onest!! We then made our way to the new Bomber memorial in Green Park. The vignette was beautiful and fully detailed and the place was packed with tourists. Especially poignant was reading the messages left by colleagues, friends and relatives and clocking the ages of those who had given their lives.Image Moving on, we ended up at the Australian War Memorial Wall where we ended up being given a historic lecture by an old Australian guy who had served with the Aussies in Vietnam. He must have been somewhat surprised meeting Sue and myself and especially as I knew as much about the history he was telling us as he did! By an amazing coincidence, we stopped and sat down opposite a section of the wall which was covered by all the place names in Australia and there in front of me was St Helens! I was born and bred in St Helens and the coincidence didn’t stop there. The Aussie we were chatting to was also from St Helens but in Australia and this was the 1st time he had ever found the name on the memorial – something straight out of the twighlight zone eh! Wonder what he was going to be talking about in the bar that night!! On the way back to the tube we stopped at the Wellington Memorial before making our way into Mayfair and a well deserved stop for food and refreshments. So nice to kick off your shoes whilst parking your bum lol! We sat outside and watched the world go by as the weather changed from dry dull, to wet, wet sunny, sunny and back to rain again. Instead of getting wet, we just decided to have another bottle of wine as we had no fixed plans. Finally having been presented with a bill not for the feint hearted we made our way into Soho where I managed to sort out a new foundation shade in the MAC shop and spend £120 in the process!! Well, concealer, blush, fixing powder, darker foundation (due to my tan) and 4 eyeshadows don’t come cheap! Moving around the corner I had my eyebrows waxed and tinted at Benefit and was very pleased with the results, tidy and shaped for the very first time. Had a great time chatting to the girl who was inflicting the pain whilst Sue sat there encouraging more and more to be removed! Sue then led the way to Regents Street where we enjoyed the ambiance created by the World flags hanging across the road representing all the nations in the forthcoming Olympics and the huge number of tourists packing into London ahead of the Games. Time for a drink we agreed and ended up in the Mason’s Arms – a pub at the back of Regent’s Street which we have frequented before. The place was packed and there were many outside on the pavement as we squeezed our way in and ordered our drinks. We managed to move first when a table became available and perched on high stools continued to savour the atmosphere and be accepted. A guy in a wheelchair got more attention than we did – result! Finally we decided that it was time to eat again and we chose another of our favourite Bistro’s around the corner. Excellent company, wonderful attentive service and delicious food all contributed to bring my first night in London to an end – or not quite as we still had a night time walk back across Waterloo Bridge to see the London skyline. Taking the penultimate train out of London we arrived back safely and with no adverse reactions back at Sue’s where the shoes were kicked off and we collapsed into the comfy chairs in Sue’s lounge. Another great day out of social intercourse and didn’t if feel wonderful.
Posted on: Sat, 10 Jan 2015 23:43:06 +0000
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