…..the weather that is

I’m not talking about the weather that we’re experiencing today but the weather that we had when we were in London, England back in October. Most people think of England as being foggy, cloudy and teaming with rain with a bit of sunshine here and there. Fortunately for us that was not the case. Out of the 14 days in London we only had one rainy day. That happened on Day 8.

Originally we planned to take the train to Brighton and enjoy the seaside. The relentless downpour that day changed our plans. Instead we took a bus to Brick Lane. Brick Lane is in the East End of London and is famous for its curry houses. Having said that I found it unusual that our son wanted us to try a deli where they serve salt beef sandwiches. I guess they’re pretty popular because there was a huge line-up to order one of these massive buns. The weather certainly didn’t keep people away. Unfortunately I didn’t take any photos of the area because the rain was really lashing down.

After sampling the salt beef we ventured back outside and maneuvered our way down the street with umbrellas overhead. We made our way to the Whitechapel Gallery to see the Elmgreen and Dragset show. It was to say the least, a most unusual show. On the ground floor gallery they present the ghost of the Whitechapel Pool. 


Throughout the exhibition there are more sculptures, such as, a cash machine, in front of which a baby has been abandoned. This supposedly acts as an emotional precursor to sculptures in the rest of the galleries. These include a rifle on the wall, a judge’s wig, a pregnant maid and a frightened schoolboy.

Later that evening, closer to our accommodations, we all went out for dinner together. It would be our last night together with all six of us. Andrea and Josie were heading for Scotland and my husband and I were moving to a hotel in South Kensington the following day. Our son picked his favourite Ramen restaurant, Kanada-Ya, Ramen Bar on Upper Street.

Not only did the good weather come to an end but so did our time with our daughter and daughter-in-law. Luckily for us the good weather did return for the rest of our trip but Andrea and Josie had quite different weather farther north in Scotland.