She's one of those non-flashy actors that disappear into their roles, why they're so good, but the result is, I think, we don't remember them for themselves.

Hi

(sorry to interrupt!) I noticed the link to your blog, so I clicked on it to read more with interest, and particularly looked to see where in Italy you had visited. When you get a chance, you might want to correct a typo in one of your entries

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giorgio_de_Chirico

And she's back.

Yes, you noticed too. This is not the first. Sometimes I hate being right.

Ahh, sandralist, spelling has never been my strong suit!

We are up in the Cotswolds for a couple of days and I just wanted to give people a heads up for a lovely garden we saw this afternoon, Kiftsgate Court Gardens. It's right next to Hidcote but well worth visiting. It was particularly magnificent as so many of the peonies were in bloom. The view over the Vale of Evesham was idyllic. I'm sure I'll be posting photos on the blog but it could take months to get around to it!

WTB, I've never made it to Kiftsgate, though I've been to Hidcote a couple of times.

I must certainly try harder, but in the meantime, I'll wait for the pics on your blog.

just you make sure you get the spelling right!

WTB, I really like your blog! Lovely photos and good info on some interesting places. I was just perusing your post on the Moreau Museum and, thanks to you, I will add that to the list for the next time I'm in Paris. And, if you did not already know, Moreau was Rouault's teacher, so maybe that's why that one painting reminds you of him.

sfmurphys - so glad you liked the blog and that it was helpful. I was fascinated to hear that Moureau was Rouault's teacher, thanks for letting me know. The Moreau Museum really is very atmospheric, I loved the way it combines the domestic and artistic spheres. I can't think of anything comparable in London though I very much like the Leighton House.

So, we were away for a week (as mentioned above) Cotswolds, Wiltshire, day trip to Bath, lots of gardens and houses, a nice day walking, and a family birthday party. I should probably start a separate trip report but as that may not happen I'll just make a couple of notes here.

LOVED the Lion in Winchcombe and go ta a fab last minute deal. This isn't the prettiest Cotswold town but the pub was really wonderful, stylish, comfortable with welcoming staff, good food and fresh flowers everywhere, including the room. It has been refurbished very tastefully and it has a quiet, elegant charm. Highly recommended. Excellent meal at the michelin starred 5 North, also in Winchcombe.

Loved Highgrove, it's just a magical garden. I wasn't very interested in the royal connection but I have to say I think more highly of anyone who would put so much time (or perhaps money) into creating such beauty. It's very much worth seeing - unfortunately they don't allow photos so it may not make it to the blog.

First time in Bath for decades, we did the Mayor's free walking tour and were very impressed. I liked the Fashion Museum at the Assembly Room too. Enjoyed a day walking from the pub (King John Inn) we stayed at in Tollard Royal, Wiltshire. All rather like Chelsea in the country. A little to precious even for me. I really don't need a Bang and Olufsen phone in my room when I'm staying in a pub! I should have realized how flash the whole place was when our walk took us right past a country pile surrounded by CCTV cameras - apparently Guy Ritchie installed them when Madge was living there!

In the local church we saw a flyer for an open garden a few villages over and I dragged my husband. It was priceless, so much the England of my youth. We may have been the only members of the "public" to stop by as everyone else knew each other. Anyway, the place was in the middle of nowhere and after wandering around and seeing the garden we ate tea and cake on a very nice women's lawn, all donations went to the church roof appeal fund! It was the quintessential English summer experience and we got a great reception, particularly when they realized we were just visiting!

Anyway, enough of this rubbish, this is meant to be a London TR!

I love staying in Winchcombe, and as far as I'm concerned you can include as many open gardens, cake on a nice lady's lawn and wanderings around the countryside as you like. "These are a few of my favor-it things!" Leighton House, too.

Glad I have permission to ramble on!

Ok, here's a post with pictures for anyone who's interested in the Dulwich Picture Gallery which I put up on the blog yesterday. It really is a lovely collection of old masters.
http://www.somuchmoretosee.com/2015/...ry-london.html

Today I had a lovely day and went to the Soane Museum for their new private apartments tour. I highly recommend you get tickets for this free tour. I thought it was the only way to see the newly restored top floor but it seems these rooms are also included in their highlights tour which you can take a couple of times a week for ten pounds. The top floor includes Soane's bedroom, a small oratory, his wife's sitting room and a model room containing models of his own buildings and building models of various classical buildings including a scale model of the excavations at Pompeii.

http://www.soane.org/your_visit/tours/


I think this may be my favorite museum, it's just so delightful and it's such a wonder to find more rooms, what a feast. I've visited so much over the years and I see something new every time. This time I spent some time downstairs admiring the beautiful sarcophagi of Seti the first. For anyone who isn't familiar with the Soane it's hard to describe. It's a jewel box of a museum, packed to the gills with fabulous treasures, sculptures, classical fragments, books, prints and painting. Everything is displayed in a series of connecting rooms and spaces, each unique and interestingly interconnected, many with skylights or views into another room or outdoor space.

Soon was one of the great architects of his age and he left the house int rusts having secured an act of parliament protecting the house and the collection. For me it's a museum that takes you back in time and it is a great introduction to English eccentricity and intellect.

The Soane is always my first recommendation for friends and so much more interesting than most of the standard tourist fare.yesterday I was at Kensington Palace and for me the Soane is a hundred times more interesting.

After the tour and a walk around the museum I headed across Lincoln Fields to the Hunterian Museum which is a museum run by the Royal College of Surgeons.
Here's the link but the website doesn't do the place justice.

https://www.rcseng.ac.uk/museums/hun...ian-collection

I'd heard about this place for years but wasn't really sure where it was but a friend who is a medical anthropologist (and knows me well) said I should check it out. The truth is with three months in London there's no longer any valid excuse not to see the things that have been recommended- how bothersome!

I found the audio tour excellent and would highly recommend it. The museum was fascinating, yes it's full of oddities, the false teeth of Churchill and Babbage's preserved brain. But this isn't just the cabinet of curiosities I was expecting. It's a museum dedicated to telling the story of the history of surgery along with displaying the incredible collection of specimens from the Hunter Collection. There's lots to cover including plastic surgery during the war, the introduction of ether and the professionalization of surgery from it's early and somewhat dubious beginnings in the barber surgeons guild.

What is also great about these two museums is that they are located in one of the most atmospheric areas of London right by the Inns of Court so it's a fascinating area to walk through too.

Luckily we all have different tastes welltravelledbrit- I can't stand the Soames museum - to me it's a collection of beautiful works but so junky and crowded it does head in!
Didn't get to Wellcome museum this time but has medical artifacts -as the Hunterian - I'd be interested to know if it's worth a visit .

Yes, we all do have different tastes which always makes me nervous when I recommend anything to friends! I haven't made it to the Wellcome but a friend recommended it highly. Incidentally I've just found wonderful free audio tours for the Soane on their website for those who are interested.

Continuing my theme of obscure places or things you can visit for free on Wednesday I went on a tour of the GOVERNMENT ART COLLECTION or GAC. It's in an rather anonymous building hidden away off Tottenham Court Rd and it's a fascinating place for those who love to see behind the scenes.

http://www.gac.culture.gov.uk/visit.html

The GAC is the repository for all the art used in ministerial and govt offices as well as Embassies so the tour included discussions about how and where the art goes, how it's chosen etc. When we went downstairs to see the art store rooms the curator explained their purchasing budget is approximately 30,000 a year which wouldn't seem to allow them to buy too much. In another room someone pointed to a Damian Hirst and asked how they'd bought that for 30,000, she shrugged, muttered something about not paying for it and quickly moved on!

hearing about the problems, costs and conservation of works going into Embassies abroad was quite interesting and I enjoyed the quick one hour tour.

After the GAC I headed to 18 Stafford Terrace (off Kensington High street) a house museum which is only open a few days a week. I hadn't called and the tour was fully booked, so I booked for the middle of June. I've learnt my lesson after missing the Arts and crafts era Emery Walker Museum which is now sold out for the season. Unfortunately my second option the roof gardens above the High Street were also closed

http://www.virginlimitededition.com/...ns/the-gardens

I headed to KENSINGTON PALACE with fairly low expectations. I'd read a lot of negative reviews online but it was free with the Art Pass. After all everything else was closed and I didn't have the attention span for the nearby V&A. Well what can I say about Kensington Palace? Primarily that I'm glad I didn't pay 14 quid for the experience!

I get the negative reviews, several of the exhibits are very "experiential" particularly the one on "Victoria Revealed" which tried to get you to se her as an individual - well I think that's what the half empty rooms, the quotes on the carpet and the picture of her mourning clothes in a glass display case with paper cut out vines means!!!??? Really you couldn't make this up.

In a way it does give you some feeling for her as an individual, but is that what is most important about our longest reigning monarch, where is the history here, the empire, the ruling over half the world? Clearly the curatorial staff lived through the postmodern moment in museum studies, there's no definite history anymore, it's all what you see. I get that, but surely we need some socio-political context.

The Kings and Queens's rooms are quite different though my gripe here was that there is almost no information about the art works, furniture, sculptures or tapestries. Though if you ask the staff they can tell you about everything, often with considerable fluidity. Though again, a lot of what they were retelling was designed to tell you about how they lived, clearly this is the trend in museum management and you see the same at the National Trust.

OK enough griping. I did like the William Kent painted staircase which was interesting after seeing his work at Chiswick. there's also a small fashion exhibit which had some lovely outfits worn by the Royals - I particularly liked the outfits worn by the Queen and Princess Margaret in the 50's and 60's. The exhibit ended with a room featuring a number of outfits worn by the late Princess of Wales which hold little interest to me, but you could see that it held considerable appeal to others.

Just returned from 5 nights 6 days in London.

I had no ticket to the Soane private apartments but showed up early and talked my way into a tour when, as apparently happens a lot, some ticket holders didn't show up.

A tip for others who find the tour sold out...

I got to the Courtauld on the last day of the Goya show - the pages of his Witches and Old Women album reunited after 150+ years. Superb, engrossing.

As someone who's seen a lot of period rooms, I found the Geffrye museum of very modest interest. However the setting and the building itself are lovely.

From there I walked (this was a relaxed Bank Holiday weekend jaunt) to Shoreditch, then Spitalfields.

These were a complete revelation.

I was the oldest person in Shoreditch, by a factor of 2. I liked the edgy vibe - might not like it so well after dark.

I wondered who patronizes these hip, noisy clubs in the middle of a Sunday afternoon.

Spitalfields was more sedate and - what shall I say? - wholesome. Still thronging with holiday crowds. I wished afterwards I'd booked for the Dennis Severs house. Skeptical comments I'd read online had deterred me.

Another high point: the Henry Hudson show at the S2 gallery (owned by Sotheby's I believe) in St George St in Mayfair, just off Hanover Square. Google it. Definitely worth seeing if it is still up.

Next door is St George's Hanover Square, the "society wedding" church, in whose pews the homeless kip all the afternoon. They and I were alone there, apart from the rehearsing organist.

I skimped on the V&A this time but got there one "late-opening" Friday evening (I was staying 10 minutes away, off Queen's Gate) for a casual dinner at their cafe. You make a selection of any 5 of their superlative mezze dishes for £8.50. Best dinner bargain I found in London.

I was able to sample only 1 item from the UCL week of cultural events: a walking tour of Soho, built around Jean Cocteau's London stay in 1959, when he painted a Crucifixion mural in the French church of Notre Dame de France in Leicester Place.

The academic who led the tour was a Cocteau expert and the talk was 90% Cocteau and 10% Soho, which was about the right mix, IMO.

As a consequence of taking that tour, I skipped another tour, given every few weeks, called The Seven Noses of Soho, by Peter Berthoud. (Google him too)

Several times I walked from Queen's Gate via Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park to the Green Park and St James's. I actually walked from the Albert Memorial to Somerset House while only walking ONE block on a city street (from the Horseguards to the Embankment).

There are many gorgeous mini-gardens strung along the S side of Hyde Park, including the world's most lavishly landscaped 10-hole putting green. A work of art.

Finally I spent a wet afternoon at the Tate Britain. It's a very odd place, I've decided. Huge and monumental galleries for works (such as the pre Raphaelite pictures) that need a more intimate setting. The collection has an odd patchwork feeling, too - the result, I assume, of being formed mostly from a few large personal bequests.

The Turners (and Constables) alone justify a visit however.

I still left scratching my head. EG Why would the Bloomsbury painters be displayed in any major art museum?

I am shamed by the number of places that you visitors to our shores have seen that I haven't - I would need months in London to catch up with you all.

Tedgale - what a great mini TR, succinct, opinionated and evocative! The Cocteau walk sounds fabulous. Thanks for the heads up on the V&A evening deal and the S2 Gallery. I'd read about the 'Noses of Soho' tour but promptly forgot about it so thanks for the reminder too! I'll add it to the list along with the Marx tour and the Charles Booth poverty map tour.

Isn't Shoreditch great, I wouldn't worry about walking there late at night, the other day I decided to walk back from Old Street and cut through Shoreditch after 11pm. There are so many people on the street, spilling out from the bars, clubs and restaurants that it seems like a safe area to me even as a 5ft tall woman in her forties lol!

On Rivington St. in Shoreditch (right across from Tramshed, which has an unappetizing Damian Hirst cow in formaldehyde suspended above diner's heads) we ate at a lovely little Italian place, Bottega Prelibato. We had a good meal and I'd recommend it. The atmosphere was nice and the homemade pasta was excellent with a number of interesting varieties including dishes from Sardinia.
http://www.bottegaprelibato.com

Next week we've got a reservation in Shoreditch for a hip cocktail bar/jazz venue called Nightjar which looks like fun, once again we'll also be doing our bit to bring up the average age!

Funnily enough I've hesitated on the Denis Sever house too but I want to do a Huguenot walking tour near there so so perhaps I'll trot along. Ottolenghi is just around the corner and I need no excuse to go there!

MY husband was at the Tate a few weeks ago for the Sculpture Victorious exhibit and he was quite ambivalent about the museum. He said that he found the displays rather odd and that the whole place had a half empty feel. I'd been meaning to visit the Turners, yes one more thing on my list! He also enjoyed the Goya exhibit which I passed on.

I made it to the Geffrye Museum fairly soon after I arrived but I'm not sure if I mentioned it here, I would also give it a lukewarm review. It was a nice enough afternoon for me because I can walk from the apartment very easily, but the whole place feel rather rote and it could be updated. They use the whole notion of displaying rooms of the "middling sort" but this seems to be a rather broad classification. I did like several of their rooms but it needs an injection of "wow". Given the surrounding neighborhood i was surprised it wasn't more "designy". However, I've been meaning to go back to check out the garden rooms and I may check out their special exhibit on homelessness.

I think it works best as a destination if you combine it with either a street art walk, a walk along Regents Canal, a trip to Shoreditch or a nice Vietnamese meal on Kingsland Rd. Incidentally I keep meaning to make it to the rather hip restaurant/bar right behind it called Beagle which is right below the Hoxton overland station.

I felt somewhat the same about the V&A Museum of Childhood, it was interesting enough to visit because it's so close but I don't think I'd have been so thrilled if I'd tracked half way across London.

I find it very difficult to get my head around the idea of Shoreditch as a hip tourist destination - when I worked in London about 20 years ago I used on occasion to have to go to Shoreditch County Court and I would get out of the area as soon as possible, whatever the time of day.

How things must have changed!

Did you come across
Boxpark in Shoreditch? I must say that I did a double take when I first saw it. A friend of ours has lived in the area for years. He has also had a beard for years and mutters about bearded hipsters invading the place. He lives near a restaurant that was visited by Prince Andrew and family. There goes the neighbourhood

Shoreditch is also a great place to pick up fashion tips. In consequence of my visit, I am growing a full, square-bottomed "lumbersexual" beard. I can't manage the man-bun look so I'll wear a woollen tuque in summer (easy for us Canadians). My skinny jeans, rolled 3 inches above the ankle, will highlight my retro laced boots and I'll top my paper-thin, deeply scoop-necked T with an open plaid shirt.

I've ordered my nerd glasses and I'm booked for the throat tattoo next week.

You'll also need a bike

Sorry you didn't care for the Geffrye. I really like it: it was at the Geffrye that I realized that all that dark oak I was used to seeing in "stately homes" had started out light, plus the more modern rooms are quite evocative for someone who grew up in England in the 50s and 60s. When I was there in December they had the rooms decorated - in period - for Christmas and it was interesting to see how that changed over time.

I've done the Denis Severs house twice, although not for some years. Definitely go for the candle light tour.

I was thinking of going to the Tate Britain on my next trip, as I've never been. Sounds like I should reconsider.

WTB - have you been to the Fashion and Textile Museum? The BBC has an interesting piece on their current swimwear exhibition - http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/201...rief-encounter - but I had read a not-so-good review of the museum.

Patrick, love the sign on your blog!

Tedgale you seem to have it down cold! Another trend is young women with grey hair, I'm definitely too old to try this one in an ironic way! I've seen quite a to of man buns and innumerable beards as you describe. When you've finally finished growing that lumberjack look the rocket barbershop on Hackney Rd is the place to have it sculpted, their slogan is "You grow it we mow it"
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rocke...94739057268201 There's a line, even before they open.

Annhig times have definitely changed, not sure it's a classic tourist spot but it's certainly a foodie, club, shopping and street art destination.

Thursdaysd, I wouldn't reconsider the Tate there's still lots to see there. I didn't dislike the Geffrye (and it sounds like they did a good job for Christmas) it's just that perhaps its for people who've seen a lot of the other attractions in London. I have been to the Fashion and Textile Museum, I really like their Thea Porter exhibit and I have the swim wear one on The List. Bermondsey is also a great neighborhood to walk around.

MissPrism, your right about the bike! Yes, I have see BoxPark - for those who haven't it's a shopping area in stacked shipping containers right next to the Shoreditch Hughstreet Overground. There are also offices you can rent in containers at a place called containerville!

I've finally got around to blogging about the benefits of ArtFund membership which has worked incredibly well for us.

http://www.somuchmoretosee.com/2015/...fund-pass.html

OK, I've been falling a bit behind on the reportage and if I don't get going now I may never start again!

So we've been busy and have finally got around to seeing several of the places that were high on our list. We went to Eltham (pronounced Elt-ham) on the way back from our out of town trip, I was glad to visit as it was high on my list. It was quite fascinating, a Tudor Great Hall and moated garden which was added to and renovated in art deco style by members of the Courtauld family. There were lots of fascinating details about their friends and family including a lemur they bought at Harrods! I can't think of anything else it compares to in England though in several ways it reminded me of Josephine Baker's Chateau Milandes in the Dordogne. It's interesting to see the juxtaposition of Tudor architecture and modern furnishings but I'm not sure the place works as there seems to be little sympathetic interaction between the historical/architectural spaces and designs.

It had been very well resorted by English Heritage but rather like so many of the National Trust sites it's all now about telling an accessible story, hence I was given a card and told I was maud someone other and my husband got his own character too, all gender specific of course nothing too challenging! Sorry to be a grump but I don't need to become someone else in order to find it interesting but you can see it would appeal to children.

The gardens are quite attractive and it's clearly a popular site locally.

On Saturday my husband was meant to be going to the cricket with the sibling, but it was rained out, clearly a reprieve for the husband! Instead he headed to the Tate Modern and I went out to Walthamstow to visit the William Morris Gallery.
http://www.wmgallery.org.uk

My expectations were fairly modest, frankly I went because it was raining and I discovered the number 48 bus which goes from the end of our road ends at Walthamstow Central which is only 15 minutes from the gallery. I love following buses or trams to the end of the line so this seemed perfect. Walthamstow itself is a little rundown and clearly has a large population of Eastern European Immigrants, I saw a Romanian shop, Polish Shops and a cafe selling Albanian bean soup! There are however quite a number of attractive streets but this isn't a leafy suburb like Hampstead.

I'm delighted to say the gallery defied the low expectations. I really liked it. They don't have an extensive collection but everything is well displayed and they have a wide range of items from furniture to prints, pamphlets, stained glass etc. The gallery does a good job of telling the tale of Morris' career, his artistic collaborations and his later conversion to socialism.

There is a lovely park behind the museum and a nice cafe on the premises too. The building does have a relationship to Morris, it is the house that Morris' mother moved the family to - after his father's death and they lived here for a number of years.

A few weeks ago we'd heard the artist Yinka Shonibare speak at SOAS and so it was a pleasure to see that the William Morris Gallery had commissioned some of his work. I particularly liked the recreation of a photo of the Morris' and Burne Jones families redone with current residents of Walthamstow wearing Victorian Costumes made from African fabrics. This link may give you some idea of what I'm struggling to describe...
http://www.wmgallery.org.uk/whats-on...shonibare-mbe/

I'd really recommend the museum for anyone who is interested in William Morris or the Arts and Crafts movement.

Oh good, I'm really glad to get a report on the William Morris place. From annhig's comment it sounded like it was in a bad area, but from you report it's fine.

We had a bit of a mamouth day out following on from the Arts and Crafts theme. First a train from Cannon Street down to Bexleyheath to see The Red House which is the house William Morris commissioned Phillip Webb to design for him. It's currently being restored by the National Trust. Don't expect to find a pristine Arts and Crafts interior after all Morris lived here a long time ago and it has had many other owners who made subsequent changes. There are some vestiges of Morris' time including some large built in furniture, decorative walls and a studio.

The docents are very knowledgable and there is a delightful cottage garden complete with a lovely vegetable garden. This is a great place for anyone with a keen interest in architecture and/or Morris. The house is about a 15 minute walk from the station and it's easy to find. Lets just say Bexleyheath is not the tranquil retreat it was in Morris' day and Red House is surrounded by some very quotidian suburban developments. We headed over to Danson House in a nearby Park which currently has a Vivienne Westwood installation but it was unfortunately closed after some tea and cake we decided to head to Greenwich by bus. It's astonishing how often tea and cake goes along with a revived sense of enthusiasm for the day out!

Anyway a bus ride took us directly to Blackheath where we walked across Greenwich Park past the Observatory and down past the lovely historic buildings. In particular we wanted to see the Queen's House the first Palladian style building in London. We walked down to the Thames and as it was low tide clambered down the steps to do a little bit of mudlarking, as usual I was wearing unsuitable footwear but that's the story of my life. In Egypt recently the guide told me to wear "sports shoes" the next day and I say, pointing to glittery flats, "These are my sports shoes!"

It was really fun , I'd been meaning to go on one of the mudlarking walks and have been following a Instagram account of mudlarking finds. It was fun to see how easy it is to find things and between us we found two small clay pipe heads and lots of the straight hollow stem fragments. Unfortunately neither pipe bowl was decorated but it looks like they where on the earlier side as they were smaller, apparently the bowls got larger as the price of tobacco fell. You can find lots of them partly because they tended not to be heavily reused as the tobacco was sold in the pipe.

This will give you an idea of what I'm talking about -
http://mudlarking.blogspot.co.uk/201...lay-pipes.html

As I understand it you're free to take anything you find on the surface but you need a mudlarking license if you are going to dig artifacts up.

After this we walked along the Thames path heading west on our way to dinner at the Mayflower in Rotherhide which is a lovely pub right next to the Brunel Tunnel and museum. Unfortunately we didn't leave enough time for the walk which we realized half way through so it turned into a bit of a death march through Deptford which wasn't too scenic to say the least.

We had dropped by the pub a week or two before but it was fully booked and so this time we made sure to make a reservation. WE had a lovely table upstairs with a view over the Thames and very much enjoyed the atmosphere, service and food. I'd give it a strong recommendation but make sure you get a reservation. I particularly like taking the Overground back from here to Hoxton as you go through Brunel's original Thames tunnel which was first used for pedestrians. You can't see anything but I like the idea of it!

Ok, still lots more to cover, if anyone is still interested. I'm already getting all the days mixed up so I need to write this before I forget everything!

SPENCER HOUSE is a stunning 18th century period house fronting onto St. James' Park which I've wanted to see for a while. Its only open on a Sunday so it's somewhere you have to plan to see. It was a miserable day (there have been quite a few this year!) and until the very last moment I was the only one on the tour when three younger American turned up. It was great to be a small group though their key interest seemed to be connections to the Princess of Wales, yawn.

The building has been leased on a 100 year plus lease and has undergone an incredibly expensive restoration by Lord Rosthchild and his financial group. They've restored most of the public rooms which are used and rented for social functions though it remains offices upstairs. The restoration is somewhat mind boggling, the Specers stripped the place during the war and brought most of the fireplaces and woodwork, including chair rails up to the country pile Althorp. This meant that the restoration included reproducing all of these architectural elements, apparently Earl Spencer generously gave them access to the originals, no wonder!

It's very much worth seeing for anyone looking for a glimpse of 18th century London or anyone interested in interior. Some of the rooms including the Palm room are completely over the top. However, I do have some reservations about the place. Yes, it's lovely to see but it doesn't have much "texture" to me. It's a pristine restoration and it doesn't in anyway feel like a family home. In a way you see a lot of this in London and I'm hard pressed to think of anywhere like Palazzo Colonna where you have the grand rooms of a family that has owned the place for hundreds of years and the family apartments.

Obviously it's a matter of preference but I always enjoy seeing interiors that reflect a range of periods in a complimentary way, or if the interior reflects a certain period, I like it to have a sense of character of the owners. The Jaquemart Andre in Paris and the Nissim Camodo are great examples of the later as is the Leighton House in London. This is why I liked Fenton House in Hampstead so much because it has the feeling of being someone's home.

NATIONAL GALLERY
The Man who Invented Impressionism - we made it to the exhibit at the National on the day it closed and I was sorry we hadn't gone sooner so that we could have made more than one visit. It was an incredible collection of works sold by the dealer Paul Durand Ruel and even included doors from his home decorated by Monet. The audio guide was terrific and they exhibit did a good job of exploring Ruel's relationship with the artists and the development of the market for their art which in a way he helped create. I don't know if the exhibit is traveling elsewhere but if it is I'd highly recommend it, the only negative was the number of others enjoying it too.

NIGHT OUT IN SHOREDITCH
Last night we did our best to raise the average age of Shoreditch and we had a delightful time. First dinner at Dishoom which is an upscale Indian restaurant, think very hip, the whole place could be the backdrop to a fashion spread and I'm talking about the interior though it could also go for the patrons. It's a huge place but there are lots of people lining up. They don't take reservations so we went on the earlier side and the drizzle/cold/Monday night factor worked in our favor.

http://www.dishoom.com

Anyway, I loved it! Great food, good service and bags of atmosphere. The food is from the Parsi community and there were some familiar dishes but also a few things that were less familiar. Lots of things fried in chill and lime, delicious and overall highly recommended. I think they also have outposts in Kings Cross and Covent Garden.

From here we headed on to NightJar, the speakeasy cocktail bar I mentioned above. This was another hit and the reviews were spot on. The place is hip, stylish but not pretentious. It's table service and the server was very nice. general they have a cover for the music but on Mondays they often have the evening sponsored by a drink brand and last night there was a great small and playing gypsy swing all underwritten by Chambord!

The place has great atmosphere, there's a small bird on the door but no sign and you give your name to the chap who directs you down some dark stairs. Inside it's very lovely with a gleaming ceiling and lots of engraved mirrors and leather booths. This isn't a place for a cheap drink (£12-14 per cocktail or the knock down price of £7 for the sponsored varieties and only on some Mondays) but to be honest they looked like works of art with aromatic botanicals etc. One that came to a nearby table was flaming!

My Royal Hawaiian came in a coconut which is incredibly cheesy but was good fun and incredibly well made. IT has to be seen to be believed so here's the link!
https://barnightjar.com/drinks/royal-hawaiian

All in all a great night out!

Loving every bit of this, welltraveled, and will definitely go over again with a highlighter before I leave in TWO WEEKS!!!

Glad you're still following along and I hope you have a great time with the Meadettes!

very clever website, WTB.

And I love the look of that indian restaurant - round here we have only the standard bangladeshi fare plus the odd nepalese restaurant.

*ahem* We are Meadaholics. :)

I can't wait to go back to London even though I've only been home 4 days!! William Morris on my list!

Glad you are home safely northie, but given our difference of opinion on Soane I'm now worried about whether any of my recommendations will work for you ?!! ;)

Still a few more things to catch up with before you're all up to date, I've got friends and family this weekend so I'll be preoccupied with siblings galore!

WALKING TOURS
Ok, yesterday I kicked into high gear (probably had something to do with taking the day off the day before) and went on two walking tours, I should add I advise against this and I ended up exhausted! I started with the London Walks Underground tour staring at the very respectable time of 11am. This is a great tour if the weather is dicey as it's mainly in the tube.

The tour covered the development of the various lines on the Tube, with a little about the construction and decoration. However, while it was a good into I'd like something a little more details, perhaps going further out to some of the more unusual stations, though to be fair this was probably too much to expect for a two hour tour and we did go to Westminster to see one of the newer stations, I must make it out to Canary Wharf to see Norman Foster's station. One thing that could make a good day out would be combining this tour with a visit to the London Transport Museum.

While I fancied the transport museum I was committed to a second walking tour, this one in Spitalfields. Over the next few months London will be hosting quite a number of Huguenot related events for the HUGUENOT SUMMER FESTIVAL. The walk I was on, was the first official event of the festival which contains lots of stuff from concerts, to lectures, seminars and days out.

The walk covered much the same ground as a recent walk we had been to on the Jewish community in the same area, though it was interesting to hear more about the Huguenot community and their contributions to the UK. They came here to escape religious persecution in France and had an enormous impact on luxury industries such a silver and silk weaving. The beautiful Georgian houses you see in Spitalfields were occupied by the master weavers who settled here.

http://www.huguenotsofspitalfields.org

After all the walking I was fading fast and I headed up to Tramshed in Spitalfields. This is the place with the Damian Hirst cow I mentioned above. Anyway they offer a reasonably priced sandwich till 4:30pm which was perfect. I had it with a glass of rose, which is my way of pretending some sort of summer is happening here! I really liked the sandwich but it's fairly straightforward fare, chicken or steak in industrial style surroundings and at 4pm it was almost empty. Apparently it's very popular in the evenings and attracts quite a crowd but I'm not sure that would suit me. I liked it but I wouldn't go far out of my way for it.
http://www.chickenandsteak.co.uk

Incidentally do pay attention to the size of a glass of wine in the UK. They sell a glass that is 250ml, yes that's a third of a bottle in one glass. However, although many places don't put it on the menu you can ask for a 125ml "small" glass of wine. I used to work at a pub as a teenager and I can tell you the glasses of wine were far closer to 125 than 250 back then!

It's ok wtb I really like arts /crafts and William Morris so I'll take the risk ��. Our 2nd last day in London went to Spitalfields to see the church where my great great grandparents were married in 1840- Christ church - a beautiful Hawksmoor building renovated now so different to when I saw it some years ago . Talked to one of the guides there who is descended from the Huguenots . Also went to the church in Fleet Street where my great great great grandparents were married in 1790- didn't know I had London connections until recently .
Don't tell me this marvelous tale is coming to an end .
BTW from Heathrow to Melbourne 27 hours - plane had to turn back after Dubai to take an ill passenger to Singapore .

Bookmarking for later...

The walk covered much the same ground as a recent walk we had been to on the Jewish community in the same area, though it was interesting to hear more about the Huguenot community and their contributions to the UK.>>

I heard a funny story on the radio the other day from comedian and actor Miles Jupp who had been brought up thinking that he and his family were descended from the Huguenots and had a whole family history about it. Sadly, when he was approached by someone to help him research his family tree it turned out all to be a myth - they weren't Huguenots at all!

Here's the link to what is a very funny programme:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05mt5c8

Don't worry northie there'll be another month of my rambling and then I'll spend months catching up on my blog! Interesting to hear about the family connections.

Annhig thanks for the link I'll check it out, perhaps all the people on my tour were faux Huguenots too!

DR JOHNSON'S HOUSE
Today I headed to Dr Johnson's House which is right off the Strand. I've passed by the area so many times but have never gone in but today was the day. I really enjoyed it. On the first Wednesday of the month they have a walk with a City of London guide which takes you around the area and gives you an idea of what it was like in Johnson's time.

In a way it's familiar ground (the Strand, Temple Church, St Clement's Church etc) but it was interesting to see it and the guide did a good job of drawing the picture of the Strand as a narrower road, Johnson moving between lodgings, marrying, making his way and eventually completing his dictionary. It was a good backdrop to the house which has some interesting information and is quite attractive but is fairly sparse in terms of furniture.

CHINA EXCHANGE LECTURE This evening we headed to another of the talks at the China Exchange in Gerrard Street right in the middle of Chinatown. Tonight it was Stephen Fry talking about language which was quite interesting. It's an unusual venue and draws a diverse audience, last time Carol Thatcher was in the audience (she was unmistakable when she asked a question) and this time Fergie and Princess Beatrice swept in at the last minute, with David Tang saying, "I see gingers in the back, come forward there are seats for you" - classic! Fergie apologizing to all saying , "This is so embarrassing" as she made her way hastily to the front!

http://chinaexchange.uk/whats-on/
Do have a look at the schedule for upcoming speakers and people who still have to be schedules, its quite something.

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Incidentally has anyone been to Sutton House in Hackney? It's a National Trust property I'm asking ask someone recommended it to me today -

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sutt...=1356318539245

Here's a new blogpost with pictures and details from Fenton House in Hampstead. Summary is it's a lovely merchant's house, very much worth seeing.
http://www.somuchmoretosee.com/2015/...hampstead.html