2kiwis

Thursday night after work I went down to the Speight’s Ale House after work for a pint or two and Danny, a King Country lad who also works on the Helpdesk came along. We were later joined by Keryn and chatted our way through a few pints of Speight’s followed by a bottle of Oyster Bay, it was a good evening.

Danny and Keryn at the Speight’s Ale House

Today (being Saturday) was the Lord Mayor’s Show and we headed into town to do a little bit of shopping, post off our passport applications (at last) and then find a spot by the Thames to watch the fireworks. After grabbing a bite to eat and sitting down to eat it we walked down to Embankment to look for a viewing spot but we had left it a bit late and all the really good spots were taken. We had to settle for a spot behind a crowd of people and once set up we waited for 5pm and the fireworks to start.

Crowds by the Thames waiting for Fireworks

Shortly after 5pm a flare was sent Thames-ward by the Lord Mayor and the fireworks began. It was quite spectacular with huge booms and bangs accompanying the rockets, sparks and explosions of light. A person next to me commented that it was good but “where were the oohs and aahs from the crowd” mid way through the show, shortly followed by a collective “Ooh!” from the crowd as the intensity was ramped up. The fireworks can’t have lasted for more than 10 minutes but it seemed much longer and the show ended to applause from the massed crowds on the banks and nearby bridges.

Fireworks go Boom!

The crowd quickly moved away onto Embankment which was thankfully closed to traffic. Rather than board the tube with the collected masses we walked to Liverpool Street, stopping briefly at the Guildhall to take a couple of photos. Keryn was quite surprised at the amount of building work that had taken place on Cheapside since her last visit, Landsecurities has one building site in front of St Paul’s Cathedral that currently resembles a big hole in the ground but it has revealed a view of St Paul’s that hasn’t been visible for decades. It wasn’t long before we were at the station and finding our train for the journey home.

The deserted Guildhall

It’s been a busy week just gone. On Tuesday night I went to the Roundhouse in Camden and watched KT Tunstall in Concert. I bought my ticket months ago and Keryn had decided at the time she didn’t want to go so it was just me, my camera and all the other people. It was a good evening, the opening act were a surprise and really good at getting the crowd buzzing and KT herself was funny as well as providing a good sonic performance with her band.

Kitty from the opening act Kitty, Daisy and Lewis

KT Tunstall in concert at the Roundhouse

Wednesday night saw us both heading to the Dome for a concert at Indigo2, the smaller music venue in the Dome. I had been rung on Monday with the news I had won two tickets to see The Eagles perform and after thinking about it for a few days we decided we would attend. It turned out to be a great concert, a bit quiet to start with which I put down to a combination of new songs and a corporate audience (it wasn’t possible to buy tickets, they were all either sold off as corporate packages or given out as prizes). Once the band started playing the older tracks, kicked off with Hotel California, the crowd started singing and there was even dancing in the aisles before the venue ushers laid down the rules.

Thursday we attended drinks after work and a couple of people made redundant all those months ago came out so Keryn came along as well. Another good night was had and Keryn found out that she is still thought about at work, possibly even for positions coming up. We’ll see, it’s all just hearsay at this point.

Yesterday we spent some time in London doing a bit of shopping (remember I said I needed to get some Icebreaker tops?) and we sat down for lunch in Covent Garden. I took a few shots of a woman made up as a clown who was obviously taking a break, texting away on the other side of the square.

A glum clown at Covent Garden

Jim had texted earlier in the day asking if we wanted to go see a fireworks display and we had agreed so we got home and drove off to pick Jim and Emma up before heading out north east to Mersea Island. Maybe it wasn’t the best fireworks display we’d ever seen but it was good to get out, and the bonfire was quite impressive even from behind a crowd of people and a steel fence barrier.

Watching the Mersea Island bonfire

Guy Fawkes night Fireworks

Today I had work for a few hours and then, given it was a nice day, I decided to walk from work down to Temple tube which is the new home for the Speight’s Ale House. The Ale House now resides on the terrace above the Walkabout pub and early on a Sunday afternoon it was quite quiet. Talking to one of the bar staff I found out that this isn’t the final location, they’re only aloud to run the bar in it’s current position until March, so the search goes on for a permanent home. One pint of Speight’s Old Dark and it was off home for the evening.

Inside the Ale House

The Ale House at it’s temporary home on dry land