parklife!
Two-and-a-bit days in That London later and whilst it’s not really Proper Blogging time as yet, there’s never a bad time for an update! First and foremost, next Monday in Jersey is now almost fully booked (one afternoon appointment left at a stretch), and Thursday in Guernsey isn’t far behind; it seems that the natural desire for extra warmth brought about by the cold weather may be affecting those across the water too!
I can report to those back home and elsewhere that London is currently bright, sunny and crisply wintry during the day at least, moving quickly to bitterly, marrow-gnawingly glacial as soon as darkness falls – my regular Day One hunting-gathering trip to Costcutter for the in-room provisions not already brought from home (milk, iced buns, bananas and so forth) was necessarily delayed until shortly after eight pm and the moment of leaving five star heaven, even dressed like Sir Edmund Hillary, for the brief expedition into the outside world was almost enough to send me and the door revolving through 360° and returning immediately to the warm and cosy embrace of my mini-suite for an alternative dinner of chicken Supernoodles and chocolate biscuits.
The days have been gloriously sunny, and whilst I have been so ridiculously busy today the opportunity to set foot outside the hotel room failed to present itself until 4.45pm and a last chance dash to the bank before closing time, an unexpected cancellation yesterday morning afforded me a couple of hours’ free time to grab a rare opportunity for some fresh air and a leisurely stroll around the nearby St James’s Park. This relatively teeny but very beautiful patch of countryside surrounded by the grandiose palaces of Westminster is now a dead cert to become Favourite Lunch Venue no matter what the time of the year and I am happy to say I have not enjoyed a mini-excursion so much in ages – the local wildlife (including not-so-local pelicans) were out en masse enjoying the weather amongst the early-spring snowdrops and with the lake rippling peacefully in the background, to the extent I almost lost track altogether and was without doubt a touch, er, thrown together for my half past one appointment whose level of attention to detail was such that he couldn’t even remember my name, as it turned out; hardly worth worrying much about. Bless ’em (I think I got away with it, even if I did have my shoes on a bit wrong).
I will shamefully admit to having only ever dashed past the park’s leafy periphery on my way to the train (head down and full steam ahead to avoid the tourists) but will be sure to change my ways, especially when the cafés are fully open again. Pictures (needless to say, not for the sentient being-phobic Adultwork, where the sight of a squirrel would be enough to exact if not a ban, certainly removal and a bollocking) below, and especially for all my fellow Northerners who think that London is comprised entirely of grey and soulless office blocks, expensive shops and a handful of museums. And there is lots more green space just like it!
Tomorrow (OK, later today) is my last full day here for a couple of months and planning dates and times around Easter is turning out to be something of a logistical nightmare (although good practice for the summer months and Olympics-mania), but there’s always my flying visit next week on the way home from Guernsey as a bonus, and my next dates will be announced soon-as for those who have missed out this time. Considering it’s February (a notoriously slow and pedestrian month work wise) it’s been astonishingly busy, and my apologies to those who left it too late to get an appointment. As ever, email is the way to go – I don’t magically get any more likely to pick up for the person who rings the highest number of times in under a minute, especially since my auto-responder will have already told you when I am next free to answer.
Proper round up next week! Fingers crossed the weather will behave and all being well I will be arriving in Jersey in a couple of days – anyone still keen on booking would be well advised to make themselves known soon. Meanwhile, it’s been a very long day, my official Yo Sushi 30% off birthday voucher has been dutifully used and I’m going to sleep before the sirens outside really get going.
More soon…
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