Tuesday 31st March

I thought I better have an English breakfast in England, so I went to a local nice place and had a modern version - a thick slice of brioche style toast, topped with bacon, then mushrooms ( big flat ones with a name I’ve forgotten and a lovely strong taste) and a duck egg on the top. The coffee was good too.

The next bit of the day was less successful. I got to St Paul’s to find it closed to visitors. It was crawling with police and I saw 3 trucks loaded with more police in a side street – and I only looked down 1 side street. Apparently there was going to be a debate on to do with the G20 meeting. The people going in to the debate had to provide 2 types of id with photo and their bags were thoroughly searched. The 2 locals I had tea with on Sunday were saying that firms in the city ( the inner part of London where the financial firms are) were worried and some were telling their staff to come to work in casual clothes on Wednesday and Thursday. The protestors have said they will target the tubes – according to a policeman I talked to. He said use buses – but many roads will be closed. Hmm.

I caught a bus to East Aldgate in the East End and walked along Brick Lane. There were many different shops and restaurants from many different ethnic groups. There were few people around at 9.30 in the morning. Then I caught a bus back through the city and went to Covent Garden and wandered around some of the little lanes and little shops. There is a coffee place that I had been recommended and I lingered over the best cup of coffee I have had in London. I came back to South Kensington railway station and had some soup for lunch at one of the restaurants in the Carluccio chain. I have a recipe book written by Carluccio quite a few years ago when there were not many nearly as many Italian restaurants in London as there are now. I have been pottering here - I m behind in my photos - and have gone down to the King’s road shops and actually gone into some of them to look.

I forgot to say on Sunday, when I was walking from the Embankment ferry stop to the Wolsley, I walked down a street that was the street to go if you were a traditional English male with lots of money – heaps and heaps of money. There were complete outfits like I saw in the V &A , really lovely suits, very fine wool socks for ₤60 and, in 1 shop, a nightshirt ( no price though – there were not many prices in any of the windows) . It looked lovely fine cotton in bright stripes. Now I am on the look out for more nightshirts.