Borough Market's quite a cool place. It's home to a collection of food & wares vendors operating out of stalls, economically packed into a series of covered spaces beneath the railway viaducts. In walking through, we encountered all manner of produce & meats on offer, any number of baked goods, & just as many cheeses, most of which had been handily pieced into sample-sizes for tastings. It's a browsing man's paradise.
A word to the wise: over-stimulation is an ever-present threat at Borough Market. I feel like I spent hours coursing up & down the stalls flip-flopping about which sausage was most deserving of my purchase. As tends to happen in such situations, the three of us eventually grew weary & decamped for the South Bank, needing strong drink to boost our spirits. A short walk later, we found an inviting pub on the river's edge called the Old Thameside Inn & obtained a few pints from the landlord.
Our spirits boosted for the moment, Mollie thought she'd like to see the London School of Economics, where her brother Samwise will be undertaking a brief course in July. Hopefully we'll find an opportunity to feature him on the Sausage during his stay. From the Thameside, then, we made our way across the Millennium Bridge.
As it happened, Saturday was the Queen's Birthday observed, so various celebrations were taking place around town. One of the attendant festivities included a series of aircraft fly-bys, which we could see from our vantage on the bridge. Super cool.
Though a traipse across the Millennium Bridge is not exactly what you'd call Marathon distance, once we'd reached the other side of the river, we found ourselves in need of refreshment again. Fortunately, our way led us past one of the first pubs Fi & I ever visited together, the George, so we stopped in to share it with Mollie.
Clearly taken by the salubriousness of the pub, Mollie played proper & ordered an ale. Good form, Mollie. Our drinks made for a good half-hour's relaxation at the George & reminded me why I like it so much. Although I'd spent time in there before, this time was the first I noticed a historical plaque on the wall, outlinging a brief history of the pub. Apparently, the 18th-century's own Samuel Johnson used to be a George-regular, even claiming it as his address for a brief time.
Once rejuvenated by our delicious beers, repaired to the London School of Economics for a quick photograph. There didn't seem to be any proper campus, just buildings here & there with LSE signs flanking the doorways, somewhat similar to how NYU's situated in Manhattan, so we just picked that one at random for our pic. Looks official to me. Our journey then took us from LSE back to the South Bank, where we paused for a bite to eat. I tried out a new BBQ joint called Pitt Cue & the girls had Indian food from Dishoom, a fashionable establishment with a 'beach' out front. Their food was nice, but they served Pimm's with leaves of cilantro mashed into it. Sick.
Walking back to the train from lunch, we saw a bunch of crazies playing in an artsy fountain along the walkway. When the sun's out, British people get excited, even if the air temp is only 65 degrees. Fortunately for them, Saturday was a real scorcher, pushing the Mercury up to at least 71 or 72, I reckon.
Our Underground journey took us to Regent's Park, which made for a pleasant walk in the balmy temps. From there we pressed onward to the top of Primrose Hill, then cruised down the backside to a pub called The Queens, where the ladies & I refreshed ourselves with a few pints of our new favorite summer beverage, Rekorderlig Cider.
Post-reginae, we had one last destination on the agenda, taking us on a long walkalong the canal to Little Venice, then finally terminating at a gorgeous pub in Maida Vale called the Prince Alfred (not the Prince Albert, Fi.) Fans of romantic comedy will recognize the interior of this pub from the 2005 Debra Messing & Dermot Mulroney classic, The Wedding Date.
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