Rain was forecast - not unusual for his walks. Well, I had a late meeting again, but it finished before the allotted time, and I set off in good time. King's Cross is a little bit far to walk from the office, so bus it was; I elected to use the bus stop from where I could get any of three buses! The 10, the 73, and the 390.. and lo, as I was waiting to cross the road, I saw each of them pass.. and then another 73.. but you know, they literally come like machine-gun fire here, and I wasn't waiting long before another happened along.
More photos here. It wasn't hard to find The Parcel Yard in King's Cross.. just walk the length of it, and it's at the North end. Right beside the Harry Potter shop, and that Platform 9 3/4.
We had a wander around the shop before we left the station, and what a pity I'm not a Harry Potter fan - it's a fabulous place. Anyway, The Parcel Yard is just up the stairs here, and as we had been warned, a huge place - I didn't see anyone I knew as I wandered through, and queued at the bar for a drink. Had something of a wait, and in the meantime took a look around. It's the old parcel office, spacious and airy - and you can hire function rooms upstairs, chalking your booking on the sign near the door. There's an interesting set of shelves behind the bar, housing bottles above signs that include prices ranging from £30 to.. well, the highest I noticed was £160..
I'd noticed the organiser as I was looking around, sat in a side room not far from the bar, and duly joined him when I finally had my drink. The others joined us eventually, and we chatted a bit about John Betjeman and Paul Nash, both of whom we'd be coming across that evening. Hey, for once I managed to tell him something he didn't know - John Betjeman was stationed in Dublin in 1941 as a press attaché, possibly with a remit to act as a spy. Certainly, the IRA thought so, and had him marked for assassination - until they read some of his poetry, which prompted them to let him off!
Our walk began in the station, moving outside into a light rain. I must say, there's more to King's Cross / St. Pancras than you'd think! Gorgeous architecture is just the start of it. Of course, there's the aforementioned Harry Potter shop - just outside the station is a kind of pagoda, with an adult-sized swing, and a restaurant called the German Gymnasium, which our guide assured us is the site of the very fist actual gymnasium in London: founded by Germans, naturally. The waiters wear traditional German costume.
In St. Pancras, we were presented with a jukebox in the waiting area! Some tracks free, some to pay for:
The place is also packed with interesting statuary - we started with John Betjeman himself:
..before moving on to a giant statue of a couple embracing. Most interesting, though, were the reliefs around the base, depicting the hordes who pass through the station:
Back out in the rain - now heavier - we passed Irish pubs, blue plaques.. we were near where a friend of Mary lives, apparently, but didn't swing by. And Stephen did his best to give us the history. Unfortunately, the weather really wasn't with us - we were facing a deluge.
And so, reluctantly, we called it a night. Most of us would have repaired to a pub, but for that there was a football match on, and they were all packed! And so we ended up in Prêt à Manger, where hot chocolate, soup, and coffee were had by us, in various combinations. And a chocolate moose (sic) for me - they're excellent, and more recommended than the hot chocolate here. And we were in from the wet. Until we finally had to brave it.. it would have taken me 18 minutes to walk home from there, 19 minutes by Tube (longer by bus) - but with that weather I wasn't walking, and buses are horrible in the rain. So I Tubed it, for once - I was wet enough already. Anyway, it gave me a chance to say farewell to Stephen for the year - he does have a point about not walking as the weather gets worse.
Early-ish to sleep, because our rooms had to be "available" to have the fire alarms inspected today, from early! Again. After them going off nonstop on Sunday, I might think they weren't presenting any problems being heard. Tonight, I was with another new group: London, Surrey and Beyond.. for an event called "A Unique Experience. Olde Pub, Gerry's Private Club, 2 'i's Famous Fish 'n' Chips". Which says it all, really! But then TunedIn advertised flamenco at Sands Films.. irresistible really. So I've booked that instead. And then RSVPed with the World Music Meetup, when they finally got around to advertising it. (I see that London, Surrey and Beyond event has been cancelled now, for lack of interest.) Then it's back to Ireland for the weekend again.
On Monday, I had booked at Hampstead Theatre, for No One Will Tell Me How to Start a Revolution. North London Friends are attending - and charging extra, so I was going it alone! But now it turns out I'm spending the week in the Stockholm office - back on the 8th. I'll need my laptop, so what with going back to Ireland for the weekend, I'll have to take it with me tonight. Hey-ho..
On Tuesday, it was free comedy in Hammersmith - nominally. With Free Comedy Nights in Hammersmith, Wimbledon and Greenwich. So, that was easy to cancel, for Stockholm!
Wednesday was Up in the Cheap Seats and Labour of Love, with Martin Freeman, at the Noel Coward Theatre. Cheapest tickets from the venue, which I'm finding lately has been the norm!
Next Thursday, same group - headed to see the Company Wayne McGregor, at Sadler's Wells.
And finally! on the 6th October, headed to see Chekhov's The Seagull, at the Lyric. Third night in a row for that group - almost as busy a group as I am a person! So, four things in all I had to cancel, without refund.. what the hey, I'll doubtless be saving money in Stockholm! Expenses paid, after all.
On the 9th October, I'm finally going to see the show so many people have asked me whether I'm seeing. Ink is showing at the Duke of York's Theatre.
On the 10th October, I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats for Ballet Boyz at Sadler's Wells.
On the 11th October, back with Funzing (London Speaks Sessions and LDN Talks @ Night) for a talk on Revolution in Iran: Girl with a Gun. This will be an interview with a female Kurdish revolutionary.. on the Battersea Barge, which I believe can get choppy. Never mind. This is one I got for free, for completing a loyalty card with three talks.
On the 12th October, Let's Do This are back to St. Martin-in-the-Fields, where London Concertante is performing Bach Violin Concertos. Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend again.
And on the 16th October, back at Southwark Playhouse with Up in the Cheap Seats - this time, it's for A Day By the Sea.
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