Restaurant: Mestizo

Last night, back with Civilised London for a meal at last - this one was at Mestizo (Mexican). Mexican isn't usually my favourite, but I thought I'd give it a shot. We were to meet beforehand at the Crown & Anchor.

It was the warmest day of the year so far! I ventured out without a coat, bringing a wrap for the evening. A very hot bus ride was followed by a pretty short walk, and most of the group were already there, sat outside in the mild weather. The place was heaving, but service was pretty quick, and it was lovely to see everyone again! (one for the first time). One who had booked didn't show, and didn't say they weren't coming, which is rather bad form - these meals tend to be over-subscribed, and they could have freed up a place for someone else. Not to mention that our organiser was worried about them being able to find us! Tut.

Not too long a walk to the restaurant, either - but we arrived a little early, and had to wait a few minutes - this place was heaving as well. We got a nice table by the window.

I didn't fancy a starter, I wasn't hungry enough - everyone else had one though, all of which came with tortillas. As, actually, did the main courses - not that anyone used them for the main, that I noticed. I thought the chicken tequila sounded nice - and wow, it was gorgeous! Mind you, anything would have been good with such well-cooked chicken, which was melt-in-the-mouth, as good as I've had anywhere. If you come here, whatever you have, I suggest you make it chicken.. I had an Argentinian wine, but typically, once the mains were out it was almost impossible to get the waiters to bother with us, and we had to ask three people before I got a second glass. Still, a lovely meal - and despite our organiser's dire predictions of rain (he'd brought a brolly), we only had a few drops. Back to the pub afterwards, to round off my only social event this week.. I was way too tired afterwards to blog, but sure slept soundly!

This evening - well, I saw on Meetup that a group called Get a Tech Developer Job has a free webinar, Learn Web Scraping with Python! Now, we're expected to use Python in my new job, and I never have - so this could be very handy indeed. I signed up, but it was just as well he sent a registration reminder today, I hadn't paid attention and didn't realise we had to register! The event is available on Eventbrite.

Tomorrow, I'm headed to the Crick Crack Club again, for Astray, at Rich Mix. A storytelling double bill, both Irish ladies telling Irish myths!

On Friday, headed to Marys Seacole, at Donmar Warehouse. Based on a true story. I've heard mixed reviews - we shall see.

And on Saturday - well Lordy, I've booked for the Roman London Walk, with Walk About London (also advertised on Walks, Talks & Treasure Hunts - both linked to London Guided Walks). Now, I missed the last two I was booked on with this company - third time lucky? Got reminders today.

Play: Middle

Back to Ireland for the weekend..

And not much happened, apart from a laudable (but rather inexplicable) performance from the UK in the Eurovision! Couldn't see the appeal in the song myself, but there you are. That was the excitement of the weekend - and so back to London, and the unwelcome news that there was yet another blasted rail replacement bus for half the journey to London! Hell, when I know in advance, I just get the bus the whole way instead of chopping and changing - the last time I flew, this was the case. The next time I fly, this will be the case. But I wasn't expecting it this weekend as well! And I'm dead right to do so - it took us an hour just to get to Broxbourne, where we hopped on a train that took another half hour. Not to mention the WiFi wasn't working.. much faster just to get the bus the whole way.

Well, at least I got back in time for a meal at Cote. Had my usual steak frites - and the waiter that crouches down to take orders. As he waited for the diners at the next table to decide, and I was about to tuck into my steak, he turned and remarked, with a twinkle in his eye, "Quick, wasn't it? I had ordered it, I think they gave you mine.." Mind you now, I'm becoming rather unenamoured with the steak frites here - the steak always seems a bit tough. Never used to be. Ah well, might have to change my usual.. the chocolate ice cream, and the wine, were excellent as ever.

Tonight, headed to Middle, at the National. I headed off in nice time for a bite to eat at The Archduke - again, no problem getting a table. This is the place that does carafes, so I had another excellent carafe of white - and this time, I thought I'd go for the beef bourgignon. Which, I have to say, came extremely quickly, and was lovely - if not quite at the spectacular heights of the chicken! And I had time for another excellent ice cream sundae.. really recommend this spot, also for the ease of getting seated.

A short trot to the theatre then - queueing at the bar took longer. Now, they never did send my e-ticket for this, but the box office today assured me that my confirmation email, complete with seat number, should be fine - and so it proved.

Pretty packed house for this story of the "middle" of a marriage. They have one daughter, who's now of school-going age, and sure enough, the mum is beginning to question her life, and her love for her husband. Gets up in the middle of the night and comes down to the kitchen, makes herself a hot, milky drink. He wakes and goes to see what she's at, and lots of stuff gets said.

It's all very real, very believable. And in parts, very moving. Nothing too dramatic, just the lives of people just like us - or like people we know. The whole story rests on how we never say what needs to be said, until it's too late - bottle it all up, and it explodes and makes a mess. So, here we have a husband who always figured that his job was to work and provide, a wife who wanted more - and a husband left wondering what it was that was missing. The value of talking it out, eh? Come see this and try and figure out whether they've reached an end - or will go forward from here.. Runs till the 18th of next month. And with no interval, it's over nice and early!

Tomorrow, back with Civilised London for a meal at last - this one is at Mestizo (Mexican). Not usually my favourite, but I'll give it a shot. Meeting beforehand at the Crown & Anchor.

On Wednesday - well, I saw on Meetup that a group called Get a Tech Developer Job has a free webinar, Learn Web Scraping with Python! Now, we're expected to use Python in my new job, and I never have - so this could be very handy indeed.

On Thursday, I'm headed to the Crick Crack Club again, for Astray, at Rich Mix. A storytelling double bill, both Irish ladies telling Irish myths!

On Friday, headed to Marys Seacole, at Donmar Warehouse. Based on a true story. I've heard mixed reviews - we shall see.

And on Saturday - well Lordy, I've booked for the Roman London Walk, with Walk About London (also advertised on Walks, Talks & Treasure Hunts - both linked to London Guided Walks). Now, I missed the last two I was booked on with this company - third time lucky?

Play: As You Like It

Last night, my only Meetup of the week - I was back with Up in the Cheap Seats, to see a performance of As You Like It at Wilton's. And, energetically, I could walk again! Went for a slightly more expensive seat than usual, this time - I'm sick of straining my neck.

I needed to eat somewhere - decided to try the other Indian restaurant on Leman Street: Red Chilli. An imposing entrance - and I seemed to be the first customer of the day. Service was unfailingly friendly, but boy, did the starter take a long time to come! What, did they not have the ovens turned on?

It was worth it, though. The samosas I found a bit too spicy for my taste - might try the onion bhaji if I'm here again. But wow, the main was a winner! I had my usuals, but they're not usually as good as this - butter chicken with beautifully rich sauce, pilau rice, peshwari naan that was hardly burnt at all, and utterly delicious. My, I wolfed it down - was only sorry that I had to rush off afterwards to meet the others. Again, a small delay with getting my bill - but I highly recommend this restaurant!

Only a short walk from there to Wilton's, where the others were chatting outside in the sunshine. Great to see them both, and especially the one I hadn't seen for years! So I had great fun giving them the lowdown on my flat hunting, before it was time to go in - as usual, a massive crowd at the bar, but the bar staff dealt with it efficiently and it didn't take too long.

We were all sat upstairs - appropriately for the name of the group! - but as the doors closed, the ever-friendly usher came over and whispered to me that they weren't full, so I could move more centrally if I wanted. And there were the others, beckoning me over. So, over I went! and had a lovely, straight-on view.

Well, and wouldn't that set design be an innovative approach to the problem of my lack of wardrobe space! From the start, this is an anarchic production - the costume changes being the most visible sign. Rosalind, the girl who dresses as a boy when she takes refuge in the forest, is perfectly played by a transgender, non-binary actor. Touchstone has possibly the wildest outfits, veering between genders - there is a lot of cross-dressing in general. The trees are represented by coat racks, the bushes by clothes rails.

I never appreciated this play when I was younger - I certainly did last night though! Being outlaws in the forest not only allows the characters to dress as they please, and assume different identities, but to play with their roles in life, and follow their true desires. So, imagine how revolutionary that would have been, back in the day! This is a vibrant and imaginative production, breathing a life into these old words that I'd never thought of before. The RSC it ain't! I loved it - as crazy as anything I've ever seen in the Globe. My personal favourite bit was watching the actors having great fun portraying goats.. Runs until tomorrow, highly recommended! Go see.

It ran too late to blog last night, because I had an open house viewing this morning - I hate those, you put your name down if you're interested, and they play eenie-meenie-minie-mo. Last time I was accommodation-hunting, a couple got around the queue of folks wanting one of the two rooms in a flat by simply paying for both themselves! Anyway, this morning I could have taken the bus, but ended up being late enough to take a Tube instead. Google Maps was somewhat confused about where I was going, but happily had been correct the last time, and I found my way.

Just as well I took the Tube, I ended up being the first there. There were three of us in the end, all acting awkward around each other until the agent arrived. It was easy to spot the rental, with the broken blind. First problem - the agent didn't know to turn the key the wrong way in the lock. She's obviously not used to rental properties, with the locks installed upside-down - if you have to put the key in upside-down, you turn it the wrong way! Second problem - massive step down into the hall. A step up to it from the landing as well, making this a real trip hazard. Third problem - as someone hinted, this was a very small kitchen for.. what, five people? The agent apologised for the state of it, the cleaner hadn't been yet. From the state of the floor, not for months..

But we're accommodating folks, all we were interested in really was the room itself. It is on the ground floor. The minute I walked in, I knew it was too small. We had a quick look - it didn't take long, there wasn't much to look at - and trooped out again. Whereupon someone pointed out to the agent that this wasn't the room advertised. She brought up the ad - wrong photos, wrong description. I've since reported it.

And so back, to another missed work meeting. Was supposed to view the possibly fake flat in the afternoon - I've already paid a security deposit, she then demanded three months' rent in advance. When she finally refused to show me the room until the money was received, I demanded my deposit back, which she had said she'd refund if I wanted, and I reported her to the fraud squad. Well, again, at least I'm saved the trip.

Later, back to Ireland for the weekend - would you believe it, I've exhausted the films showing locally that I'm interested in! So it'll be a quiet one. I could do with that - although last night was the best night's sleep I've had all week, finally being free of that (probably) fake landlady!

On Monday, headed to Middle, at the National.

On Tuesday, back with Civilised London for a meal at last - this one is at Mestizo (Mexican). Not usually my favourite, but I'll give it a shot. Meeting beforehand at the Crown & Anchor.

On Wednesday - well, I saw on Meetup that a group called Get a Tech Developer Job has a free webinar, Learn Web Scraping with Python! Now, we're expected to use Python in my new job, and I never have - so this could be very handy indeed.

On Thursday, I'm headed to the Crick Crack Club again, for Astray, at Rich Mix. A storytelling double bill, both Irish ladies telling Irish myths!

Next Friday, headed to Marys Seacole, at Donmar Warehouse. Based on a true story. I've heard mixed reviews - we shall see.

And on the 21st - well Lordy, I've booked for the Roman London Walk, with Walk About London (also advertised on Walks, Talks & Treasure Hunts - both linked to London Guided Walks). Now, I missed the last two I was booked on with this company - third time lucky?

Concert: Mozart - Secrets and Seduction

Tonight, back with TAC - for another operatic evening at Hoxton Hall. National Opera Studio was presenting Mozart: Secrets and Seduction. (So much for Meetup being busy on Wednesdays!) So, two days in a row with them - ironically, Guided Walking Tours in Brighton and Sussex had online talks scheduled for both nights - and I would have gone to either, or both, but the links weren't working! By the time the organiser updated them, I'd booked for the other events.

It pissed rain all afternoon. For food, I planned to head to The Astronomer, en route - a slight detour from the shortest path, but not by much. It started to lash down as I headed there - and wouldn't you know it (well, you would by the noise as you approached) - it was packed, not a table free. Well, that wasn't going to work - so I headed for the door again in despair, looking at the weather. My coat was already drenched. Headed instead for Nando's, which had the main advantage of being right across the street.

And had lots of tables - I beat the rush, plus they have seating downstairs. I'm loving the QR codes on the tables, it saves having to queue to order, and in particular if you're having dessert, it saves waiting an age for a waiter to come in a busy restaurant! So I ordered my main and then a dessert, and it didn't take either order long to come. Had the usual - and had exactly the usual experience. Everything was lovely, but the chicken was tough around the edges. How does a chicken restaurant manage to get the chicken wrong so consistently? Ah well, at least they're consistent.. For dessert, I might just have had ice cream, but that's not what they were offering. They had gelato, and I never know whether it's going to taste normal or weird. So instead, I had my regular choc-a-lot cake, the chocolatiest thing in London (as I said in the survey they sent me afterwards) - and it was gorgeous. I was well stuffed by the time I left.

Mercifully, the rain had finally stopped. On the long trek to the theatre, it occurred to me several times that the last time I walked this way was in an Arctic gale.. much better this time. Plus they've fixed those traffic lights, it seems, so it's now not such such a hazard! I was glad to get there in the end - we'd been asked to arrive half an hour early, but all that did was find me in a long queue at the door! Apparently, the box office printer was broken, and all the tickets were printed on teeny slips of paper that they were peering at to see what was what. Well, this time I got seated to the side, downstairs, which was nice!

Seat secured, I headed off to the bar, where a shaky-handed but friendly barman dealt with yet another queue. Drinks are good value, though! Back in the theatre, there was some confusion over seats - I think two people who were supposed to sit together hadn't been given adjacent seats. So an elderly lady was asked to budge up to the seat behind mine. She raised a frightful objection to the fact that my (admittedly damp) coat was brushing against the seat, so I had to spend the first half with it held awkwardly across my knee! Didn't do much good - I turned at the interval to find her glaring at me, whereupon she packed up her things and left! (thank goodness). I dunno, maybe the hood had fallen in her direction? I really can't think what else it could have been..

So, the concert was lovely. I've always loved Mozart, and this was first-class. Not done in costume, it was, as they say, semi-staged. I have no idea what they performed - I didn't really recognise the pieces, so the programme wouldn't have been much help. Some people laughed along to some bits - I guess they understood the Italian better than I did? But I enjoyed it, and it was longer than last time. Still over nice and early, though, for the long trek home..

Tomorrow, my only Meetup of the week - I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats, to see a performance of As You Like It at Wilton's. And, energetically, I can walk again! Went for a slightly more expensive seat than usual, this time - I'm sick of straining my neck.

An open house viewing on Friday morning - I hate those, you put your name down if you're interested, and they play eenie-meenie-minie-mo. Last time I was accommodation-hunting, a couple got around the queue of folks wanting one of the two rooms in a flat by simply paying for both themselves! Supposed viewing of the possibly fake flat in the afternoon - we shall see. Then back to Ireland for the weekend - would you believe it, I've exhausted the films showing locally that I'm interested in! So it'll be a quiet one. I could do with that, will be glad when the day is over.

On Monday, headed to Middle, at the National.

On Tuesday, back with Civilised London for a meal at last - this one is at Mestizo (Mexican). Not usually my favourite, but I'll give it a shot. Meeting beforehand at the Crown & Anchor.

Next Wednesday - well, I saw on Meetup that a group called Get a Tech Developer Job has a free webinar, Learn Web Scraping with Python! Now, we're expected to use Python in my new job, and I never have - so this could be very handy indeed.

On the 19th, I'm headed to the Crick Crack Club again, for Astray, at Rich Mix. A storytelling double bill, both Irish ladies telling Irish myths!

On the 20th, headed to Marys Seacole, at Donmar Warehouse. Based on a true story. I've heard mixed reviews - we shall see.

And on the 21st - well Lordy, I've booked for the Roman London Walk, with Walk About London (also advertised on Walks, Talks & Treasure Hunts - both linked to London Guided Walks). Now, I missed the last two I was booked on with this company - third time lucky?

Play: Death and the Maiden

Last night, I had what was probably my last event rescheduled because of Covid - I was headed to the postponed Tarot, at Soho Theatre. Wow, it's over two years since I was there last.. (and now TAC have tickets, blast.) But then it was cancelled, so I headed - with TAC - to Death and the Maiden at The Tower Theatre.

Finished work a bit early, and headed to catch the #149 - which sailed past as I was making my way there. But another was along amazingly quickly, which I then took all the way up a long, straight road, and was deposited down the road from the theatre, where I looked for food. I'd been thinking of eating at The Three Crowns, but their kitchen only opens five days a week, it turns out - and looking around, the best potential seemed to be in the "award-winning" Yum Yum Thai restaurant. So I moseyed in there.

It has quite an imposing entrance, across a courtyard and up some steps - and inside, it's dark and hushed. In fact, I could only see people waiting for takeaways - so it was in a hushed voice that I asked whether I might have a table for one. No problem at all - the seating area is located discreetly behind a wall.

Note the Japanese-style seating to the right! The staff were unfailingly friendly and helpful, and I noted a table of regulars that sat across from me. I hardly had time to look at the menu before someone popped up to take my order - I was spoiled for choice with the starters, but settled on satay chicken, with cashew chicken and egg fried rice to follow. And it wasn't long arriving either!

I should really have gone for the chicken balls with sweet chilli sauce - I wasn't crazy about the satay. And so to the main - and the rice came in a steamer with a dinky spoon holder in the side! which contained something like a rice ladle:

Wow, I've never had such spicy cashew chicken! The lady came to ask whether I was OK with it.. it certainly cleared out my pipes, and indeed my nose ran so badly that they got me an extra napkin! Yeah, maybe a bit too spicy for my liking. But tasty. The rice was lovely. Meantime, my meal was constantly interrupted by messages from that landlady who's supposed to be showing me the flat on Friday, wanting to know how her second payment is coming along. V friendly in tone, mind. Interestingly, when I questioned her about whether the lawyer's name that she'd given me was the same as one I found on an internet search, she still didn't answer me, but just remarked how interested I was in research..

I'd have stayed for ice cream, maybe a second glass of their lovely wine, but I had to go. Have to say, prices are excellent! Just a short walk to the theatre then, and another warm welcome - gee, people sure are friendly in Stoke Newington! My name was checked off a list, and I was encouraged to buy a programme - but I made a beeline for the bar. Where, as the usher informed me, I could also buy a programme. But it's just a flier of ads, so I didn't. Instead, I had a glass of wine that the lady behind the bar described to me as very dry, but which I found rather sweet! I changed it to a plastic container to take upstairs, where seating was open, but we were socially distanced. And I had practically first pick! So, an excellent seat.

This is the disturbing story of the aftermath of a dictatorship - as the characters at the centre of the play are called Éscobar, a Spanish-speaking country, otherwise unspecified. Mister Éscobar, as we discover, is a lawyer appointed to a sort of truth and reconciliation commission, to discover the wrongdoers and have them acknowledge their misdeeds. His wife seems a bit jittery, with a sort of PTSD it seems. One night, he's home late because his car had a puncture and he had no spare - he's been given a lift by a friend of his, a doctor, whom he invites to stay the night because it's so late. But his wife has an extreme reaction to their unexpected guest..

It's good. I found her performance quite difficult to watch, but I think that's because she was trying to portray someone on the edge of sanity.. Honestly, the husband seemed somewhat nondescript to me, but then his role in this is peripheral - he's pretty much learning the story as he goes along, like we are. And his place isn't in the limelight. The story is horrific - raises interesting questions about forgiveness, acceptance, justice..

At the interval, I returned to the bar - and I don't know whether it had been there before, but I suddenly spotted an ad for a "show cocktail"; the wife in the show is described as making great margaritas, and this is the special at the bar! £4.50, so I had one - hadn't had a margarita for years. And it was so tasty, I had another! Highly recommended! The show runs until Saturday, with another socially distanced performance for that day's matinée. Good one.

Again, it ran too late to blog last night. Adopting a policy of minimal contact with that landlady from now on, it's easier - I'll plead work pressures. Tonight, back with TAC - for another operatic evening at Hoxton Hall. National Opera Studio is presenting Mozart: Secrets and Seduction. (So much for Meetup being busy on Wednesdays!) So, two days in a row with them - ironically, Guided Walking Tours in Brighton and Sussex have online talks scheduled for both nights - and I would have gone to either, or both, but the links weren't working! By the time the organiser updated them, I'd booked for the other events.

Tomorrow, my only Meetup of the week - I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats, to see a performance of As You Like It at Wilton's. Went for a slightly more expensive seat than usual, this time - I'm sick of straining my neck.

Supposed flat viewing on Friday - we shall see. Then back to Ireland for the weekend - would you believe it, I've exhausted the films showing locally that I'm interested in! So it'll be a quiet one.

On Monday, headed to Middle, at the National.

On Tuesday, back with Civilised London for a meal at last - this one is at Mestizo (Mexican). Not usually my favourite, but I'll give it a shot. Meeting beforehand at the Crown & Anchor.

Next Wednesday - well, I saw on Meetup that a group called Get a Tech Developer Job has a free webinar, Learn Web Scraping with Python! Now, we're expected to use Python in my new job, and I never have - so this could be very handy indeed.

On the 19th, I'm headed to the Crick Crack Club again, for Astray, at Rich Mix. A storytelling double bill, both Irish ladies telling Irish myths!

On the 20th, headed to Marys Seacole, at Donmar Warehouse. Based on a true story. I've heard mixed reviews - we shall see.

And on the 21st - well Lordy, I've booked for the Roman London Walk, with Walk About London (also advertised on Walks, Talks & Treasure Hunts - both linked to London Guided Walks). Now, I missed the last two I was booked on with this company - third time lucky?

Film: Everything Everywhere All at Once

Well, on Sunday night I seemed to hit the jackpot. Found an ideal rental property, at a good price - jumped while the iron was hot, and paid a booking deposit. Arranged a viewing for Friday. Red flags, however, started to be raised when she asked for an additional amount, because "someone else had offered three months' rent on top". I let myself be persuaded into paying the extra, which was going to a different account.. however, the bank didn't like it, and blocked the payment. I'm now trying to fob her off until I've had the viewing..

Last night, I headed to a film - Everything Everywhere All at Once is a Chinese English-language comedy about a woman (Michelle Yeoh) travelling through multiple alternate realities. James Hong is her father. Jamie Lee Curtis shows up too, kind of as the bad guy (in multiple multiverses). Previews last night. Nearest showing to me was in Hackney Picturehouse, and I booked because it was booking heavily.

It wasn't on until late, so I decided to take a trip out to that rental property, see whether I could find anything out. Found the apartment, rang the bell and spoke to someone there, who had "no idea" whether they had a room to rent! Helpful. She suggested I try Flat 1 (?), which I did - and the lady there suggested I try Flat 2, from which there was no answer. I decided I'd get no more information there, and left. Have to say though, that Hopper fare earned its worth - I took two buses to get there, two more buses from there to the cinema, and paid just a single fare for all four journeys! Saw a lot of London too, of course.

So, I had a little time to spare at the cinema - but no time to eat anything really, and grabbed a bag of Maltesers to take to the till, where I ordered a wine as well. And had to ask where the film was showing - I'd screenshotted the QR code (which no-one ever asks for, here), but no other information! Screen 3 it was, but the usher at the entrance to the screens said it wasn't ready yet, and to take a seat. I did, but it wasn't long before he alerted me that the screen was ready, and I should go in. Of course, the signposting here is woeful, so he had to direct me to the back stairs that led up to the screen. Where I located my seat without too much trouble - I remembered it anyway. And I needed the number, because the screen was very nearly booked out!

Aw man, this is terrific! The entire, packed house had a great time, plenty of laugh-out-loud moments - because This. Is. Completely. Bonkers. Simon Pegg crossed with The Matrix, written by Douglas Adams. We see bits of sundry multiverses throughout, but the thread that runs through them all is her relationships with her husband and their daughter - very strongly conveyed. Which lends it gravitas. However, I suspect that what will remain with the audience long after is, firstly, the way she hops around the multiverses, picking up skills from sundry other existences (think Neo in The Matrix, plugging his brain into the system to pick up skills). Hell, like him, she learns Kung Fu.. Second is the way you can jump from one to the other, by doing something statistically improbable. Which is generally deliciously odd..

We see lots of multiverses, as I say, but as a Douglas Adams fan, my absolute favourite has to be the one that doesn't support life, so she and her daughter appear as rocks. That can think at each other. Oh, I have to love where they go with this.. Seriously the oddest film I've seen in years, but this one works! Highly recommended.

My trip home would have been shorter if Google Maps hadn't suggested getting off the #55 and getting the #N26 - which wasn't due for 25 minutes, it turned out! I ended up getting back on the #55, for another change further down. 10 minutes wasted there. And back too late to blog, as I had an early-morning meeting scheduled - which didn't happen in the end, my computer was playing up!

Tonight, I had what was probably my last event rescheduled because of Covid - I was headed to the postponed Tarot, at Soho Theatre. Wow, it's over two years since I was there last.. (and now TAC have tickets, blast.) But then it was cancelled, and now I'm headed - with TAC - to Death and the Maiden at The Tower Theatre.

Tomorrow, back with TAC - for another operatic evening at Hoxton Hall. National Opera Studio is presenting Mozart: Secrets and Seduction. (So much for Meetup being busy on Wednesdays!) So, two days in a row with them - ironically, Guided Walking Tours in Brighton and Sussex have online talks scheduled for both nights - and I would have gone to either, or both, but the links weren't working! By the time the organiser updated them, I'd booked for the other events.

On Thursday, my only Meetup of the week - I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats, to see a performance of As You Like It at Wilton's. Went for a slightly more expensive seat than usual, this time - I'm sick of straining my neck.

Then back to Ireland for the weekend - would you believe it, I've exhausted the films showing locally that I'm interested in! So it'll be a quiet one.

On Monday, headed to Middle, at the National.

Next Tuesday, back with Civilised London for a meal at last - this one is at Mestizo (Mexican). Not usually my favourite, but I'll give it a shot. Meeting beforehand at the Crown & Anchor.

On the 18th - well, I saw on Meetup that a group called Get a Tech Developer Job has a free webinar, Learn Web Scraping with Python! Now, we're expected to use Python in my new job, and I never have - so this could be very handy indeed.

On the 19th, I'm headed to the Crick Crack Club again, for Astray, at Rich Mix. A storytelling double bill, both Irish ladies telling Irish myths!

On the 20th, headed to Marys Seacole, at Donmar Warehouse. Based on a true story. I've heard mixed reviews - we shall see.

And on the 21st - well Lordy, I've booked for the Roman London Walk, with Walk About London (also advertised on Walks, Talks & Treasure Hunts - both linked to London Guided Walks). Now, I missed the last two I was booked on with this company - third time lucky?

Storytelling: The Origins of Life and Death

Today, back with the Crick Crack Club (CCC). This was The Origins of Life and Death, with Jan Blake, at the British Museum, which I missed in January. Limited availability, as they had socially distanced seating. Took me some time (as always, with the British Museum) to dig out the booking confirmation though - I booked this back in January, it turns out!

Wow, was I lucky with buses today - each time I wanted one, it appeared as if by magic! Anyway, I took myself in a bit early, to snatch a look at my new office, which is close by:

Ah now, if only I had a flat to match.. just sent off another enquiry, to an ad that was just posted: fingers crossed!

And so on to the museum, and treated myself to a very welcome cone from the ice cream van parked outside - still early, so I did one of my favourite things there, and browsed in the shop. Books this time, and one in particular caught my eye - Queens of Jerusalem, something I have a particular interest in! So I went off - naturally - and ordered it on Kindle. Cheaper, lighter to carry, easier to store. And by that stage, it was about time to go in. So I did.

We started a bit late. Jan was accompanied by a percussionist with a singing bowl - they had a bongo drum each, and he had some kind of stringed instrument, but all he did was drum his fingers on the back of it.

Ah, this is soul food. Jan had a succession of traditional stories for us, each with a theme of death - but as usual, not content to have us listen passively, she had us ululating, singing.. and participating in a discussion about who made the right decision in one story. She welcomed audience participation - and the rhythm of the drumming was truly hypnotic. During the discussion, she emphasised how she had been brought up, from a very young age, to accept the inevitability of death - which made it easier for her when her mother passed away. And then a man in the audience burst into a traditional song.. entranced, she had us applaud him when he was finished, and swore she was going to steal that song from him for the performance! So, another lovely Sunday afternoon with the CCC - the last until autumn now, it seems.

And so off for food, and back to The Museum Tavern, just outside the gate, which I hadn't been to in so long! It was pretty busy, but I grabbed a table down the back, and it wasn't long at all before the friendly waiter took my drink order, and when she came back with it, I gave my food order. I wanted roast half chicken - she suggested I go for the actual Sunday roast, which comes with more veg. So I did! although I could have done without the Yorkshire pudding - and although I wanted the BBQ sauce with the half chicken, I think I just got regular gravy with the Sunday roast. But it was lovely actually - the first Sunday roast I'd had in years - lovely and crispy.

For dessert, I fancied the "luxury hot chocolate" - she was sorry to have to tell me that it wasn't done any more, but I could have the regular. Naw, I tried the chocolate cake - which was nothing to write home about, and also slightly stale. The strip of salted caramel running through it was nice, though. And the scoop of ice cream I had with it was lovely.

I thought my eyesight was playing tricks on me - but when I looked properly, yes, there was movement at the edge of my vision; a little mouse was running along the bottom of the cupboards near the sink where they give the dishes a preliminary wash before sending them back to the kitchen. I had a quiet word with her about that before I left.. wonder what they do when one is discovered, hours before closing! Cross their fingers..?

Tomorrow, I'm headed to a film - Everything Everywhere All at Once is a Chinese English-language comedy about a woman travelling through multiple alternate realities. Jamie Lee Curtis shows up too. Nearest showing to me is in Hackney Picturehouse, and I've booked because it's booking heavily.

On Tuesday, I had what was probably my last event rescheduled because of Covid - I was  headed to the postponed Tarot, at Soho Theatre. Wow, it's over two years since I was there last.. (and now TAC have tickets, blast.) But then it was cancelled, and now I'm headed - with TAC - to Death and the Maiden at The Tower Theatre.

On Wednesday, back with TAC - for another operatic evening at Hoxton Hall. National Opera Studio is presenting Mozart: Secrets and Seduction. (So much for Meetup being busy on Wednesdays!)

On Thursday, my only Meetup of the week - I'm back with Up in the Cheap Seats, to see a performance of As You Like It at Wilton's. Went for a slightly more expensive seat than usual, this time - I'm sick of straining my neck.

Then back to Ireland for the weekend - would you believe it, I've exhausted the films showing locally that I'm interested in! So it'll be a quiet one.

On the 16th, headed to Middle, at the National.

On the 17th, back with Civilised London for a meal at last - this one is at Mestizo (Mexican). Not usually my favourite, but I'll give it a shot. Meeting beforehand at the Crown & Anchor.

On the 18th - well, I saw on Meetup that a group called Get a Tech Developer Job has a free webinar, Learn Web Scraping with Python! Now, we're expected to use Python in my new job, and I never have - so this could be very handy indeed.

On the 19th, I'm headed to the CCC again, for Astray, at Rich Mix. A storytelling double bill, both Irish ladies telling Irish myths!

On the 20th, headed to Marys Seacole, at Donmar Warehouse. Based on a true story. I've heard mixed reviews - we shall see.

And on the 21st - well Lordy, I've booked for the Roman London Walk, with Walk About London (also advertised on Walks, Talks & Treasure Hunts - both linked to London Guided Walks). Now, I missed the last two I was booked on with this company - third time lucky?