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Originally Posted by ewh9
(Post 36319825)
This is my first time on the City Flyer service and in Club Europe, for that matter.
Pre-boarding began at 8:20, and Group 1 was called a few minutes later. (There was no Group 0.) We then waited on the stairs for about 5 minutes.) Passengers boarded through both doors. This is a full flight, but there look to be only three rows of Club Europe. I am not sure if the curtain moves on these planes. There is plenty of legroom in Seat 1B, but 1C and 1D appear to have at least another foot of space. Next stop: London City. |
Originally Posted by Silver Fox
(Post 36319972)
Great report. In the last pic if that's your boarding pass in the pocket you're giving away a lot of detail.
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We had a great arrival experience at the Bankside. The employee saw us coming around the corner, took charge of our bags, and offered us a drink. Less impressive was the hotel's unwillingness to change a Scottish 10 pound note. I have never experienced this before, and given that the hotel must regularly make bank deposits, it makes no sense.
The room is compact, but I like the design. https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...e6a7a315e6.jpg |
Unfortunately the Scottish notes in England is a thing for some reason. I have to visit Scotland often for work and have learned to get rid of Scottish notes before returning to England.
They are of course legal tender in England but staff can be wary of them. |
Originally Posted by atcodave
(Post 36320091)
Unfortunately the Scottish notes in England is a thing for some reason. I have to visit Scotland often for work and have learned to get rid of Scottish notes before returning to England.
They are of course legal tender in England but staff can be wary of them. |
With tickets to see Romeo and Juliet at 7:30, we are spending the afternoon in Covent Garden.
First stop: the terrace bar at the Royal Opera House. Again, a spectacular day. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...9a7d71dc8d.jpg https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...c2860e5e32.jpg |
Originally Posted by atcodave
(Post 36320091)
Unfortunately the Scottish notes in England is a thing for some reason. I have to visit Scotland often for work and have learned to get rid of Scottish notes before returning to England.
They are of course legal tender in England but staff can be wary of them. "You might have heard someone in a shop say: “But it’s legal tender!”. Most people think it means the shop has to accept the payment form. But that’s not the case." What does legal tender mean? |
There were no tables available at the Opera House, so we moved down to Cinnamon Bazaar. They have a "bottomless" lunch option with unlimited drinks and three courses. There is a pani puri/chaat cart, which we could access at no additional cost.
All the food was very good, particularly at this price point. The chicken in the chicken curry was permeated by spice, which I think is always a good barometer of the food's quality. The service was a bit slow, but I wasn't looking to pound gin and tonics. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...7f31acb545.jpg https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...1bd94cf25e.jpg https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...bfbcd108f2.jpg
Spoiler
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Our third stop is Mr. Fogg's Society of Exploration. It has a fun Jules Verne-esque travel theme. Unfortunately, the steampunk mechanical mixologist machine is down for maintenance, but my first cocktail (Nelson's Shadow) is good.
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f110a52ff7.jpg https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...6989596386.jpg https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...7fb9cf0c09.jpg https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...1c705cc278.jpg https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...11e129fffc.jpg https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...1336bd94e3.jpg Andean Ghost |
The final stop before the play is Blame Gloria. The last time we were here was 6 pm on a Saturday. At that time, "brunch" was just wrapping up and spilling into the early evening crowd. It was a terrific time.
The scene is much more muted tonight, but the disco ball is turning on the ceiling, and we are quaffing a disco ball cocktail. We will see how things develop during happy hour. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...9cdeaac700.jpg https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...d84bf3c12d.jpg https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...ecf5366cf6.jpg |
Scottish Pound Notes are legal tender. If you are willing to push it it is illegal to refuse them for payment. I was posted to Glasgow in the 1990's and had great delight in proffering the Scottish notes down south. I always won the argument, In one instance I threatened to call the police. Great fun.
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The accolades that this production of Romeo and Juliet (at The Duke of York's Theatre) has received are absolutely merited. The use of layered dialogue and live video feeds is unlike anything I've seen and injects new life into the text. The performance is captivating despite there being no real action: the spoken lines (and emotions) are the focus. Francesca Amewudah-Rivers and Tom Holland's performances capture adolescent angst and vigor--an aspect of the play that I think is often missed.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f45186e0a3.jpg https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f08b40be6e.jpg |
We closed out our night with dinner at The Ivy, one of the quintessential West End restaurants. The after-theatre crowd was sparse tonight.
The bang bang chicken appetizer was tasty, and the Beef Wellington for two (cut and served at the table) was very good. The service was attentive as well.
Spoiler
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Brunch at Ballie Ballerson includes unlimited pizzas and free-flowing beer, prosecco, picante cocktails, and a certain "martini."
The pizza isn't half bad. There are allegedly over one million balls in the ballpit, which are "sanitized regularly." We had the pit to ourselves for about ten minutes. The atmosphere brings me back to the pizza places (or the premium McDonalds) of my youth, where a ballpit was de rigeur. After a bit of frolicking, we returned to the table. The server comes by every few minutes to refill our glasses. The pizzas got a bit backed up, but we eventually got three total, which was plenty. The DJ is deftly blending Swift's greatest hits. While the Swifties have been restrained thus far, there are some bachelorette party inflatables present, so the tipping point could be reached at any time. I especially appreciate the solo Swiftie who is quietly enjoying his pizza and drinks next to us. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...f256ca786b.jpg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...47b67bf047.jpg https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...0e513825c4.jpg https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...b3f1e2d2be.jpg The tipping point was reached with All Too Well (Taylor's version). Everyone singing sounds surprisingly good. I'm not a fan but am having a fine time. |
We are now at the Umbrella Workshop, which is essentially a test kitchen for the rest of the Umbrella Project bars. It's located down a photogenic alley off Boundary Street in Shoreditch.
I plan to order cocktails 2-4 and have started with Stranger in Paradise. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...5b77941ac4.jpg https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...1032e0e809.jpg https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...52392471a5.jpg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...89734cf153.jpg |
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