Innit

As some of you may know, “innit” is as common in London as “like” in New York or “totally” in San Francisco. Even though it seems as if it should always be an interrogative, it is often used as a declarative. We have a kind of a game amongst our expat friends, wherein we collect “innit”s and then compare them to see who got the best one. To wit, my recent entry of a woman to her female friend regarding an aisle endcap displaying jars of pickled veg at Sainsburys: “You like pickles innit” (this would be an example of the interrogative structure, although the tone was declarative). Anyhow, this one seems like the stuff of urban legend, but you be the judge.

Flame on

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

There’s actual perpetual flame in this picture. At least I’m pretty sure there is...

Yesterday morning we went to see the Olympic torch get carried down Ladbroke Grove (just steps away from our front door).

In the snow!

We got to see the torch—even though we were tardy—because moments prior to our arrival on the scene, there were some shenanigans involving a bicycle and a fire extinguisher. The upside (for us) was that they hustled the torch away somewhere and then re-staged the run-by a few minutes later, this time surrounded by an inner ring of Olympic officials (blue jackets) and an outer ring of Metropolitan Police officers (fluorescent yellow jackets).

So there you have it.

Another moment in history...

Happy chana masala

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

Last night we couldn’t get a table at Galicia (Spanish) or Mogador (Moroccan). We didn't feel like Thai, gastropub or kebabs, and we didn’t want to cook at home. We were also too lazy to walk down Portobello Road or any further afield.

So...

We wound up at Palki, where we usually get “Indian” takeaway (I think the guys are actually from Bangladesh). Palki has had its ups and downs over the years, but currently seems to be on an up. And there was a goofy face in our chana masala (which we dubbed Chuper Sickpea) to boot!

A Sunday stroll

Originally uploaded by sf2london.

I know, I know... not enough blog posts... bla, bla, bla...

Here’s a bit of weather-talk (and yesterday’s news): it snowed on Easter! Well, Easter Monday (which is a “bank holiday” here - making Easter a four-day weekend). One possible reason is that Easter came early this year, although in general it has been a particularly cold spring. Last spring was very pleasant but wound up leading to an awful summer. I’m hoping that the chilliness so far is a harbinger of warmth to come. Keeping fingers crossed. Knocking on wood. And stuff.

The wetness gave way to a nice Sunday this past weekend. I had agreed to a last-minute shift swap at The Food Chain, so I was down by Hammersmith Bridge in the afternoon. Steven & Chris came to meet me and we strolled along the Thames. Instead of heading west towards Chiswick, we headed east towards Putney. This proved to be a culinary mistake, as there are few decent lunch options by the river in Fulham (if anybody has information to the contrary, please let me know!). While River Cafe make tasty grub, it comes at a very steep price. We wound up at a pub called the Crabtree Tavern, and although what food they had was fine, the whole experience was bad to the point of tragi-comedy.

Anyhow, after lunch we continued through Bishops Park and over Putney Bridge. The sky was very beautiful, reflecting in the river and all. Try looking at this picture upside down!