I had a great day in London last Sunday, meeting up with a few old friends. We met at the club, meandered towards the river, strolled through Victoria Embankment Gardens, and then had lunch at the Embankment Cafe. Rather an amazing place, like something out of Mary Poppins! The food was only OKish, but the location was wonderful. Not too full, either.
Just down the river moors HQS Wellington, an old ship from 1934 which was turned into a floating Guild Headquarters for the Honourable Company of Master Mariners. It is rarely open for visitors, so we were very lucky to happen upon it during our after-lunch constitutional. There was a most interesting exhibition going on, about nursing services during the war, and several old mariners were on hand, only too happy to regale us with tales from the past.
We spent a most interesting hour on the ship, and I cannot recommend it highly enough. See link below for details if you plan a visit.
http://www.thewellingtontrust.com/home
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| Capes worn by Head Nurses |
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| The fabric rose in the back was there to be bumpy, so if a nurse fell asleep sitting o a chair while on duty the bump would cause discomfort and wake her up! |
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| Medical instruments from way back when |
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| Mask for chloroforming patients |
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| Scalpels |
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| Diary from an Australian nurse |
A commodore who favoured us with his stories told us, inter alia, about the camouflage painting of ships used during WWI - intended to bedazzle and confuse the Germans, they instead concluded the Limeys had gone quite mad....
See link in Wikipedia for details http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dazzle_camouflage
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| Outside of the Wellington |
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| Dazzling or what? |
After the Wellington we skipped over to the Globe Theatre (still very much on my list of future blog-posts), and then trickled towards Borough Market (another blog-post in waiting and the site of a German Delicatessen), and finally snaked our way down the riverside until we hit Tower Bridge.
Here we decided to take our pleasure at leisure (so to speak) at Butlers Wharf Chop House, which did us proud, and whence we lingered until the fall of dusk finally reminded us of the passage of time and admonished us to return to our duties in this world.
The fading light shrouded Tower Bridge, just next to the Chop House, in an ethereal lavender light, which screamed out for a high quality camera, but since I only brought my light weight little cheapo one the photos are, as usual, decidedly sub-standard.
Walking along the river on the way to the nearest underground station we were surrounded by crowds of merry-makers, for it was a lovely evening, balmy and clear, very different from the muggy overcast day that had proceeded it.
Thus we concluded a truly lovely evening, a wonderful example of the joy to be had from convivial company in a gentil setting! Verily there are few greater pleasures than whiling away a few idle hours talking and walking, gossiping and reminiscing, with genial friends one has known for many years, where understanding is near complete, and no disagreements cast shadows over the cheerful tranquility of one's disposition!
Or something sort of to that effect, you know what I mean!
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| A ship coming through! |
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| The Tower, shrouded in darkness |
