As we get out of the cab we notice an unusual charity van parked on the street . It gets our attention .... and our approval.
In London there is more of that sort of rain that really wants to be snow but settles for being sleet. Thankfully, it doesn't last long. The Methodist church near the hotel is a strange building with an ever so slightly too small tower stuck on a corner and a facade that looks more like a municipal building than a church. It is an architectural oddity.
The steak restaurant that doesn't take reservations has a queue of would be diners lined up outside. We expected the place to be busy in the summer when the weather's good but are surprised to find it popular with folks standing in the open air on a cold, drizzly night in January.
We pop into a pub for a drink and a chance to get out of the rain. The place has a buzzy Eurabia vibe. We know it's trendy because ' face furniture' is a thing. The barman has a ring on his thumb, two other rings on the fingers of the same hand, a nose piercing and what appears to be a diamond in the cleft of his chin. There may have been ear rings but sometimes it's rude to stare. Fashion like this is rare in the coastal fringes of Fife. Angus is shocked at how much a pint of beer and a glass of wine costs in London. 'The Font' thinks Angus should get out more. The place soon fills up with young Danes in Helly Hansen jackets. An American couple of our age wander in and are delighted to find somewhere ' so English '. They settle on bar stools by the window where they maintain a loudly happy running commentary on passers by.We go to our usual Marylebone fish restaurant and order a bottle of wine that ( by London standards ) is a snip. Goes to show it is always worth reading the wine list carefully. There are always two or three bottles of something left that they want to shift. The restaurant is only half full. Early January is the time to visit if you want to avoid the crowds.
Having arrived hatless Angus is cajoled into buying some new headwear . He is told by the young lady sales assistant that his choice of bobble hat is 'smart'. A few piercings to go with it and he might pass for 'hip'.... or maybe not.
We have decided to go on the spring time Japanese inland sea cruise with the American archaeologists and gardeners. We shall go to Yokohama four days early to recover from the 14 hour flight from London. The cruise will be very Palo Alto. We are left wondering why there is one cabin left and why we will be the only non-Californians onboard.
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