A grand weekend

Hello!

Scott and I have had a great weekend.

Friday night I cleaned the house, as it was my turn. Not that thrilling, but I got it out of the way. I had a phone date with my dad, which was great. I have not had a long chat to him in a while, so it was nice to "hang out" with him on the phone.

Saturday we got up early, and took the tube to London Bridge. We were off to the London Dungeon, a tourist attraction that has lots of horror and blood and guts. Apparently. It was fun, we learnt some new stuff, but I really was not grossed out or appalled by what I saw. There were fibre glass models of people with their throats cut and their intestines hanging out, but it was not real to me. Just like CSI, it doesn't make me feel ill, as I know the images are not real.

After that we tried to find the Operating Theatre Museum, just to top off the day with more gore. But, alas, it was closed for a seminar. Rude! So on our way back to the tube, we spotted a market. We wandered in, and as it turns out, it is a food market, with all sorts of yummy fruit, vegetables, meats, alcohols etc. We did get there quite late, but we know where it is next time!!

After the market we jumped on another tube, in the search of "The Prospect of Whitby", a pub in east London, on the Thames. We went there on our Jack the Ripper tour in October, and have not been back since. The pub is circa 1520, and in the back yard of the pub, ie on the wall overlooking the Thames, they used to hang people. There is still a noose there, original or not I am not sure. the story is, that they used to hang people, then leave them in the water until three tides had washed over them, just to make sure the hanging worked! The bodies were referred to as whoppers (spelling unknown to me), we were told on our tour because of the smelling that used to happen to them in the Thames. We have also heard they were called that because the bodies were taken to Wapping police station. Who knows. I love history! I love the stories, the gruesomeness (if that is a word), and I love the stories of the everyday folk.

From the pub, we walked back to Wapping tube station and caught the tube to the other side of London to Shepherds Bush. Scott slept all the way back, while I read my book. We went to the movies, to see Hitch. Very good, funny and not your average Hollywood movie. Well, to a point anyway! It was a good laught though. I do like Will Smith.

Today, we got up early again (well, for a Sunday anyway!!), and I had another phone date, this time with my friend in Melbourne, Mickaela. It was lovely to catch up on all her news, as she is getting married to someone I don't know yet in July. Maybe one day I will get to meet him! After the call, we were going to go to the Temple Church, but the Lonely Planet guide told us it was not open on Sundays. So, instead, we went to the British Library. It was fantastic, worth seeing. They have an amazing computer touch screen system where you can sit in front of the computer and actually "turn" the pages of 8 of the books in their collection. The animation is excellent, you really feel like the book is in front of you. I highly recommend it!

I hope everyone is well. :-)