Awoke to a nice little breakfast, the first one in many flights that was actually vegan. Got cleared to land at Heathrow a little ahead of schedule. Was at baggage claim by 09:30. Got my bags rounded up. The new luggage did not fare too well. The frame of the G5 had cut through part of the fabric and my conditioner leaked and spilled out of the plastic bag I had put it in. Spent a little while getting it cleaned up and then check my two big bags into left luggage and headed over to the Heathrow Express.
Had a short 15-minute train ride into Paddington Station. Grabbed an Underground day pass and headed for the Youth Hostel at St. Pancras. Was able to secure a bed for the evening, but not able to occupy the room until after 14:00. Dropped £2 into the Internet kiosk in order to check my email and formulate a game plan for the day. Do not want to repeat my mistake of arriving to the Design Museum too late to enter the exhibits.
First stop was Neal’s Yard Salad Bar for a delicious Brazilian dish that included black beans, rice, pumpkin, tofu, tapioca, and plantains. Chased it down with a fresh pressed apple, celery and carrot juice.
Had to return to Neal’s Yard Salad Bar to try some of their other items.
Hiked over to Tottenham Court Road to catch the tube down to London Bridge. Had a bit of a walk to get to the Design Museum. The Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s aerial photography show, “Earth from the Air," was still up and the building under construction behind it was much further along than when I had seen it in April.
The sights in Southwark. The London On center and the Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s “Earth from the Air" show.
Had a quick look around at the Design Museum. They had a small European design biennial up and another show about the evolution of surfboard design. There were a few interesting things in the biennial.
Views of the Design Museum.
Stopped by, Dreamspace a very interesting exhibit by the side of the Thames. Conceived by Maurice Agis, Dreamspace is a giant inflatable structure that is very reminiscent of the interiors designed by Verner Panton in the late 1960s. I had a blast for about half an hour wandering around taking pictures. Having filled up my memory card, I decided it was time to escape the sun-baked interior of Dreamspace, with its funky smells and sweltering heat.
The Dreamspace.
This strange ship sculpture was very popular.
Hiked back passed London Bridge station to the Tate Modern. Took in an exhibit of the work of architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron. There were lots of models and sketches on display as well as a video presentation. Found out that they were the ones who worked on the recent renovation of the De Young Museum in San Francisco. Wandered through their permanent collection some, but it was all stuff I had seen in April, so I didn’t spend too long there.
The Tate Modern, built in an old power plant. The Herzog and de Meuron show.
Headed for the Southwark station to get the Jubilee Line to connect with the Northern line at London Bridge and finally to Chancery station on the Central line. Made my way over to Clerkenwell Road for a stop at magma. Was able to avoid having any books or magazines demand that they go home with me, but did succumb to two DVDs. Went to look for Toby Harris over at the Apple Store on Regent Street. He was not in, but I took full advantage of their free wireless Internet service.
Got caught up with Asia, Robotkid, Kristen and Duane. Got booted out at 21:00. Stopped for Soba on my way back to the Youth Hostel. Had a delicious curried udon with vegetables. It hit the spot and filled me up. Jumped in the tube one more time for the evening and headed for the Hostel. Got my key and up to the room only to find someone asleep in my assigned bed. Went back down to get it sorted out, then worked on the blog until 23:00.
Soba on Poland Street, how can you go wrong?
Had a short 15-minute train ride into Paddington Station. Grabbed an Underground day pass and headed for the Youth Hostel at St. Pancras. Was able to secure a bed for the evening, but not able to occupy the room until after 14:00. Dropped £2 into the Internet kiosk in order to check my email and formulate a game plan for the day. Do not want to repeat my mistake of arriving to the Design Museum too late to enter the exhibits.
First stop was Neal’s Yard Salad Bar for a delicious Brazilian dish that included black beans, rice, pumpkin, tofu, tapioca, and plantains. Chased it down with a fresh pressed apple, celery and carrot juice.
Had to return to Neal’s Yard Salad Bar to try some of their other items.
Hiked over to Tottenham Court Road to catch the tube down to London Bridge. Had a bit of a walk to get to the Design Museum. The Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s aerial photography show, “Earth from the Air," was still up and the building under construction behind it was much further along than when I had seen it in April.
The sights in Southwark. The London On center and the Yann Arthus-Bertrand’s “Earth from the Air" show.
Had a quick look around at the Design Museum. They had a small European design biennial up and another show about the evolution of surfboard design. There were a few interesting things in the biennial.
Views of the Design Museum.
Stopped by, Dreamspace a very interesting exhibit by the side of the Thames. Conceived by Maurice Agis, Dreamspace is a giant inflatable structure that is very reminiscent of the interiors designed by Verner Panton in the late 1960s. I had a blast for about half an hour wandering around taking pictures. Having filled up my memory card, I decided it was time to escape the sun-baked interior of Dreamspace, with its funky smells and sweltering heat.
The Dreamspace.
This strange ship sculpture was very popular.
Hiked back passed London Bridge station to the Tate Modern. Took in an exhibit of the work of architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron. There were lots of models and sketches on display as well as a video presentation. Found out that they were the ones who worked on the recent renovation of the De Young Museum in San Francisco. Wandered through their permanent collection some, but it was all stuff I had seen in April, so I didn’t spend too long there.
The Tate Modern, built in an old power plant. The Herzog and de Meuron show.
Headed for the Southwark station to get the Jubilee Line to connect with the Northern line at London Bridge and finally to Chancery station on the Central line. Made my way over to Clerkenwell Road for a stop at magma. Was able to avoid having any books or magazines demand that they go home with me, but did succumb to two DVDs. Went to look for Toby Harris over at the Apple Store on Regent Street. He was not in, but I took full advantage of their free wireless Internet service.
Got caught up with Asia, Robotkid, Kristen and Duane. Got booted out at 21:00. Stopped for Soba on my way back to the Youth Hostel. Had a delicious curried udon with vegetables. It hit the spot and filled me up. Jumped in the tube one more time for the evening and headed for the Hostel. Got my key and up to the room only to find someone asleep in my assigned bed. Went back down to get it sorted out, then worked on the blog until 23:00.
Soba on Poland Street, how can you go wrong?
Leave a comment