I had a relaxed birthday breakfast at the flat this morning. I made French toast with some leftover baguette and topped it with plain Greek yogurt and raspberry jam, grapefruit, and English Breakfast tea with cream. Very delicious!
After breakfast, I descended down the great staircase to leave for the day, and walked around the corner to catch the Russell Square tube. I was heading to Leicester Square to buy discounted theatre tickets for the evening.
I found a row 15 center seat for £39.00 for the play People, Places and Things at the Wyndam theatre. I will admit I didn’t know a great deal about this play in advance, except I did some Googling the night before to see what was playing and which plays had good reviews. I chose this play because it was still in its first West End run, was receiving rave reviews about the play’s lead Denise Gough, who had just won the Olivier Award for Best Actress a few weeks prior. More on the play later!
Buying the tickets took no time at all, so I headed around the corner to the National Portrait Gallery.
Here’s something to know about me: I love museums. I love to come across a work of art that moves me or resonates with me in a visceral way. I also think there is a power in objects from the past. Learning about history, seeing objects, art, and considering its relevance to yourself—these are the amazing transformative reasons I love museums.
The National Portrait Gallery was thoroughly enjoyable. Other than the V&A which included some fine art, this was my first fine art gallery of the trip.
It is not too surprising how busy this museum is because it is located in Trafalgar Square — and free, like most museums in the city.
I meandered through the halls of the museum for an hour, and saw a spectrum of different portraits, busts, and drawings.
Here are a few of the images.
I spent about 90 minutes in the Portrait Gallery, then set off back to Bloomsbury to check out the British Museum. I took the Tube back to Russell Square station, then made a detour through Russell Square park on my way to museum.
The sky today was overcast but it was dry and pleasant. As I was walking through the park, I noticed there was a small cafe, so I decided to stop for a little break, enjoy a coffee and watch the activity in the park.
I grabbed a cappuccino and found a small table. The coffee was a little meh, but it was warm and drinkable enough! I pulled up another chair, put my feet up and took in the view.
As I relaxed, sipping my drink, I began to notice some wacky sporting event play out in the park starting up. All I could figure out was that it was a competition of sorts, being officiated by men dressed in suits and bowler hats. One event involved a game of ring toss being played using antique hat stands as the target. Then came what I can only describe as ironing board surfing. Two people holding an ironing board, balancing a third person on top, and running down the path. There was another event with bicycles. Very entertaining.
So, on to the British Museum.
British Museum
There was so much build up, going to the British Museum. As I said before, I love museums, and I had saved this one for my birthday because it was one of the largest, well-known museums in London. All this being said, as I began to explore exhibits at this museum, my interest level waned. It didn’t help there were swarms of people and groups of school children everywhere I went. I switched floors, looking for somewhere to avoid the frenzied energy.
I regrouped in the Great Court atrium. While I was sitting there, I snapped a selfie—something I’m sure every traveler takes when they visit here.
I also took photos of the giant meringues and other desserts on display which was out in the middle of the atrium in a “serve-yourself” situation.
This is generally true everywhere you go in London– baked goods for sale are usually always out in the open like this. I find this fascinating. In the grocery stores, breads are also just stacked up or in baskets and you just serve yourself.
I didn’t buy desserts but enjoyed taking photos of them.
I took another attempt to find something that would hold my interest. I ventured down another hall and found some other archeological display. I couldn’t get close enough to read about the items due to the number of children running about. I went up a level and took some random pictures in the only area I could find that wasn’t overpopulated with people. These included an ink drawing of Elvis, a daisy doorknob to a storage closet, and another musician I can’t remember.
I spent 30 very high quality minutes on a bench in the Hall of Enlightenment eating English cucumber slices. Here, I rested, re-assessed my afternoon plans. I had intended to spend time in this museum, but I decided I would abort the plan and head back to the flat for some downtime.
I walked down the street, back through the park, and stopped at the Waitrose to pick up a few items for lunch. I bought Italian ham, salami, a nice local English Cheddar, bread, and an herb spread to make a sandwich. I headed back to my little flat, climbed the 65 stairs, and ate my sandwich and enjoyed some downtime.
I rested, got dressed, and headed back out to go see the show.
After entering the theatre, I was directed downstairs by an usher to the Stall (first floor) level where there was a small bar. I purchased a beer, and then went into the theatre to find my seat. Yes, I was able to bring the beer in with me which was a nice surprise.
I really had no idea what the play was about before choosing this. At it’s core, the play focuses on an actress whose life has completely spiraled out of control due to addiction, and then dramatizes the recovery process in rehab. The show explored aspects of the 12-step program, self-honesty, and dealing with life’s difficulties. The performance by Denise Gough was compelling and intense, making it hard to take your eyes off her throughout the entire show. I was very happy with my choice to see this.
