London Calling

Backdated 4/5 November

No, no, we haven't forgotten our blog. We've been exploring and experiencing London with such fervor that we've just taken a mini break. But, we're back and ready to update!

"Remember remember the 5th of November"

The 5th of November. Guy Fawkes Night. Bonfire Night. It goes something like this ..... (we think). In 1605, 13 crazy blokes tried to blow up the House of Parliament, kill the Protestant King and gain better tolerance for Catholics. Of the 13, Guy Fawkes was the only one to get caught. He was found in the cellar with 36 barrels of gunpowder. They decided to torture and kill him. Now, the nation "celebrates" the foiled plot by burning effigies of Mr.Fawkes and setting off fireworks.

Confused? ... us too. But, when in Rome, ... so, how should we celebrate this national "holiday"??? Well, with a family of Catholics of course!!!

Luck would have it that our beloved Mads' family was getting together for a Chinese dinner and had invited us along. We originally expected a quiet dinner with her two brothers (Phillip and Steven) and her mum. Oh, were we in for a surprise! First there was Mrs. Hyde, then there was Steven, his wife (Glenda), his daughter (Jessica), and his son (Sam). And then came Phillip, his wife (Gwen), and his daughters (Grace, Lottie, and Frilly). Unfortunately Grace's boyfriend couldn't make it - otherwise we would have had a lucky 13.

We were quickly swept in to the madness that can only be created by 4 teenage girls and a brother. After three hours, we pinky swore that contraception would continue to play a major role in our relationship, but also that we would do anything to get another invitation. In fact, we think that a Hyde family dinner should be in the "must do" section of every London tour book. Kudos to you Hyde family. You're a great crew and a nice family for us to have on this side of the pond.

Afterwards we strolled over to the Prospect of Whitby in Wapping. It is the "oldest riverside pub in London" and a perfect spot to watch fireworks on Guy Fawkes Night. We grabbed a few pints and found outdoor seats on the upper balcony. We were entertained by the 3 crazy Australians setting off fireworks below and by the proper 30+ minute firework show across the river. Actually, with our seats we could look in either direction and see multiple firework displays up and down the Thames. A great way to celebrate our first national "holiday"!

Earlier in the week we ventured towards Chelsea to visit The White Horse on Parson's Green. It may not be famous to all of our readers but the Hill family knows it fondly as where our brother spent his first 6 months after college. Yes, with an Ivy League degree in hand, Jason became gainfully employed as a "salad maker". Don't worry though - he quickly moved up the ranks and started pulling draughts for the locals. He will tell you (and we may have to agree) that the White Horse is the best pub in London. However we promise to continue testing and report back on any suitable competitors. Here we met up with Wes and Megan from New York. They too have been recently transferred for work, and we were given their number by a mutual friend (by the way, congratulations Leigh and David on your recent engagement!). We now refer to this random cold calling of friends of friends as "blind dating". It's not all that bad, but we do feel like freshmen in college again.

After a lovely meal of fish and chips, Brian and I strolled up King's Rd to Sloane Square. We stopped in various shops and had our first star sighting. In a small gourmet food shop, we saw Frances McDormand frantically seeking a bar of chocolate. We wish we had a more exciting story, but that's really it.

Updates including Kew Gardens, Windsor, and REALLY spicy Thai food to come...

posted by Brian and Kirsten Hennigan @ Tuesday, November 14, 2006