New clock at the exit to Vauxhall Station, apparently a display of a clock on a screen, with the clock face being rather like a large version of the clock face on a watch, with marks but no numbers around the perimeter, but about 10 minutes slow. Perhaps chaps who do IT for TFL, almost certainly contractors, do not know how to synchronise their computers over the internet with European time from Luxembourg.
Opened the proceedings with tea, coffee and cake at the nearby Café de Pierre, a place we use occasionally, quiet without being empty on this late morning. Cake good, although not much like frangipanes I have known elsewhere, a bit thin on the almond paste and a bit thick on the pink apple purée. Very entertaining young waitress.
Off through Green Park to Hyde Park Corner where we came across a small procession. Three Household Cavalrymen, police horseman in front, another behind and a small cloud of oriental tourists on Bullingdons taking pictures. The Household Cavalrymen were enveloped in red cloaks, the one in front had a long silver tassel hanging down from from his horse's bridle and one of the two behind had the pips of a captain. I suspect that the one in front was the Silver Stick, en-route from the Hyde Park Barracks to the Palace. Silver Stick being something that I learned about from a fine book about the Household Cavalry by one General Sir Barney White-Spunner picked up cheap from the Taunton branch of 'The Works'. Also that the Household Cavalry, rather ironically, was in some large part the invention of Oliver Cromwell who, unlike his opponent Charles I, saw the advantage of having a serious personal guard. Also amused, as ever, by the sight of what used to be serious heavy cavalrymen, who could cut down anyone in sight, needing the protection of policemen. Although White-Spunner did say that their sabres, at around the time of Waterloo anyway, were not much good, Sheffield steel notwithstanding, and were apt to snap. Perhaps the work of some war time profiteer. Plus ça change.
Up through Hyde Park, along the eastern bank of the Serpentine to inspect one of BH's forebears (Smallpox Jenner) who is memorialised in the Italian Garden at the top, with the refurbished Moore arch in the middle still looking good. Then across the Bayswater Road to take an excellent lunch at the Island Restaurant last visited getting on for three years ago. See reference 1. Like the Café, quiet without being empty, which suited the occasion. Entertained during our meal by another waitress, this one from East London rather than mainland Europe, but sounding rather Australian. She confirmed that there were still Arabs renting apartments by the year in the upper reaches of the hotel above - with the old story being that they kept their whisky and mistresses in them - with the catch being that while they were rarely there themselves, the mistresses were in serious trouble if they were not there when the master did show up. Or if they had drunk all the whisky, this last being a rare treat for god fearing Arabs. While I closed the meal with a drop of brandy, something I have not taken for a while. Very nice it was too.
Jumped on a 148 bus to Camberwell Green and got Cortana to tell us how it was going to get there before we were carried off somewhere untoward. Giving her the string '148 bus' was enough for her to dig up the TFL map of the route. Spot on for us, although maybe not so good for someone who did not know London at all.
Off at Westminster Bridge and strolled through what used to be County Hall, where BH was intrigued by the pose of the chap in the niche snapped above. While I was intrigued to think of what had happened to all the activities of all the thousands of local government chaps who used to beaver away in what was a very large office. Surely it wasn't all nonsense that we can manage without in Teresa's Tory world of no-nonsense?
PS: google showed his real colours this morning. If you ask him about sabres without qualification what you get is a a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. Who dress in blue.
Reference 1: http://psmv2.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/lunchtime-bliss.html.
Reference 2: http://www.islandrestaurant.co.uk/.
Reference 3: http://careers.lancasterlondon.com/.
Reference 4: https://www.caffeconcerto.co.uk/restaurant/de-pierre.html.
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