Harrods Sale

Once I purchased a myriad of presents (no surprises where birthday gifts from me will be bought from this year) I managed to meet up with Kara. We bravely tackled the chaos that was womens clothing and shoes - I restrained from buying Chanel shoes that were 1/2 price. Lovely as they were, they were almost 2 weeks rent...

Anyway, it was good fun, and something that every dedicated shopper needs to do at least once in their lifetime. I may return next year so I'd better start saving now!

Don't you just love those tricycles? For the discerning toddler...and the von dutch top is for the discerning pooch!

Harrods Sale

Today I got to live out a lifelong dream. I went to the opening day of the Harrods Sale.

And it was awesome! As a devoted shopper, Harrods is the ultimate store, and the sale surpassed my expectations. The store opened at 9am, so I arrived at 8:30am and managed to find a good spot outside the entrance where the VIPS were set to open the sale. The crowd were entertained by a brass band, and kept happy with cups of coffee and Harrods cookies. The press were parked directly opposite me and I was practically blinded when Mr Al Fayed himself came out and started pressing the flesh. I tried to get a pic of him but people kept getting in the way, so I settled for the large-than-life statue of him in the store. You will note I drew the line at taking a snap of the syrupy Dodi & Diana statue...

Word got around the crowd than Billy Zane and Kelly Brook (no idea who she is, sorry) were opening the sale. A small parade led by pipers, announced their arrival in the Harrods Horse-drawn carriage. Mr Zane is incredibly good-looking in person, and was super-stylish. Whatsherface looked ok too. The press were revolting as per usual: "Go on Kelly, givvim a kiss" etc. Anyhow, I squeezed into the store along with the others and set off for the bargains, of which there were some good ones. Perfumes in particular were very cheap. I was particularly amused by the pet section, which was mostly doggie clothing for the Paris Hilton horrors out there.

Covent Garden Markets

Just a few pics of Covent Garden markets where I went just before Christmas. It's a mix of established stores and market stalls, though it started off as a food market. It has a great atmosphere, with street entertainers, and we were serenaded by an opera singer outside the cafe we lunched at.

The Geffrye Museum

Here's few more shots of the museum...

the mural in the conservatory is quite beautiful.

There was also an exhibit on the 'Front Room' and it's importance to Afro-Carribbean immigrants in the 60's and 70's. Only company was ever allowed in there, and you would be judged by how decorated and how clean your front room was. It was also a place for them to socialise as many places, like pubs etc. were closed to black people.

The Geffrye Museum

Here's some shots of the Geffrye Museum. It started life as an almshouse for the poor (Mr Geffrye was a mayor of London) and now is the only museum dedicated to depicting urban dwellings in England throughout the centuries. If you are a big antique furniture and architecture fan like me, this is the museum for you. They have different rooms arranged according to the period i.e Elizabethan, Edwardian etc, right through to the present day, and each christmas they decorate the rooms according to how the people celebrated christmas at the time. Before Victorian times, christmas was not a huge thing, landlords and peasants would exchange midwinter gifts, but that was about it. Decorated trees became fashionable when Albert and Victoria and family had their picture published showing how royalty spent their Christmas. Well, if it's good enough for the Queen...

Pre Christmas Pictures

Here is a really cheeky squirrel outside the Geffrye Museum in East London. I still freak out every time I see one, even though they were all over the place in Kansas. I think they are so cute! I also saw a fox the other day on my way home, which at first I mistook for a blimmin' big cat (ok, it was dark) until I saw it's bushy tail. I couldn't believe it was so far in town.

Pre Christmas Thoughts

I cannot believe it is almost Christmas! And I have not had the time to put anything in here until now.

Here are some shots of Hampstead Heath. The view of the city is from the top of Parliament Hill, which those of you who have seen Bridget Jones' Diary II may recognise as the setting for her little 'Sound of Music' picnic. It was pretty hazy, unfortunately, so the autumn colours aren't very evident, but it's a gorgeous place, and was just the remedy I needed, as I really wanted to get out of London for the weekend but couldn't as I was on call.