We woke up to a beautiful, sunny Sunday morning, so we decided to get out of Canterbury and spend the day in London. It was a chance to catch up with Aude’s brother for some lunch, hear all about his various trips around the world, and to begin doing some wedding shopping.

Sitting on the train, Aude can barely contain her excitement about travelling to the big City

Matthew, on the other hand, rides this train to work every morning and is a little more apprehensive…

Of course, this being Britain, by the time we were up and dressed it was pouring with rain – and it remained that way for most of the day. We caught the train to London Bridge and met Jerome, then caught the underground to Oxford Circus where we walked to Soho for lunch in a Korean restaurant. I was quite excited about this, because I’ve got the sort of naïve sense of excitement that is easily satisfied by having my food cooked in front of me. I’m equally impressed in Mongolian Barbeques, Japanese Steakhouses, and any French place that flambés anything. Having ordered barbequed chicken, pork, and beef, imagine my disappointment when everything was simply served on sizzling platters. It was like Coke without the bubbles – it may taste the same, but it lacks a certain pizzazz.

Jerome and Aude, not yet fully appreciating the disappointment of not having their lunch cooked at their table.

From there, we went around the corner for a quick coffee at Liberty’s, then Aude and I set off for a series of disappointing shopping experiences across London. It reminded us of two things: first, it’s harder to spend money in London than you might imagine; and second, this is still a city where the majority of stores are closed on a Sunday. Demoralised, we grabbed some shopping and caught the train home.

Jerome looking relaxed after several weeks off lounging in the sun. Still, give him two weeks at an investment bank and he’ll be his pale, tired self! 😉

Matthew and Aude have to make due with a cup of coffee in Liberty’s for their relaxation.

Aude does some window shopping

The highlight of our journey (and maybe our day?) was an onion falling out of one of our shopping bags (stored overhead) and landing in the lap of the rather surprised, but very good-natured, Scottish woman sitting opposite us. Having just re-read the last sentence, please believe me when I tell you it was funnier if you were there.