E Lucevan Le Stelle

My first visit to Covent Garden Opera House was a brilliant experience!

I read a synopsis of the plot of Puccini's Tosca in advance so that I'd be able to follow what was going.  I watched a couple of operas that had been filmed for cinema back in 2009 so I was expecting a rather heavy going experience but it was much more enjoyable to watch everything in real life rather than on a screen.  And I really enjoyed going out at the interval to see what everyone was wearing and to listen to their discussions about the opera (one of the guys in my row was watching Tosca for the 15th time!).

The story was easy to get into and I found myself getting annoyed with Tosca in the first act for not trusting Cavardossi and then routing for her in Act 2.  In terms of the music itself I didn't find it especially captivating apart from this aria from Act 3, which was very moving:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=l571-ctxNcQ

The 'floating' bar

Nothinng to do with Tosca I just liked this costume on display.

Tay Do Restaurant

There are several Vietnamese restaurants in Old Street so we were spoiled for choice.  We decided on Tay Do in the end.  Our first waitress didn't really understand English which made it tricky trying to find out what was in the food.  

I really enjoyed the meal.  The frogs legs were very tasty and not too spicy.  By the time we had finished there was a queue to get a table.

Spring rolls

Frogs legs with chilli and lemon grass

Bubblicious

I've been to a few restaurants in China Town (an area which deserves its own post at some point) but the only one I recognise was Cafe de Hong Kong because it seems bright and modern. The impression I got from having dinner there was it was very bustling and full of young people, most of whom looked like they might be from China.

The other thing that stands out for me about Cafe de Hong Kong is their bubble tea.

The more I think about bubble tea the more I think I should make a trip to Bubbleology in Soho at some point...

Ladbroke Grove Sainsburys

I thought I'd dedicate a post to my favourite products from the world section of my local Sainsburys  I'm not going to tag them as particular countries as I kind of feel it would be cheating.

From the Caribbean section.  Ackee had a quite a strange buttery texture. I think that I need to try it when it has been prepared by somebody who actually knows what they are doing.  I've tried a few brands of coconut water and Grace's is the best in my opinion.

Peanut crisps from Israel.  These are sooo good.

I got Seoul but I'm not a soldier

This is a little shop near the British museum selling South Korean, Japanese and Chinese products.

Tequila tequila!

I was let down somewhat by my camera at Tequila Tex Mex in Notting Hill as I didn't have much battery left on my phone.  This was a shame as it's a very photogenic restaurant.

Actually how the place looks is probably the best thing about it, as it's not particularly cheap and the service was very slow.  We practically had to persuade the staff to take our order.  Still, I can't take the 328 to Mexico whereas I can take the 328 or the 31 to Tequila Tex Mex.  And they have a huge pile of sombreros on the counter which makes me wonder what situations they get used in.  Unfortunately a quiet Sunday evening doesn't seem to be one of them.

(Managed to get this photo at a later date)

Pubs you could get very lost in...

So London has plenty of 'Irish' pubs but I'm going to class the Porterhouse in Covent Garden as Irish for my blog because the first two pubs in the Porterhouse Brewery chain of 6 were in County Wicklow and Dublin.   I was here for a friend's birthday but I realised when I went into this maze of a pub that I'd been here before around January 2010 with an Irish guy I know, before I moved to London.

There was a band playing and although they were good, they were so loud that it was hard to hear what people were saying.  If we had been after a more boozy night and a boogy they would have been perfect.

 Combined contexts of pockets/handbags along with a selection of beers.  All you need for a good night out in London.

 The Porterhouse has a large beer menu, with beers on offer from lots of different countries.  Even though I'm not a beer fan, I'm sure I'd find something I'd like here.  I tried a passion fruit flavoured beer which was nice and sweet.

As an aside: Waxy O'Connors in Soho is also a maze of a pub, though the connection to Ireland seems to be limited to the name and the tree inside.  But it's not often you find venues with trees inside (Portobello Gold and Rainforest cafe are the only ones that spring to mind) so I'd say it's worth a visit on that basis.  I got stopped by a guy in Waxy's once who was unable to find his way out and said he had been searching for an exit for quite some time.  If you ever stop by and he's still there, help him out will you?

For for information about the tree www.waxyoconnors.co.uk/

Cosplay in London

I stupidly went to this event without a camera!  A Cosplay Extravaganza according to the Barbican's website.

www.barbican.org.uk/artgallery/event-detail.asp?ID=11273

I think we missed the main events but it was still interesting to see a few people wandering round in some crazy costumes.  We went to a cosplay talk but the section on the history of cosplay was quite long so we ended leaving before the end.  But I did buy some chocolate pocky so I was happy munching on those!

Cosplay is short for costume play where broadly people dress in costumes (for example representing manga/sci fi/comic characters) but with an element of role play or performance involved.

More info from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosplay

This was a one off event but I suspect there will be a London cosplay scene if you google around a bit.

Eine Kleine Cafe (I know - pesky cases right?)

So my microtravelling doesn't have rules exactly but one of the things that I am now making a conscious effort to do is avoid big chains.  For example you won't see Starbucks here tagged under USA or La Tasca under Spain.  I suppose some places I visit could end up being a huge chain but 'c'est la vie' as they say in France from time to time.  

In general I'm used to going to 'fast coffee' style places where you pay and then wait for your coffee so I still get surprised when I go to cafes like Kipferl in Islington and they ask what you want and give it to you straight away.     

I was so pleased with this sign being in German that I didn't look across to the directions and ended up in the toilets for Manner.  Oh well.  

There is also a small amount of Austrian/German products on sale.   

Hooray for Austrian cafes!  

http://www.kipferl.co.uk/

R is for Russia (and Central Asia)

Every month there is a kind of alphabet restaurant event on Couchsurfing.  Each month they pick a country starting with whichever letter they've reached in the series and then a restaurant for that type of food.  This month was R for Russa.  I've been in London a year and a bit now and still have not been to this event so I thought it was time I went along to meet some new people and eat some Russian food.

The restaurant was pretty small and the waitress somehow managed to squeeze us all in even though we had a couple of extra people than the table was booked for.  We had dark rye bread on the tables we started nibbling on these whilst we waited for a few of the latecomers and watching some of the Russian music videos on the TV nearby.

 I had Kvass to drink which is a malted drink made from rye bread and was really good.

And I had plov to eat, which from what I understand is an Uzbek and Tajik dish of broth, rice and, in the case of the one I had, beef.  

I think this is a really great way to try out new food - we had a couple of Russians in the group who were able to recommend things to us.  And it's a nice way to meet new people.  A lovely evening!

http://www.assortidelivery.co.uk/ 

The Dishoom Chowpatty Beach Bar

I was telling my friend about a cool place I'd been to last week but had no idea how I'd got there from the roof garden bar at the South Bank centre and he did at one point suggest that I'd imagined the whole thing.

http://dishoom.com/2011/04/the-dishoom-chowpatty-beach-bar-may-sep/

Well here it is, the Dishoom Chowpatty Beach Bar. With fantastic views across the Thames, a relaxed vibe and what I found the most exciting at the time (having had rather a lot of rose wine) blackboards in the bathrooms to write messages on and a brightly coloured bar front.  Hurry there as soon as there's a day of sunshine.

Italian biscuits

I was walking past the Ferreira Delicatessen when the word Portugal jumped out at me.  So in I went, and was very surprised to find my friends favourite brand of Italian biscuits Mulino Bianco (or at least one of his favourite) in there.

Turns out they have all kinds of food in here as well as their Portuguese deli, from pumpernickel to shortbread.

Taste of Siam

Taste of Siam is a restaurant, cafe and shop in three premises close to Mornington Crescent tube station.

I popped into the shop on the way past and spotted some familiar brands from Thailand and bought myself grass jelly drink (didn't spot any winter melon drinks though which is one of my favourite flavours).

Great minds think alike!

http://blog.visitlondon.com/worldinlondon/

I stumbled across this blog whilst looking for a cafe to visit this afternoon.  I recognise some of the places they've blogged about - the Scandinavian Kitchen and the Finnish Church for example which are both places I was recommended to visit by colleagues from those countries.

Marakech Moroccan Cuisine

A quick stop for food on the way home from the Ceilidh led us to Marakech - a Moroccan restaurant where you can also sit outside and smoke shisha.

Ceilidh Club

The Cecil Sharp House in Camden hosts Scottish ceilidhs.  Tickets are available to buy online in advance and a certain number of tickets will be available on the door.  If you don't buy a ticket in advance it's best to arrive  a bit early to make sure you get in.  Doors open around 7pm and tickets cost £14.50 or £8 for students.

We had a drink in the bar downstairs before going up to start dancing.  The dance floor gradually got more and more busy as the evening went on.  Some of the dances we did: the gay gordons, the cumberland reel, stripping the willow, the military two step.

Some people made an extra effort to wear tartan!

  

 There was also a charity raffle with Scottish products as prizes.  My friend Paul got second prize.  We'd already eaten most of the biscuits by the time I took the photo

www.efdss.org/events/eventsdetails/eventsId/373/displaydate/2011-06-10

Russian books

This Russian shop just round the corner from Goodge Street station is also is a cafe according to the sign outside.  When I went in there were some tables and chairs but they were all covered in books and no sign of any coffee or tea.  Maybe they just had a big book delivery that day, or maybe the sign is out of date.  

They do sell a small amount of other Russian products too, such as food and knick knacks.

Australian Cafe

Lantana near Goodge Street tube station is an Australian cafe.

So what's an Australian cafe you might ask.  Well to quote from my Aussie friend it's a cafe:
- with lots of personality.
- where you can sit and enjoy your cafe without being hurried out the door by the staff the minute you've finished.

Lantana ticks both these boxes with its quirky artwork and chilled atmosphere.

Iced coffee and Hello Dolly cake

 Vegemite for sale!

 www.lantanacafe.co.uk/