A busy Tuesday!

After much deliberation about how to spend today, we finally opted to go into London and see the Rembrandt exhibition at the National Gallery. 

En route, as we had a change of tube trains at Baker Street station, we had to go and call in at the Chess and Bridge shop on Baker Street itself. This is a sort of London routine we have. It beats having your photo taken with the statue of Sherlock Holmes outside the tube station. I saw lots of Japanese tourists doing that! 

While Phil was contemplating purchases of even more chess books, I walked up and down Baker Street looking for somewhere that might sell me a cardigan. Before we set off I had debated putting on another layer and had decided just to put on my trusty trench coat over a thin jumper. Mistake! It was chilly! However, Baker Street has almost nothing but cafes and places to eat, with the occasional posh kitchen shop thrown into the mix. Fortunately, the walking up and down warmed me up. 

As I did the aforementioned walking up and down Baker Street, I spotted a Tesco Extra and a Sainsbury's Local, both mini-manifestations of the big supermarkets. But I also found a Little Waitrose. Who knew there were such things? Who knew it had such a sweet name? Who thinks up these names? Presumably it's those strange people in advertising known as "creatives". They don't seem to have Little Waitrose in Manchester. Maybe in the posher bits but not in the parts I go to. 

Anyway, after buying chess books, we went back to the tube station and caught a train to the National Gallery. The Rembrandt exhibition, of his later works, borrowed from all over the world it seems, was excellent. We also took a look at some Canaletto ( should the plural be Canaletti?) and some Caravaggio. Splendid stuff. And then we found a couple of Goya as well. The National Gallery is really well worth visiting!!! 

However, the large blue cockerel currently on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square leaves a little to be desired. 

Then we headed for Euston Station for a rapid rendezvous with our daughter and her school party who have been at a chess event today. They seemed to have been successful. What was it she said? "The smallest team but the highest prize to pupil ratio." When we saw them, the children were counting their money to see how much food they could order from Burger King in the station. Too much, as far as I could tell! 

We left them to it and headed back to Chesham where our son lives, quite fortuitously bumping into his friend (and best man at his wedding) on the train. How small the world really is!!!! 

Tomorrow we catch the train back to Manchester, just in time for me to go to the carol service which I always go to with an old friend, organised by a charity group helping addicts of various kinds. 

And suddenly it's Christmas. Time to buy a tree and lay in stocks of mince pies and other goodies. Ho, hum, humbug!