Weekend

Ric and I had a really nice weekend, so I thought I'd share some of the highlights. The sun was shining (contrary to most weather reports, which called for rain) and London was looking its best. On Saturday, after my early morning haircut, we ate at an amazing place called La Fromagerie in Marylebone. It's part cheese shop, part organic grocer, and part kitchen table, where they serve amazing food. A cheese plate, salad and glass of wine later, Ric and I started walking towards South Kensington. Before we reached our final destination, the V&A Museum, we wandered through Hyde Park and decided to take a little break in the deck chairs you can rent. One of the best deals in London... for three pounds you get two comfy deck chairs, overlooking the river, for four hours. We didn't stay quite that long, but after a little reading and some snoozing, we continued our journey. There are so many cool little streets in London that you always find a fun new area by taking a nice long walk. Once we finally reached South Ken we headed to the China Design Now exhibit at the V&A. It was an interesting overview of graphic design, fashion, and architecture in Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing.

Sunday was a little more low key, but I had a really nice morning just wandering around Hampstead (including a mani pedi at the California Nail Bar, very appropriately named). We've been gone so much lately that it was nice to just revisit our little shops and delis. Some of my favorite places include Andrew's Hardware (I'm constantly amazed at how much stuff they've fit into that tiny place), the Rosslyn Deli (where I discovered this weekend that they make a mean carrot cupcake), and the local produce stand that's currently overflowing with summer fruits and veggies.

In the afternoon we helped our friends move a couple blocks over into a beautiful new apartment. The best part of helping was the pub break we all took at White Bear. We then went to a yummy dinner at La Gaffe... an Italian restaurant attached to the little B&B that we hadn't been to before. It was delicious and has definitely been added to the permanent rotation. I then capped off the great weekend with a viewing of the Sex in the City movie at the Everyman Theater (no, Ric didn't have to go with me... I met Sayula there). It was amazing and was the perfect ending to a wonderful weekend.

Next weekend we have the Taste of London festival, which we're really excited about. All the best restaurants in London set up tents in Regent's Park and sell mini sizes of their most famous dishes. We did this last year, right after moving, and had an amazing time. Even though there was a torrential downpour. Hoping the weather gods are kinder this year. And the Hampstead 10K is on Sunday. Going to try it, even though I haven't run that far in a while... Wish me luck!

Hope everyone had a great weekend!