Trip London 201711 E

Next, China Town. It's dark already.
So the place is getting busy with visitors.
These two were taken earlier behind the National Gallery.

 China Town is near Leicester Square.

(but I learnt not to believe the estimated timing listed in any map
which must have been done by
a very tall strong youngster who know all the short cuts?)
 
Originally I was looking for something so
I got inside SeeWoo mini supermarket.
(It is not too convenient go to the hyper big one in Croydon.)
So crowded.
I couldn't find the two items I was looking for.
Squeezed in another also crowded snack shop.
I saw moon cakes in HK brand names but printed in Simplified Chinese.
偽もの Nisemono!
Yuck.
A number of shops in China town bear the same names of famous shops
 or restaurants in HK are totally unrelated pretenders.

Be very careful  ! ! ! ! !

This time, the bread in bakery shops did not tickle my fancy either.

I picked up free Chinese newsapaper from the boxes.
(sadly, most are pro-Beijing, except the Epoch Times.)

Time to head back to Japan Centre .
Good that they have vegan choices.
This time I resisted the urge to eat sashimi.
The shop is busy. Long queue.
As time is running out,
I only quickly grabbed a pack of avocado sushi
and a pack-of -4 non-GMO mini natto.
(Pity that they do not stock organic version)

Just in time to get back on coach by 17:25.

The coach went past this theatre showing The Phantom of the Opera.

21th century version of the old British red double-decker.
More see-through at the back
but people can no longer hop on there. 😆
It got a curved door now.

While the coach inched through the traffic jam to get out of London,
I enjoyed the pack of sushi.

A long day.

Coach trip is easier. It picked me up and dropped me off near my place.
No need to have the 4 extra legs to and from the rail stations.

In case you missed the earlier part of this day trip:

http://sn-uk.blogspot.com/2017/11/trip-london-201711a.html

http://sn-uk.blogspot.com/2017/11/trip-london-201711-b.html

http://sn-uk.blogspot.com/2017/11/trip-london-201711-c-national-gallery.html

http://sn-uk.blogspot.com/2017/11/trip-london-201711-d.html

Summer walk by sea on hill

Let us be our own best friend.
So, one weekend of fine weather, I took myself for a walk.
After buying a take-away lunch box from
the much-recommended restaurant at the back of the Grand Hotel,
and enjoying it sitting on bench on the promenade viewing the sea,
  leisurely walked along to the end of the promenade,
passed the cafe, up a slope, passed a garden,
and up a slope.

These places I have not been to before.

Because there is no signal for the mobile phone
at that part of beach and slope,
I have no map.

A little exploration trip.

Fresh air. Blue sky. Green grass.

Change of scene.
Change of altitude / view.
Change of air.

A panorama photo of the view...

panorama of sea sky slope 2000 pixels wide

Ironbridge, short visit

My long time friends, a couple, took me to Ironbridge.
A World Heritage site which can be reached by car/coach.

Map-- Enlarge to see more details. **

This place has an interesting name.

A bird in hand. 

Older than the iron bridge.

Nice lunch menu. 

Nice interior decoration, including 

an iron work of the structire of the bridge

Accommodation available.

This view is outside

 an indoor market of Merrythought.

We spent some time browsing inside the market.

  The milk-bottle-like structures are 

   chimneys of a power station.

Around the Ironbridge world heritage area,
 there are many museums related to
 iron, tiles, china, Victorian old days, etc.
 
(Back then, stuff made in Britain were really of good quality and last long. That is before globalisation and over-emphasis of profit and fast return eyeing short term benefits of cost-cutting and blind belief in free trade  via which influx of cheap imported goods slowly killing off local good quality goods, businesses, craftmen, trade even industries. )

My old friends cannot walk much.
So we just did window-shopping in the interesting shops & market around the area,  had lunch & left.

It is a good place to spend a weekend.

Especially when it is sunny, warm and mild wind.

Good for family day out. Very educational, too.

Tonbridge a few hours

Day off. Off to Tonbridge.
Eat something in a cafe in High Street not far from rail station.
Flinch cafe. I had soup and a small salad (choose 2 )
No gluten-free option.

Not really want to spend the time in shopping malls. Castle also nearby.

Nice moat or river.

A small Lidl supermarket
within a few minutes walk
on the right of rail station exit.

 




A small church St Stephen.

Originally, thought of drop by my sister who lives in Kent.
But then they had already started making dinner.

This time maybe I shall try not to reach home too late.

Changed train at St.Leonard Sq.
But in evening, Un-manned. No waiting room.

It is open-air. Cold. 

I went to buy a bit fish-n-chip and mushy pea.
Pity that  it is microwave mushy pea.
Then, went back for connection train.
It took just about two hours back.

Faster then visiting sister
as that took over three hours via Ashford International.

see railway route map: