Cannaling, Walking and Tubing in the Rain

Day one in London! Well...technically day one and a half, because I got here yesterday. I arrived at around 3:30pm and got to my friend Sophie's house about an hour later, after taking a train and two buses from the airport, which was not nearly as bad or as complicated as it may sound.
Arriving at her cute little apartment, I got comfy in my temporary room, (technically the living room, but that's just a minor detail) with a view of Clissold Park.

When she got back from work, Sophie and I took a walk around Newington, where they have a very tiny Whole Foods, as well as many many very cool old brick buildings with wrought iron balconies and gates. Once we got back, her flatmates made a delicious vegetarian diner of lentils, baked potatoes with eggplant and beet salad.

Today I found my way to Camden, where I took a boat tour through some of London's old Canals.

 

It started raining a bit on the ride, but this family of swans with their little "ugly duckings" didn't seem to mind it at all. They followed us down, almost all the way to our stop at Little Venice!

After the canal, I took my first double-decker bus to Westminster to visit Sophie's boyfriend, Adam, at his work, Allens of Mayfair; one of the oldest butcher shots in London. I had been told to check it out because of it's unique setup. 

The little corner shop has no counters and cases displaying the many types of meet, but rather has hooks along the wall of several carcuses from which the butchers will freshly cut off your selected piece of meet on a round cutting board in the center of the room, like the original owners would do more than 100 years ago. 

A sight that may seem gruesome to some, I found quite interesting and unique. Call me crazy, but coming from Spain where legs of Jamón Ibérico are hung up in every grocery store and are known to be delicious, I thouroughly appreciated the old fashioned set up. I might add, that all of the meet sold at the shop comes directly from free range farmers, and a kilo of steak fillet can cost around 99pounds (155USD). That said, I did not stay long to browse. 

I then walked down Park Lane towards Westminster Abbey. I passed by a very nice looking house where a nice Lady named Elizabeth lives

Followed by a walk around St Margaret's Church, the Parliament buildings, and Big Ben...

 ...I had lunch in a very nice park along the Thames river...

...saw the London Eye...

...was luckily reminded which way to look when crossing...

...walked around the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, where I found my new favorite non-impressionist artist Peter Paul Rubens, and re-enforced my love for two of my all-time favorites: Renoir and Monette, and, finally, walked around Covent Garden Square, exploring many cute little streets, alleyways and shops. 

After fighting my way through a large group of French tourists, I got on the Piccadily line and took the tube all the way up to Manor House. It was raining when I got out of the underground, so I got to finish my walk home in a typical London way.
To end the day, Sophie and I made dinner; a beet root risotto topped with crispy fennel and baked, honey aubergines on the side.
What an amazing first adventure!