LONDON! Days 2 & 3

Once again, we had to work all day long, getting ready for the conference that began Sunday. This was for the people who paid for my plane ticket so I tried to make myself useful.

After work, while still wiped out, we once again decided to get out of the hotel. It was a Saturday night. We decided to check out the Hard Rock Cafe. Now, for those of you who wonder why we would waste our time in a foreign country by going to an American place, well, :P

Seriously, this was the first Hard Rock, the one that began it all. And I wanted a souvenir. Since the Tube ticket office had already closed, we couldn't get our Oyster cards so we opted for a taxi instead. Oh boy. Taxi drivers are completely nuts! As if the near heart attacks I suffered on the ride from the train station weren't enough, now I was getting into yet another one of this tiny black missiles. Even though the street markings seem to be mere suggestions and the vehicles regularly disregard one another, I never did see an accident or even a car that looked like it had ever been in one.

On to pictures!

This is one of the famous red telephone booths. They are very cute. And very, very dirty inside. Probably smells, too, but I wasn't going in there. Still looks good.

And here's proof that we went to the Hard Rock! Now you know I didn't get those cool glasses off eBay. While waiting for our table, we walked up and down the street. We were on the edge of Piccadilly Circus, which you'll learn more about later.

And here is Super Dave, our fearless - and apparently very tired - leader. Have you ever been inside a Hard Rock? They are really very loud, so loud you can barely hear the person seated next to you. Also, there are large screens constantly playing music videos. So loud music, flashing lights and Super Dave falls asleep. Can't take that guy anywhere!

Sunday was a very busy day so we stayed in the hotel, even for dinner. The Hilton had recently opened a restaurant on the 23rd floor called Nippon Tuk, a Japanese and Thai fusion something or another.

Since it was pretty late, we didn't have problems getting a table. Nice view, isn't it? The waitress, who was from Moscow, helped us pick out a selection of tame sushi for us newbies. It was okay but I really only liked the spicy tuna. The boys had swordfish and I had a sort of Mongolian beef dish that was very tasty. We were too full for dessert but, feeling the need for something sweet, I later ordered room service. I asked for the Hagen Daas chocolate ice cream. It was 4 pounds with a 4 pound room service charge. That's roughly $16. When it came, I almost laughed but I was certain I would cry instead. It was the tiniest little container I had ever seen! The whole thing would be easily consumed in three bites. And the Man had asked me to save him some. *sigh*