Be My Guest

For some reason, now seems to be the time where everyone from Melbourne is visiting Europe. It's good because it makes me feel like I haven't left Melbourne at all! :) The best part is I get to catch up with people who I wouldn't normally see or haven't seen for a long time.

So this weekend it was Norman. Yes, he was here in September, loved it so much that he took 3 months off to travel around Europe properly.

Friday dinner was at an Indian restaurant in Brick Lane. If you've ever been to Lygon street back home, you'll understand how it feels to be pounced upon by the waiters/waitresses wanting you to eat at their restaurant. If you go to Brick Lane, it's like that... except ten times worse! Every single restaurant you pass (and I mean EVERY single restuarant), you are a target for Indian waiters, managers or owners to approach you and offer you the best deal they think will lure you into eating with them. 'I'll give you a three course meal for 10 pounds and a free drink. ' 'We can offer you free rice and nann bread with your meal'. 'Our restuarant won the award for best restaurant in 2011!' (and we were only half way through Jan?!). It was quite amusing at the start but by the end of it, it was just annoying. We finally settled for a restaurant with blue lights (no, that didn't influence my decision at all! :P) but was a bad choice. The service wasn't great, the room was cramped... (I sat behind a secret door that led to the kitchen and when they needed to use it we had to move our whole table back and forth for them to get through.)... our mango lassi was sour and the food was only so so. AND they didn't sell any desserts! Won't be going back there in a rush!

We decided to go to Covent Garden for dessert and because it was late (for London standards), we didn't have many choices and settle for this little place (can't remember the name).

It was freezing cold that night but Normy still wanted his strawberry ice cream sundae :P

Sensible anna and her warm tea.

Anna, Normy and I at Covent Garden before we said goodbye.

Saturday was planned to go and see the Lion King however when Norman tried to booked semi-cheap tickets, they were all sold out. I was so disappointed as I had told everyone that I was going to see the Lion King when Norman would be in town but now would have to wait a month to get tickets for it! There were tickets available but there were full price (76 pounds). So instead, Norman and I decided to meet for yum cha for brunch. Met at Picadilly Circus and decided to quickly try one last time to check whether places had Lion King tickets. We weren't having very much luck so we decided to just go to yum cha... except that no place were open until after 12 (doesn't yum cha sessions usually start at 11:30am??). With time to kill we wondered around the streets of London and stumbled across a small ticket discount place that had a sign for 'From 25 pound - Lion King tickets'! We got excited and quickly went in to inquire. And guess what? They had tickets for 40 pounds! :) But all was not so smooth when we found out they lied to us twice - one for selling us tickets for 40 pounds but giving us tickets that said 25 pounds, and two, for telling us that the seating was in the middle of the balcony but were actually a lot higher up! You never know which ticket places are dody or legit until you buy from them. But I was over it once it set in that I was going to watch the Lion King! YAY!

Lunch before the show was at a place called Byron. A classy humburger chain restaurant that was known for their hamburgers but also sold other foods. Normy and I were very impressed by the service and the food. We had veggie burgers which tasted devine! And on the side we had corgette (zucchini) chips! Yum! The price wasn't too bad either! A nice quick meal and service with a smile - that's what I like :)

Then it was time...
Our view from high above.

Just before the show.

And the verdict? Absolutely amazing! Definitely one of my top 3 musicals. If you only see one musical in your life, I high recommend the Lion King! I was literally at the edge of my seat watching the whole show. The stage props, the actors, the dancers and singers, the costumes were all equally fantastic! The way the actors took the role of animals and moved like them was incredible. The arrangement of the stage tied in so well with the story. I love that they had added their own ideas to the story to include more dancing and singing. This is one musical I would definitely see again but from better seats.

After the show we met up with Daga - a girl I met in Romania at Darren's wedding (she's Polish, not Romanian :P) - and Anna for dinner. We had fish and chips at a pub near Embankment and finsihed the night with a beautiful stroll along the River Thames.

The view is so pretty at night.

I like this shot with our almost silhouettes and the lights of the city in the background.

St Paul's at night.

Doesnn't it look like a haunted mansion from this angle?