Yesterday was sort of low key as our trip ends today and leave early tomorrow. We started out with class presentations and then were dismissed to do as we pleased. Cydney and I had done all of our shopping just but we decided to see the Atlantic Occult bookshop that was closed on Sunday and the surrounding shops, too. We had lunch at Otarian To Go restaurant which is a vegetarian/vegan/gluten free friendly restaurant whose focus is a low carb-on (carbon, not carbs) diet. They boast that all their packaging is compostable, none of their ingredients are airfreighted, and that their carbon footprint is so low that "if every Brit at just one meal at Otarian, we'd have enough energy to fuel an eco car to the sun and back 14 times." I thought it was really cool and they even had 3 bins: one for liquids, one for everything food and packaging from their shop, and one for things not from their shop as they probably won't degrade fast enough. Really impressive prices, tasty dishes, and TOTALLY inexpensive.
It was so very hot though that we spent a good portion of the afternoon having ice water that melted instantly and laying in front of our fan. Less than stellar way to spend our last week here. Most locals were covering every square inch of the park whether in the shade or not. When 17:30 rolled around we headed out for the Jack the Ripper Whitechapel walking tour. There were SO many of them but we felt, having previously investigated them and getting no responses, that we did choose the best one by a company called Ripping Yarns. Our tour guide was a former Marine, Police Officer, and a guide at the Tower of London. He said talking about MURDER was his escape from being asked about the toilets all day. Uniquely, you pay him at the end if you see fit (and we really did, I gave him a full 10-er instead of the suggested 7 pounds). He was really funny and witty, made light of many things, had images of London as it was and how the city compares today, images of evidence, Victorian pennies, and even showed us Harry Potter's Diagon Alley (or at least what it is by its actual name). He also wrapped it up with evidence of who Jack the Ripper really was and I have to say it was very convincing! You'll just have to go yourself to find out! We passed through the East End which kept getting suggested to us and I wish we were there while it was open. Many textile distributors as offbeat fashion shops. Chatting it up with the guide, his son is studying at the prestigious Central St. Martin's School of Fashion (he was unaware that it was a big deal) and even told us to find his son at such and such a bar so that we could meet again. Really great way to end our stay in jolly ole Londontown.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Clean Cup, Move Down
This morning Cydney and I had intended to go the the Vintage Fair for our own interests and some unique gifts, but after looking at our bank accounts and seeing that there was a £10 cover we opted to stay in. We watched BBCSunday Morning Live talk show while eating breakfast mostly pulled in by the discussion of John Galliano. They didn't really talk about him but rather debated whether or not criminal immigrants have human rights, if racial insults require court action, and the SlutWalk and if women should dress modestly. Since everyone else was still sleeping and we were up and ready we opted to check out the local area shops.
Most everything was closed as is the norm on a Sunday. But closer to noon some interesting businesses were open and we found the Atlantis Occult bookshop we had tried to search for before (but it was closed all day--for tomorrow!) We stumbled upon Forbidden Planet which I had been dying to find and it was such an epic comic book store I'm really jealous I don't work there. It is by far better we found it later in our trip than earlier otherwise we'd have spent it all on nerd-gear. We also stuck our heads into an Astrology shop which was totally new age hippie nonsense but it reminded me of Colorado Springs' Crystal Wizard when it was in business years ago. It was amusing to hear the shopkeeper and customer debate the horoscope for the man in the coming year ("It starts out difficult..." "I don't like that." "You do, because it motivates you....""No. I don't like that.") It was a really warm day and we hurried home to get ready for our High Tea at Fortnum and Mason's.
F&M was such a delight. I wore my fancy grey and black ruffle dress with my pinstripe corset and sat at the end of the table. The colors of the tea sets we soft blue and Cydney's blue and white dress made me think of Alice in Wonderland. I even muttered "Clean cup, move down!" in a giggle. Even though we're vegan the staff catered to our diets and we had artichokes and pea soup while the others had carmelized onion tartlets. On the larger meal everyone else had salmon and caviar and meat sandwiches with scones and cakes of different sorts. We on the other hand had an assortment of roasted bell peppers and pesto, artichoke, and cucumber sandwiches, cornmeal scones (really tasty!) and berries, grapes, and strawberry juice as dessert. I just happened to sit at one end of the long tables and so whenever we were taking pictures or just eating I felt like I was having some fancy party. It was all sort of dreamlike and Cyd and I already decided to have tea parties with our cats as we found a cat tea recipe at Harrod's.
We broke off from the group and shopped a bit at F&M. I tried not to look at too much-- I'm sure my suitcase is already full-- but I couldn't help but love their display of teas. I'd've taken a photo but all the stores here are so protective so I'll try to paint a visual. Firstly the shop itself has been around since the 1707 and everything looks over the top fancy. There are towers of fancy jams, chocolates, and tea treats, special gifts and wines all ornamently displayed to match the age of the establishment. Fine and fancy cakes displayed behind glass cases in the middle (other levels specialized in menswear, perfume, other expensive gifts) but the loose leaf teas were on red velvet and contained in glass teapots. I really wanted the flowering teas and the black-strawberry tea.... but we passed. The tea leaves for 3 pots we already priced at £9-£14!
We went home with classmate Alfred and worked on our final projects. We returned to Munchkins to have a veggie burger and print up some paperwork at Accent. There is so little time left it feels like we're just planning our return trip constantly now. We're still hoping to go on the Jack the Ripper tour tomorrow night!
Most everything was closed as is the norm on a Sunday. But closer to noon some interesting businesses were open and we found the Atlantis Occult bookshop we had tried to search for before (but it was closed all day--for tomorrow!) We stumbled upon Forbidden Planet which I had been dying to find and it was such an epic comic book store I'm really jealous I don't work there. It is by far better we found it later in our trip than earlier otherwise we'd have spent it all on nerd-gear. We also stuck our heads into an Astrology shop which was totally new age hippie nonsense but it reminded me of Colorado Springs' Crystal Wizard when it was in business years ago. It was amusing to hear the shopkeeper and customer debate the horoscope for the man in the coming year ("It starts out difficult..." "I don't like that." "You do, because it motivates you....""No. I don't like that.") It was a really warm day and we hurried home to get ready for our High Tea at Fortnum and Mason's.
F&M was such a delight. I wore my fancy grey and black ruffle dress with my pinstripe corset and sat at the end of the table. The colors of the tea sets we soft blue and Cydney's blue and white dress made me think of Alice in Wonderland. I even muttered "Clean cup, move down!" in a giggle. Even though we're vegan the staff catered to our diets and we had artichokes and pea soup while the others had carmelized onion tartlets. On the larger meal everyone else had salmon and caviar and meat sandwiches with scones and cakes of different sorts. We on the other hand had an assortment of roasted bell peppers and pesto, artichoke, and cucumber sandwiches, cornmeal scones (really tasty!) and berries, grapes, and strawberry juice as dessert. I just happened to sit at one end of the long tables and so whenever we were taking pictures or just eating I felt like I was having some fancy party. It was all sort of dreamlike and Cyd and I already decided to have tea parties with our cats as we found a cat tea recipe at Harrod's.
We broke off from the group and shopped a bit at F&M. I tried not to look at too much-- I'm sure my suitcase is already full-- but I couldn't help but love their display of teas. I'd've taken a photo but all the stores here are so protective so I'll try to paint a visual. Firstly the shop itself has been around since the 1707 and everything looks over the top fancy. There are towers of fancy jams, chocolates, and tea treats, special gifts and wines all ornamently displayed to match the age of the establishment. Fine and fancy cakes displayed behind glass cases in the middle (other levels specialized in menswear, perfume, other expensive gifts) but the loose leaf teas were on red velvet and contained in glass teapots. I really wanted the flowering teas and the black-strawberry tea.... but we passed. The tea leaves for 3 pots we already priced at £9-£14!
We went home with classmate Alfred and worked on our final projects. We returned to Munchkins to have a veggie burger and print up some paperwork at Accent. There is so little time left it feels like we're just planning our return trip constantly now. We're still hoping to go on the Jack the Ripper tour tomorrow night!
We All Fall Down
Saturday we had a free day! We really ached to return to Camden and blow tons of money that we didn't spend as our trip is nearly over and we won't have to worry about the lack of food. We were supposed to meet up with Ashley but she went back to Portabello Road. Instead we spent the afternoon in Camden with Cyd's aunt, Geri. I bought a fancy face mask at Cyberdog and bought Spinning Poi guide book from Oddballs. Tights are really in here and many businesses carry them here. Since my roller derby days are about to kick off again I grabbed a pair of green leopard ones for Miss Eerie Laine (c'est moi!)
We had lunch again at InSpiral but it wasn't as good on the weekend as it was during the week. Camden was much busier, but the food was cold and somehow I was skimped out of my side dishes. Cyd's been having a hard time since we both caught our cold and I've been having the duties of finishing her plate...so I was still stuffed.
After our farewells to Geri we had a bit of a break on the way home before getting dolled up to go out to Ashes to Ashes, a New Romantic night at the London Stone (where we previously were at their Electric Dreams night). I was really excited to get dressed up all spooky with my classmates one more time.
We had lunch again at InSpiral but it wasn't as good on the weekend as it was during the week. Camden was much busier, but the food was cold and somehow I was skimped out of my side dishes. Cyd's been having a hard time since we both caught our cold and I've been having the duties of finishing her plate...so I was still stuffed.
After our farewells to Geri we had a bit of a break on the way home before getting dolled up to go out to Ashes to Ashes, a New Romantic night at the London Stone (where we previously were at their Electric Dreams night). I was really excited to get dressed up all spooky with my classmates one more time.
Round About
Thursday we went back to Portabello to visit a boutique called EKA, which specializes in carrying uncommon brands to the UK, whether US or new UK designers. We also had a revisit to the Westfield Mall to visit the Lipsy store. Cyd and I had already checked it out since its design was highly spoken of at the headquarters tour. We poked around a bit in the other kiosk stands but had an especially wonderful afternoon rose champagne and strawberries treat with some of our other classmates.
Friday was busy starting with a trip out to the Spitalfield Market for their Fashion Friday. It was much like the flea market or previously visited Camden with many near wholesale price items. Half of it was craftier than the other and I picked up an acrylic cut brooch in the shape of a cat. We had miso soup at one of the many Pret A Manger joints in the area. We remet our class to go to the Tate Modern art museum for a quick peek before runnin off to the Fashion Textile Museum. The FTM had a special exhibit about Tommy Nutter and many of the items on loan were from celebrities such as Mick Jagger, Ringo Starr, Peter Brown, and Elton John (who also has items on loan at the Victoria & Albert Museum!) It was rather small but very interesting to learn the unique history. I also geeked out a bit as this is the man that designed the Tim Burton Batman Joker suit that Jack Nicholson wore~
We took a small break after the museum and looked around the street and discovered a couture collar pet store named Holly & Lil. So darling with many items similarly available at Harrod's but also having chocolates suitable for dogs. Shopkeeper Chelsea was very sweet and showed Cydney and I images of her kittens. I really adored these oversized bow collars:
We didn't have a lot of time and returned to the Zandra Rhodes Studio (next to the FTM as it is sponsored by she) to have a presentation by the highly entertaining Ben Scholten, Zandra's Head Designer. Having a bit of screening background I was happy to learn the the screens used are all done with drawing fluid and stored away making the prints VERY limited and uniquely manufactured when compared to the mass production made by other firms. I helped display all the luxurious chiffon fabric bits and hang up the dresses Ben pulled to discuss. He surprised us by allowing us to try on the dresses! I wore a sequin on from 3 seasons ago instead of a classic from the 60s.
Friday was busy starting with a trip out to the Spitalfield Market for their Fashion Friday. It was much like the flea market or previously visited Camden with many near wholesale price items. Half of it was craftier than the other and I picked up an acrylic cut brooch in the shape of a cat. We had miso soup at one of the many Pret A Manger joints in the area. We remet our class to go to the Tate Modern art museum for a quick peek before runnin off to the Fashion Textile Museum. The FTM had a special exhibit about Tommy Nutter and many of the items on loan were from celebrities such as Mick Jagger, Ringo Starr, Peter Brown, and Elton John (who also has items on loan at the Victoria & Albert Museum!) It was rather small but very interesting to learn the unique history. I also geeked out a bit as this is the man that designed the Tim Burton Batman Joker suit that Jack Nicholson wore~
We took a small break after the museum and looked around the street and discovered a couture collar pet store named Holly & Lil. So darling with many items similarly available at Harrod's but also having chocolates suitable for dogs. Shopkeeper Chelsea was very sweet and showed Cydney and I images of her kittens. I really adored these oversized bow collars:
We didn't have a lot of time and returned to the Zandra Rhodes Studio (next to the FTM as it is sponsored by she) to have a presentation by the highly entertaining Ben Scholten, Zandra's Head Designer. Having a bit of screening background I was happy to learn the the screens used are all done with drawing fluid and stored away making the prints VERY limited and uniquely manufactured when compared to the mass production made by other firms. I helped display all the luxurious chiffon fabric bits and hang up the dresses Ben pulled to discuss. He surprised us by allowing us to try on the dresses! I wore a sequin on from 3 seasons ago instead of a classic from the 60s.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Return to London
Cydney and I returned to London on Monday (to possibly less than favorable roommate accommodations) and not a whole lot was accomplished. No homework, some laundry, and dinner again at Jack Horner's.
Tuesday we went as a class to Central St. Martin's to see the graduate class's work. We also headed out to Carnaby St as a group and Cydney bought some fabulous Irregular Choice shoes while I bought an adorable Tea for Two Teapot with a little bunny as the lid. We also visited Selfridges which was really intense and busy! Unfortunately Cyd and I were sick and stumbled all the way back home and rested up for the rest of the night.
Then on Wednesday we traveled to Oxford. First we visited Blenheim Palace--the location of Winston Churchill's birth. We had a pretty great tour but we had to stop early to rush off to our retail lecture at the school. At the college gift shop I really loved all the gargoyle trinkets! The drive was pretty long so it was an all day excursion.
Tuesday we went as a class to Central St. Martin's to see the graduate class's work. We also headed out to Carnaby St as a group and Cydney bought some fabulous Irregular Choice shoes while I bought an adorable Tea for Two Teapot with a little bunny as the lid. We also visited Selfridges which was really intense and busy! Unfortunately Cyd and I were sick and stumbled all the way back home and rested up for the rest of the night.
Then on Wednesday we traveled to Oxford. First we visited Blenheim Palace--the location of Winston Churchill's birth. We had a pretty great tour but we had to stop early to rush off to our retail lecture at the school. At the college gift shop I really loved all the gargoyle trinkets! The drive was pretty long so it was an all day excursion.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Homesickness
So Cydney and I toughed out our travel night of no sleep on the shuttle bus and the not yet awake Stansted airport for our flight to Bremen, but we did make it barely awake.
There were some unfortunate family matters that developed just as we were arriving but my sisters Natalia and Jessica had prepared a fairly traditional and extravagant German breakfast for us and took the edge off at least for a bit. Strawberries in soy yougurt, rolls with dairy free margarine, a choice of spreads to enjoy with tea or coffee.... we were in heaven. After chatting it up a bit we had gotten our second wind but Jessi insisted we nap and as soon as she ensured we were comfy on her couch we did pass out.
Natalia's cat had kittens and we got to go to the vet with her to have them dewormed. They were only just 4 weeks old and every free moment we were hanging out with them (totally girly).
My hometown of Bremerhaven has been investing a lot of money into attracting more tourism and remodelling. One of its new showcases was the Sea City Hotel which is a builiding that looks like the famous curved one in Dubai. We took the elevator up to the top and overlooked the city and the coast of the North Sea, and beyond to the further German countryside. My sisters also took us the the extended Mediterraneo mall and explained about the Klimahaus, which features every climate on the planet in one building and lights up at night. We out to eat at Blatloss, and while it was delicious it took over an hour and a half to get our orders and everyone was food cranky by then.
Saturday we had gone to the swimming pool chain Bad1 ("Bad" is "pool" and the number denotes which location). It has everything like a mini waterpark but I think we mostly enjoyed the massage and spa treatments offered. We hung out in the aquamassage areas longer than anywhere else. Following that we had done some shopping in the city but with limited time we didn't really get to explore and the weather was really nasty preventing our hosts from wanting to go out. As we were leaving the shopping mall we stopped by the dyke in the pouring rain just to say we were there. It was my nephew, Simon's, birthday and there were plans to go out. We went from one bar to another but for some reason nothing really seemed to be going on (next weekend was a big event so it may have been the calm before the storm). Cyd and I were challenged to a game of table Fussball and despite not having the long developed skills we only lost by one point.
Sunday we made the long trek out to my grandparent's out in the countryside. Cyd kept saying everything looked like it came out of a fairytale. The house was packed full with guests to visit us and in all the madness my grandmother showed us her ridiculously priced sewing machines. Some were 8000€!! Tea and cakes and then the long drive back. We finished up the night with a walk in a nearby park.
I cried with every goodbye and three days in five years was clearly not enough.
There were some unfortunate family matters that developed just as we were arriving but my sisters Natalia and Jessica had prepared a fairly traditional and extravagant German breakfast for us and took the edge off at least for a bit. Strawberries in soy yougurt, rolls with dairy free margarine, a choice of spreads to enjoy with tea or coffee.... we were in heaven. After chatting it up a bit we had gotten our second wind but Jessi insisted we nap and as soon as she ensured we were comfy on her couch we did pass out.
Natalia's cat had kittens and we got to go to the vet with her to have them dewormed. They were only just 4 weeks old and every free moment we were hanging out with them (totally girly).
My hometown of Bremerhaven has been investing a lot of money into attracting more tourism and remodelling. One of its new showcases was the Sea City Hotel which is a builiding that looks like the famous curved one in Dubai. We took the elevator up to the top and overlooked the city and the coast of the North Sea, and beyond to the further German countryside. My sisters also took us the the extended Mediterraneo mall and explained about the Klimahaus, which features every climate on the planet in one building and lights up at night. We out to eat at Blatloss, and while it was delicious it took over an hour and a half to get our orders and everyone was food cranky by then.
Saturday we had gone to the swimming pool chain Bad1 ("Bad" is "pool" and the number denotes which location). It has everything like a mini waterpark but I think we mostly enjoyed the massage and spa treatments offered. We hung out in the aquamassage areas longer than anywhere else. Following that we had done some shopping in the city but with limited time we didn't really get to explore and the weather was really nasty preventing our hosts from wanting to go out. As we were leaving the shopping mall we stopped by the dyke in the pouring rain just to say we were there. It was my nephew, Simon's, birthday and there were plans to go out. We went from one bar to another but for some reason nothing really seemed to be going on (next weekend was a big event so it may have been the calm before the storm). Cyd and I were challenged to a game of table Fussball and despite not having the long developed skills we only lost by one point.
Sunday we made the long trek out to my grandparent's out in the countryside. Cyd kept saying everything looked like it came out of a fairytale. The house was packed full with guests to visit us and in all the madness my grandmother showed us her ridiculously priced sewing machines. Some were 8000€!! Tea and cakes and then the long drive back. We finished up the night with a walk in a nearby park.
I cried with every goodbye and three days in five years was clearly not enough.
Monday, June 20, 2011
The days past
Last week started off with a bang, had lots of travel, and has now fizzled out back in London for some R&R.
On Sunday Cyd, Ashley, and I went to the London Dungeons to learn the horrific history of the city in a most entertaining way. Cyd best described it as a "spooky Disneyland". We even bought plenty of scary souvenirs. Afterwards we wandered a different area of the city but with the cold and rain we decided to postpone our Jack the Ripper Whitechapel walk.
Monday was especially exciting! We went on a class visit to Prudence Millinery and it was truly inspiring. Having just taken up hat making as a hobby, but with no education, I really took in the studio space and every ounce of information. I really clicked with the advice of trying to keep positive and not worry about what other people are doing.
We left Tuesday morning for a trip on the Eurostar train for Paris. We took in another sight seeing tour via bus where we stopped at the Eiffel Tower and eventually wound up in our very tiny but nice hotel (I roomed with Ashley and Cydney). Finding vegetarian food was difficult enough, let alone vegan, and it was even harder to get by without a kitchen. We managed to eat though. Cyd and I return to the Eiffel Tower at night discovering the very dirty Metro lines of the city. Our initial thoughts on Paris were that it was dirtier than London, and while this kept up, it is true that the monuments are a lot prettier lit up at night.
Wednesday morning we attempted to visit the catacombs but the line was too long. For class we were treated quite wonderfully by the ladies and gentlemen at the Printemps luxury department store. They told us all about their company's history, architecture and also some of their internal workings. A tour of the flagship store as well as their subsidary Citadium was equally impressive. From all the department stores we've visited I felt most received here. They really catered to us and our educational needs. Checking out their rooftop cafeteria as well as VIP room was also pretty awesome. Before the meet Cyd, Ash, and I also had pro gratis apertifs (grape flavored champagne) at a cafe we had lunch for. It marked the first instance of politeness in Paris and luckily it lasted through the tour. After class the three of us went to see Notre Dame and I swore a lot about the dirt in my eye and the horrid smells from everywhere. Notre Dame was jawdroppingly beautiful. We spent a good while enjoying the street musicians and jugglers while snapping shots and just before we left in the evening the whole thing was lit up and we took some more photos. I think we tried to romanticize the feel of Paris with this night. We even caught a cute cat hanging out in a cafe window (the waiter told us that the cat was the boss, but later he said it was the boss's cat)
Thursday was an incredibly wearing day for team Cyd and Lainey. We woke up but our class plans sort of fell through. Some people had already left for travel plans. We went to Colette to see what was in store a.k.a. Nothing-I-can-afford-my-goodness-that's-over-priced. With the class dispersed we headed to the catacombs (the wait was much shorter despite the line being longer) and experienced the cavernous death halls that are below the city. We popped up above ground a ways down into the Catacombs gift shoppe and filled up on more haunting postcards and chilly nick-nacks. We ate some terrible food that was cold and barely vegetarian on our way back to the jewellery shops we found on our first night in. We discovered that the stores were wholesalers but luckily managed to get a few gifts at great prices. We also picked up maccaroons for my sisters who we were about to visit in Germany...
... we took the Eurostar back to London, and were so pleased to not be in Paris that we had a little song and dance to convey it all. Luckily the Pret a Manger joint across from the Underground station was open and we loaded up on tons of veg-friendly items so we could fake a meal since we had cleared everything out for our week away already. We repacked for Germany, refreshed, and made our way in the middle of the night to the Stansted Airport.
On Sunday Cyd, Ashley, and I went to the London Dungeons to learn the horrific history of the city in a most entertaining way. Cyd best described it as a "spooky Disneyland". We even bought plenty of scary souvenirs. Afterwards we wandered a different area of the city but with the cold and rain we decided to postpone our Jack the Ripper Whitechapel walk.
Monday was especially exciting! We went on a class visit to Prudence Millinery and it was truly inspiring. Having just taken up hat making as a hobby, but with no education, I really took in the studio space and every ounce of information. I really clicked with the advice of trying to keep positive and not worry about what other people are doing.
We left Tuesday morning for a trip on the Eurostar train for Paris. We took in another sight seeing tour via bus where we stopped at the Eiffel Tower and eventually wound up in our very tiny but nice hotel (I roomed with Ashley and Cydney). Finding vegetarian food was difficult enough, let alone vegan, and it was even harder to get by without a kitchen. We managed to eat though. Cyd and I return to the Eiffel Tower at night discovering the very dirty Metro lines of the city. Our initial thoughts on Paris were that it was dirtier than London, and while this kept up, it is true that the monuments are a lot prettier lit up at night.
Wednesday morning we attempted to visit the catacombs but the line was too long. For class we were treated quite wonderfully by the ladies and gentlemen at the Printemps luxury department store. They told us all about their company's history, architecture and also some of their internal workings. A tour of the flagship store as well as their subsidary Citadium was equally impressive. From all the department stores we've visited I felt most received here. They really catered to us and our educational needs. Checking out their rooftop cafeteria as well as VIP room was also pretty awesome. Before the meet Cyd, Ash, and I also had pro gratis apertifs (grape flavored champagne) at a cafe we had lunch for. It marked the first instance of politeness in Paris and luckily it lasted through the tour. After class the three of us went to see Notre Dame and I swore a lot about the dirt in my eye and the horrid smells from everywhere. Notre Dame was jawdroppingly beautiful. We spent a good while enjoying the street musicians and jugglers while snapping shots and just before we left in the evening the whole thing was lit up and we took some more photos. I think we tried to romanticize the feel of Paris with this night. We even caught a cute cat hanging out in a cafe window (the waiter told us that the cat was the boss, but later he said it was the boss's cat)
Thursday was an incredibly wearing day for team Cyd and Lainey. We woke up but our class plans sort of fell through. Some people had already left for travel plans. We went to Colette to see what was in store a.k.a. Nothing-I-can-afford-my-goodness-that's-over-priced. With the class dispersed we headed to the catacombs (the wait was much shorter despite the line being longer) and experienced the cavernous death halls that are below the city. We popped up above ground a ways down into the Catacombs gift shoppe and filled up on more haunting postcards and chilly nick-nacks. We ate some terrible food that was cold and barely vegetarian on our way back to the jewellery shops we found on our first night in. We discovered that the stores were wholesalers but luckily managed to get a few gifts at great prices. We also picked up maccaroons for my sisters who we were about to visit in Germany...
... we took the Eurostar back to London, and were so pleased to not be in Paris that we had a little song and dance to convey it all. Luckily the Pret a Manger joint across from the Underground station was open and we loaded up on tons of veg-friendly items so we could fake a meal since we had cleared everything out for our week away already. We repacked for Germany, refreshed, and made our way in the middle of the night to the Stansted Airport.
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