LONDON
A Change of Plans

I had planned to go to the Tate Modern. The idea of seeing the museum and taking a commuter boat down the Thames to get there really appealed to me. Unfortunately, I woke up with a bit of a cold and had to force myself to get out of bed. Instead of heading to the dock, I went to Boots.

I have been to London six times since 1978. The old store names seem to be vanishing. I see a lot of new chains: Leon, Gail's, Greggs, and others. They're pretty bland. So I found it comforting to see that Marks & Spencer and Boots still exist. I got some cold remedies and dental floss from Boots. Weirdly, that cheered and energized me. I found the will to go to a Ukrainian pastry shop called Cream Dream and have a delicious hazelnut confection.

I kept walking eastward along the Strand and came across the installation below.

This is a sculpture made of soil.

James Wellbeloved is a dog food company with a social conscience. If interested, read the placard. Pictured below are Elle the Dog, the actual model of the piece, and his owner's feet (and someone else's feet). Elle refused to pose for me.

St. Mary le Strand

I made a last-minute decision to visit the Courtauld Gallery, a small museum in Somerset House. I'm unsure why I didn't rank it higher when making my travel plans. It possesses several iconic Impressionist and Post-Impressionist works. I loved its modest size and found it easy to navigate.