Once in London our usual activities were resumed with a lengthy hike around the capital and although we tried to rely on our trusty Lake District map and compass to guide us around the sights, instead we turned to Dan our tour guide in residence and Tim our favourite big red bus driver. Never a club to venture out unprepared, our faithful emergency shelter was close to hand. Restless and in need of an outing (if only to dry out from the rain in the Brecons) it became the new club mascot and saw as many of the landmarks as the club members did. However, the numerous security alerts across London last weekend were the result of IRA bomb threats and not a strange orange dome loitering with intent outside Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament. Though not content with just being a tourist attraction in its own right, the shelter tried to become part of an existing one as a shower cap on the lions at Trafalgar Square. Useful protection against the snow we should have been trekking through in the Lakes.
The evening presented an alternative to the country pubs and log fires we’ve come accustomed to, with the male continguent suggesting we should sample the pleasures of Soho, their excuse being having eaten in Leicester Square the delights were on our doorstep. Following the friendly advice of a police sergeant not to venture into the tacky and tasteless clubs, Richard insisted on educating the president-elect Marcy Marc by visiting one of the local speciality adult shops instead (and the photo’s in the post to both of your mums).
A lack of available waterfall walks on Sunday left us yearning for the wet stuff (not rain) so we took a floating bar bound for Greenwich. Though not as big, our orange dome was far more impressive than its bigger brother that dominated our view of the skyline as we straddled both the east and the west on the Greenwich meridian line. Fortunately the beefeaters permit wayward presidents’ jaunts in Soho and executions did not provide the entertainment we were seeking at our next stop the Tower of London. A desperate search for an open and affordable pub was ended by an all you can eat pizza buffet back on the edges of Soho, though this time at the suggestion of the female contingent! Bomb scares were a convienient excuse to squeeze in one last hike across the city and then it was back to Nottingham having stamped our mark on the capital- its orange!
With the prospect of very little hiking for the rest of this term, the future’s not looking bright, but the future’s orange…
Ps. we won’t lower ourselves to attacking the moutaineering club article (for now!)