Heaven take my soul, and England keep my bones.

I arrived in London on Thursday afternoon, May 7. We rented a car and drove down from London to Horsebridge, where Ba lives. On Friday it was rainy in the morning and dreadfully cold. We took the train into London from Polegate and ate at Tom Aikens, an incredibly good restaurant in South Kensington. I think if I were a billionaire I would get a flat in this area to go with my Aston Martin. It is a really nice part of London, with lots of chic boutiques and bakeries and the like. Tom Aikens was an incredible experience in extreme deliciousness, although the very traditional wait service felt a bit stuffy at times. It is a must for fine dining in London though.

After lunch we walked to the Saatchi Gallery and saw a really great contemporary Iranian art series. We went from there to Leicester Square and to the National Portrait Gallery, where there is a John Constable portrait exhibit on. John Constable is a Jane Austen-era romantic painter. Ba is a big fan. We caught the quarter till 7 train back home and called it a night.

Today, Saturday, was far nicer weather. It was actually warm! I sat out in the garden with my dad, Ba, and Uncle Bill for a while. Ba's favorite hobby is gardening and the gardens behind the house are really lovely. My dad and I drove to Brighton, a small seaside city, to pass the afternoon. We ate at Jamie's Italian, a Jamie Oliver-owned bistro. It was very good. We had an antipasti platter with salami, mortadella, several types of olives, pecorino and chili jam, a lemony slaw, and mozzarella with peppery relish. Then I had pumpkin ravioli in a rosemary sauce and my dad had a tomato-broth fish soup. A really fantastic orange-flavored tiramisu (sounds odd, but it tasted great) finished the meal.

After lunch we walked all around the downtown shopping area of the city, stopping in to a record shop to get some new music. Before lunch we walked by the pier. The beach was completely packed, despite the fact that England's beaches do not have sand (they have rocks/pebbles instead) and the water was freezing.

Sussex is so beautiful! We drove to Brighton on country roads, through the South Downs, and everywhere you look is the most bucolic green hills, wildflowers, grazing sheep, cottages, streams, rabbits, etc. you could imagine. I absolutely love being here. The weather obviously could be better, but England is a really lovely place. And I love the food--scones with clotted cream, strawberries with double cream, cream tea, cream-based quiche, bagels and cream cheese, creamy goat cheese, ham and chutney sandwiches. There seems to be a cream theme here. I will have to go for a run tomorrow.