Day 3 - 21st January - London Chinatown (Part 4)
Spikes on fence. Also, the road up. KNN.
Antenna tower
The Osteopathic Clinics inc. The London Frozen Shoulder Clinic
The London Frozen Shoulder Clinic??? According to the website "Frozen shoulder is a painful condition in which the shoulder becomes painful and stiff due to inflammation and thickening of the capsule (sack) around the shoulder joint". Must be a common ailment to warrant mention.
Municipal noticeboard with some dodgy ads. I was amused by "Apple Mac Assistance". So much for "it just works".
QR code in an inaccessible place (I had to perform some acrobatics to take this picture). I also scanned the QR code, which leads to: http://1cp.ca/24c0bb567a2c (the website of the bulletin board on Scanzai)
"The Prince of Wales Thai Kitchen
Real Ales
Beer Garden
Thai Food"
I forgot to see if they had Chang Beer
Pastries
"Pineapple & Coconut. Exotic blend"
It didn't taste very exotic (and left a sticky residue on my fingers)
Walking Church
Fertility: the Musical
"Finding it difficult to get pregnant? Over 3,500 visitors last year"
The $1,000,000 question: how many of them got pregnant?
Carnage
"Falling in love and having a relationship are two different things"
I'm not sure what Kabbalah (syncretic Judaism) has to do with love advice
I then went to Chinatown to buy some duck.
"Mary's Team". It sounds better in Chinese.
"Kubar. Award winning gay bar"
They were playing gay videos inside.
I saw some Northern Chinese food in Chinatown, but less than in Singapore's.
Pandemonium
Chinatown gate
Authentic Foods specialist
This sign in Chinese doesn't address the reader as "您". Tsk.
Four Seasons (Queensway), of the famous duck
There were lots of ducks in the window but they told me "no duck today". So much for my trying the "best duck in the world" (according to the news clipping). I suppose the even of Chinese New Year's eve was not the best time to buy duck.
"Save the Sharks. Shark's Fin Soup is no longer available"
>:(
Wedding photography
I went to New Fook Lam Moon. They supposedly had Peking and Cantonese food, but the menu is kinda suspect.
Mr Wu Chinese Restaurant Hot Buffet. Eat as much as you like. Lunch & Dinner £6.50"
Mr Wu's queue
"Xiaoming Unisex Hair Salon"
One of my fantasies was to open a place with "xiaoming" in the name. I suppose I'll have to give that one up.
"IP MAN & CO."
They're accountants, not intellectual property specialists.
Wut
"Mini karaoke booth. Free *Bubble Milk Tea. Complimentary *Snack. Private Booth *2 hours.
Do Not Miss Promotion. Early Bird - 30% Discount Only £10.50"
It's actually cheaper than some places in Singapore.
This sign is quite amusing: they've rolled out a new menu and boast about good Chinese food and offering authentic hometown food in a foreign land.
Behind you see a place offering "more than one hundred cuisines". I didn't know Chinese food had such variety.
"You are here". The walkable distance circle is quite helpful.
For dinner I decided to indulge in a spot of nostalgia at Belgo. They boast of being "The world's greatest Belgian restaurants", and indeed it's better than what I've had in Belgium.
I came for Beat the Clock, but only noticed the fine print about Monday-Friday after ordering. Oops. Anyhow the normal price was not expensive actually (after conversion it was still cheaper than Singapore, for example Brussel Sprouts).
I love the fine print: "Olives may contain stones... All dishes may contain ingredients not listed in the menu descriptions"
Belgo had 2 1/3 pages of Belgian beers - and 3 beers under "Rest of world".
Dinner. Mmm.
As ever, they were the best moules frites I'd had. Not huge, but bouncy, and with a flavourful white wine sauce where I could still taste the wine quite strongly in the sauce at the bottom of the pot (at most places the sauce is too piss weak). And all the mussels were open (unlike the horrifc Mussel Guys)
The only downside was that it was damn noisy - there was a bar.
Dessert
On the left is chantilly, which was excellent (due to the lighting I couldn't tell the difference between the two till tasting it). The waffle itself wasn't good though as it was dry and not sweet. It was kind of alright with the chantilly and ice cream though.
I was quite impressed by the service. When I asked for water the waitress saw me taking a pic and went "enjoy". Even though it was damn noisy and crowded, and she was busy she asked me if I liked the mussels. Ahh, American service in a Belgian restaurant in London. So I left a tip (on top of the discretionary grautity); she being a cute French girl was neither necessary nor sufficient to warrant the tip (I'd left a tip at Medlar too despite the staff serving me being male).
I was very surprised that they actually charged me the Beat the Clock price (£6.20) even though it was a Saturday. I didn't complaining.
Belgo loyalty card: "Vegetarians may substitute the moules for any similarly priced food items"
Dating Republic: "Busy are you? Work, friends, pretending to go to the gym, keeping on top of the chores and remembering to check in with Mum every now and then?"
"Is this bin locked? See it. Sort it. Report it"
They take security seriously.
I took the train up to Cambridge.
There was a woman picking rubbish from the train. Her jacket read "train presentation".
National Express East Anglia encourages you to snitch on fare dodgers by texting details to a number
From the previous picture: "please do not put your feet on the seats. It is an offence under railway byelaws"
Also: leggings!!! Leggings are not pants!
"drama is part of everyday life. let us help you through it"
"The incomparable Chinese State Circus"
Of course they aren't really the Chinese State Circus, having been started in the 1990s for British consumption.
I saw some pub with an "autumn menu", despite it being January. Right.
There's something vaguely reassuring about the musty smell of a hostel.
