A Lovely Weekend

Oscar and I had a lovely weekend together in London. While we didn't do anything extravagent, we took advantage of it being just us to spend some quality time together and we had such a good time. We didn't have anything planned but played the weekend by ear and it turned out to be wonderful.

On Friday night, we went to see the Sherlock Holmes movie. Neither of us were that interested in seeing it but there is a funny story about how we got there. There is a tiny movie theatre about two blocks from our flat on Baker Street. It used to be old and rundown but over the holidays they renovated it and, little did we know, it is a really neat place now. We were going to see a movie there last weekend, just to check the place out, but everything (all two screens!) were sold out. This sparked our interest even more to see what it was like. Then, since Sherlock Holmes "lived" a couple of blocks away (closer to our flat) on Baker Street, we figured what better place to see the movie than at this theatre.

So we stopped by the theatre at 7pm and got the last two tickets for the 8:45 show. Then, we went to a new restaurant just down the street for a light supper before heading back. The theatre was so neat. You walked in and went straight downstairs to a bar/lounge area where they served everything from beer, wine, and coffee, to snacks, sandwiches, and ice cream. It was very cozy and the perfect size to fit the guests waiting to see one of the next two shows. We had a great time and actually enjoyed the movie more than we expected. Maybe it was the atomosphere :)

The new renovated theatre.

On Saturday, we got up and went to look for a baby carriage. A lady from my prenatal yoga class recommended that we go to The Pram Shop in Notting Hill, where she had gone to buy hers. We had looked at lots of different ones but none of them convinced us. I think we went with a little doubt that we would find "the one" here but we did! It was a tiny little shop that only carried three brands. The owner was the only one there and was very helpful and patient with us. A few couples came in and left while we were there but we just kept looking. We fell in love with a brand called Emmaljunga from Sweeden. We had never heard of it before but it is very traditional and elegant but at the same time durable and practical. We ended up going back today to order it! More on the baby carriage later ...

Then, we walked around a cute shopping area in Notting Hill and stopped for brunch/lunch at an adorable little cafe. It was actually inside a clothing store. It was very neat how it was set up and we were lured in by the line that kept forming to be seated. We had a lovely lunch as oohed and ahhhed over the catalogue of the baby carriage. We walked around a little more after lunch and then headed home. I was exhausted and needed a nap! We went to Mass on Saturday evening because we knew we were going to be out and about Sunday morning. We stopped at the grocery store on the way back and I made a homemade calzone for dinner, which was delicious. (I will post more on that later!) Then, I talked to my mom. It was so funny to hear that she had just made a calzone herself for some company they were having over for dinner. She truly is my other half!

The cafe we had lunch at in Notting Hill.

Sunday morning, we got up and went to the British Museum. I had already been with my parents but Oscar had never been. We had been given tickets to an Aztec exhibit but we didn't make it because it was the last day it was open and they were booked until late in the afternoon. So we saw the rest of the museum ... or at least hit all the high points. We saw some amazing pieces like the Rosetta Stone, the mummies, remains from the Greek Partheon ... none of which I saw with my parents. I felt awful! I couldn't believe that we didn't see these things when we went the last time. I just came to the conclusion that they will have to come back and see it again!

Then, we went to lunch at one of our favorite Spanish restaurants, Iberica. We have been a few times for tapas and really liked it. We learned that on Sundays they serve roast lamb and paella so we were enticed to give it a try. We had a long, leisurely lunch - Spanish style! - and had a great time. On the way home, we stopped at a cute baby shop on Marylebone High Street and bought pale pink long sleeve onsie and some "lounge wear" for our little one :) They were half off and reasonably priced. You wouldn't believe how soft they are! We lounged around the rest of the evening. We were still full from lunch when dinner time came around. So we had some mixed fruit, popcorn, and peanut M&Ms as we watched a classic movie, Scarface. It was the perfect ending to a perfect weekend :)

The British Museum