The 153 bus

As I mentioned in previous post, we agreed to meet at Liverpool Street Station. I caught a 153 bus in St John Street.

Liverpool Street Station

I was first at the rendezvous. My first idea was to find a bench in the station but decided I’d rather be out in the open air.

Outside the station

This is the entrance in Liverpool Street that gives the station its name. Next to the railway station is the bus station which provides a convenient terminus for several bus routes. I stood here to await Tigger or text messages from her.

Fulcrum aka “The Wigwam”

Outside is this rather large structure composed of slabs of iron. It is an artwork (Fulcrum by Richard Serra, installed 1987) that has acquired the nickname “Wigwam”. I think you can see why.

Costa Coffee

We went t Costa in Eldon Street because we could sit in there. We came here often in the “old days”. I don’t need to say that it looks somewhat different post-Covid, with protective barriers and reduced seating capacity. Nice easy chairs, though.

The upper level

There has been rebuilding at the station, aimed of course at increasing income. The station has acquired a new upper level with expensive-looking shops, the kind whose window displays don’t show prices. (“If you have to ask the price, you can’t afford it.”)

Office space

There is also expensive-looking office space, no doubt for expensive businesses.

“Keep two metres apart”

We had just missed a bus so we went inside the station to wait, as it was raining. As in all public places, there are notices warning us to socially distance but in crowded stations that’s often ignored.

The bus – resting

The bus came in but went for the driver’s rest period. So we waited patiently…

The Banana Tree

The bus eventually came and the ride back to the Angel was uneventful. We decided that as the Banana Tree was serving on the premises, we would eat in rather than have a takeaway. Small steps back to some sort of normality.

On that happy note I will bid you adieu until my next. All bring well, the weekend will enable us to go out and about, whether permitting.

Yesterday (Thursday), I was supposed to collect that laundry that we had deposited at the dry cleaners in Amwell Street on Monday morrning. The problem with that simple plan was that I was expecting delivery of my new shoes and had to wait in for them or risk missing them. In the event, they turned up at about 3:30 pm.

Having taken possession of my shoes, I prepared to go for the laundry. The most difficult part of that getting ready was putting my shoes on! The shoes are designed as “slip-on”, which means they are elasticated so that they expand as you put your feet into them and then close again to make a snug fit. When new, they are very stiff and I had a job levering my feet into them using a shoe horn. Once they are on, they fit perfectly. The stiffness will ease over the next few days. I always wear the same model (Kalahari, from Vegetarian Shoes), so I am used to this easing-in period.

Having managed to shoe myself, I rushed off to the dry cleaners and claimed our laundry. After dragging the loaded trolley up-hill to home, I was happy to wait there for a couple of hours until Tigger to returned from work.

Today, Friday, I am going to meet Tigger, not at home but part-way along her route. Liverpool Street Station makes a good place for a rendezvous as Tigger has to change buses there and I can catch a 153 bus from the Angel to the station. Whoever arrives first will text the other one so that we can meet.

Having met up, I expect we will go somewhere for coffee and whatever else turns up. During the last few weeks we have tended to go to Banana Tree, a Thai-style restaurant, for a takeaway. Perhaps we shall do that again today or maybe an alternative will suggest itself. We’ll see.

I don’t know whether I will manage to take any photos and post them on the blog. That remains to be seen. Otherwise, we now have the weekend to look forward too as well as Monday and Tuesday when Tigger is not working. A four-day weekend: not bad, eh?