Emma & Nick in London

Today I met up with Emma and Nick for a beer (or four). They are visiting the UK from the Sunshine Coast and seem to be thoroughly enjoying themselves. They especially loved Edinburgh though they weren’t so keen on Hayes. And who can blame them?

They were meeting Emma’s cousin after work – she works at the London Eye as a bouncer – so we agreed to meet at the Tattershall Castle. There was a bit of confusion with my directions but after Emma messaged me from one of the few streets I know by name, I guided them down the hill to the river and we met up.

We started off below decks in the lounge and I’m pleased to say they both had London Pride rather than some tasteless fizzy nonsense. They were both a bit concerned with seasickness. The bit of the Thames where the Tattershall Castle is moored, can be quite rough. This is due to the almost continuous traffic. Eventually it all became a bit much for them so we moved up and out onto the deck.

I’m afraid I managed to talk too much, though, fortunately, I didn’t go into any detail about the ship we were on. I was a bit dismayed on discovering that neither of them knew who Thomas Edison was but maybe I just take it for granted that everyone knows things just because I do. That’s hardly fair. And they had heard of Shakespeare. So I could tell them all about the Globe. I also told them too much about Lucy and our earliest ancestors and the reason why there’s still monkeys when we evolved from them.

I really, really hope I wasn’t too boring. Still, I had a lovely time. Emma is always a delight (and her teeth are looking pretty good) and Nick is a great chap, outgoing and not a bit shy.

I make it sound like I did all the talking for the three of us. This isn’t entirely true. They told me of their adventures so far and Emma’s delightfully mad Serbian grandfather. They had me in fits. He sounds a real cack. His concern over Nick’s premature picking of Angel Fruit was particularly funny.

Anyway, here’s a photo of me and Emma:

Oops, sorry. Wrong Emma. Here’s a picture of me and Emma and, of course, Nick.