When it comes time for the next major leaguer to say goodbye to the game – Nomar’s former teammate Pedro Martinez, perhaps? – will he set himself up in a high school gymnasium wearing the caps of all the clubs he’s played on (Dodgers, Expos, Red Sox, Mets and Phillies) and take off each hat, one by one, until the only hat remaining is the team he wishes to retire with?
Third in a series of non-comprehensive, incredibly subjective trip reports masquerading as “travel guides.”
Recommended Sights
Tate Modern: Awesome modern art museum in a cool building. Walk across the “Millennium Bridge” from central London (across the Thames) to get there!
British Museum: Fantastic history museum with crazy cool artifacts. Be sure to see parts of the Parthenon, the Rosetta Stone, and the Clock + Enlightenment Rooms.
Platform 9 and 3/4: I don’t know if you’re as big of a Harry Potter fanatic as I am, but it’s a cool photo opportunity! It’s at the King’s Cross tube station.
Oxford: I went for a day (like 9 - 6) and had a really good time checking out the different colleges, drinking at famous old pubs, and having high tea at a small hotel near the university.
Spitalfield’s Market: Open air market with clothes, posters, random hipster stuff, good food.
Bars I recommend
Barts: A super cool speakeasy, located in Chelsea in this random hotel called Chelsea Cloisters. You have to make a reservation, go through a “secret entrance,” and then you’re in this tiny bar with classic cocktails (added bonus - my friends have seen Hugh Grant here!).
Princess Louise + White Hart: Both are great places to drink near the British Museum (Holborn tube stop). Princess Louise is a classic pub, classy wood decor + atmosphere. The White Hart is also old/historic but more of a bar with good music + a bit of a dance floor.
Food
Obika: Amazing mozzarella!
High tea: Find a classy place to get high tea (tea + finger sandwhiches + scones). We had it in Oxford, so I can’t recommend places in London, but I thought it was really hilarious + delicious.
Indian Restaurants on “Brick Lane” (“Curry Row”): This street has like 5 billion Indian restaurants, and there are guys who stand by the doors and try to get you to come in. You can ask them for discounts if you want - we ended up getting a free round of drinks and 20% off of our check, with minimal hassle.
Fast casual: There are a lot of nifty “fast casual” places (kind of like Chipotle) that we don’t have in the US. I ate at Nando’s (chicken place w/ lots of sauces) and Pret (kind of like Au Bon Pain) and they were both pretty good. You can get a meal for like 5-7 pounds, which is less than $10, so not too pricey. In a city not noted for its cuisine, I didn’t feel too bad eating at a chain.
Will Marra, I’m almost speechless. I knew there was tension, but this is something new and entirely unexpected. Your conservative politics belie your true feelings. Let’s grab a beer at Shay’s soon?
I had already heard “Dear Sergio” and “Sick and Sad” on Everything Off Beat radio when someone handed me this sampler tape at Ska Against Racism in May 1998. My dad took me and three others for my birthday; he made us leave during LTJ’s set because it was getting too late.
The back of the tape says: “Ska? Punk? Swing? Whatever.”
It wasn’t swing.
“Keasbey Nights” is one of a handful of songs that I loved in middle school & still love now.