Portrait Gallery

The new National Portrait Gallery opened last Thursday but J and I decided to put off visiting until after the madness of the opening weekend had died down a little. You know, because we could being Ladies of Leisure and all...

So this morning we ventured down to The Parliamentary Triangle. With priorities well and truly sorted, we checked out the shop first (lovely range of droolworthy books! Liana Kabel brooches and bracelets! Moyou earrings and tea towels!) then headed next door to the cafe for coffee and cake.

And were shortchanged. And had to wait for a very very long time for our chocolate brownie to show up after the drinks arrived. At one stage, after about 15 minutes, I went up to the counter (behind which there were at least six staff members) and suggested without the slightest hint of sarcasm that maybe they were short staffed and perhaps they could just give the brownie to me to carry back to the table. "Sorry, we won't be a minute" the chap said. And he was correct: it was more like five.

Oh well, at least we had no pressing engagements (being Ladies of Leisure and all...) and the view while we waited was quite enjoyable:In future, though, I think I'll vote to pop next door to the NGA Members' Lounge for my coffee and cake.The gallery was quite beautiful but I found I tired quickly of looking at picture after picture of people without resting my eyes on other types of art. Something I hadn't really considered before visiting and a situation I found quite interesting. At one stage J and I popped out to the "Rest Area" which is a little glass box attached to the side of the building where I suppose you become a live "portrait" to the passing traffic.And it seemed fitting to take make a portrait there...

J had a lunch date further south and I offered to run her there on the way home. With time to kill we decided to pop in to check out the scooters at the new Motorini shop where Nico, who I haven't seen for 3 years since I sold my scooter to find my 40th birthday trip to New York, showed me the TSS shrine that had moved from the old shop:

Many moons ago I used to collect any pictures I came across in fashion magazines which featured scooters and take them down where we created a collage wall. I'd completely forgotten about it until he took me into the fitting room to show me: he'd taken the best images from the old shop, laminated them and remounted them in the new fitting rooms. I was quite blown away!