Paradise Pods

I have had another busy day in London. I met Jennifer at the Wallace Collection which is a small museum which was once the home of Victorian art collector Sir Richard Wallace. It has some amazing paintings, of which the most famous is probably the 17th century Dutch “The Laughing Cavalier” by Frans Hal. It’s really good and has a special meaning for Jennifer and me because our parents had placemats with famous paintings on them, and we called this one “Handsome Harry with the big moustache” after a friend of our Dad’s who did bear a resemblance to the eponymous cavalier! 
There are lots more work by Dutch artists as well as paintings by Velásquez, Gainsborough, Landseer, Canaletto and more. There are also collections of furniture and armour and fine china if you like that sort of thing. The café / restaurant is set right in the middle of the house in a beautiful glass-roofed courtyard and our lunch there was excellent - I would very much recommend a visit to this smashing wee museum. 
We then went for a walk and a chat in the sunshine in Regents Park, enjoying the greenery and the rose garden. It was a truly lovely afternoon.
After Jennifer returned home by train I made my way by underground to the South Bank, visited the Globe Theatre, and relaxed beside the Thames, watching the crowds go by. Later I walked across the Millennium Bridge to magnificent St Paul’s Cathedral, and met Ally at his office when he finished work. 
Cat had booked dinner at a fantastic restaurant right on the river beside the Tower of London. It has “Paradise Pods” to dine in, which are large perspex bubbles decorated with plants and fairy lights. It was great fun. We had views of the Shard as well as Tower Bridge. The staff were really friendly and pleasant and the food was delicious. It was a very special evening.