Something Old, Something New

Pub crawl was a blast.  Overall, it was a pretty good value, as we got five free shots (one at each bar) included in the 15 Pounds charge to attend.  That amount also provided for skipping any lines and no cover charges--which we found out the last club we ended at had a 15 Pound cover charge.  It was sort of controlled chaos, but frustrations at the time to get a drink were kept to a minimum.  There was a down side, as two of our group booked the Pub Crawl for the wrong location online.  They had booked St. George and we were booked Camden.  Because Camden was sold out, they couldn't be included.  That put a bit of a damper on the evening.

It ended up being a long night and I don't think we wrapped up back at the hostel until about 3am.  That meant morning would come early and it did.  Which I didn't care about.  My plan was to meet up with Richard at 2pm.  You remember him, right?  My roommate from College Program 20 years ago.  I hopped a train out to Rochester Kent to meet him and got to meet his wife and daughter, too.  They left us at the train station so we could head into the village for "guy time".  This consisted of getting a chance to see the castle in town, which was pretty cool.  It stemmed from Henry III era.  And also the cathedral, which was in remarkable shape considering it was constructed in about 600 AD.  Ultimately, we succeeded in pounding down four pints in a couple of hours and I hopped my train back to London.

We barely got me back to the train on time from our last pint.  I hopped aboard almost as it was pulling out of the station.  We had a brief moment where we looked into each other's eyes.  We knew we would be okay and see each other again soon.  Very touching, I must say.  Realistically although the time was short, I am excited at the thought of seeing Richard and the family soon, since they will be visiting Florida next April.  I am trying to talk him into a Disney Cruise.

Dinner back in London consisted of some delicious pie and mash with the Danish girls and our new Australian roommate (Melbourne).  He has just wrapped up working here for 10 months and heads back home after the weekend.

It was nice to get a chance to hop out of London for an afternoon and see a bit of the country and smaller village of Rochester with Richard.  Which is the photo I'm leaving you here with.

Rochester Castle, with Rochester Cathedral in the background