Sunday 10 July 2011

London

I can’t believe it has been two weeks since I was in London for the weekend. Time is flying by lately! It was great being back in London for an extended period of time other than for a MoorfieldsEye Hospital appointment. At one stage in my life, London was like a second home to me. Getting off of the train with Calvin, I quickly realised this was the first time we had travelled there solo. I didn’t have any assistance booked and spent a while trying to figure out which way the mass crowd were going for the exit. When you’re in London, you don’t feel like you stick out like a sore thumb, as everyone is so interested in getting to places than stopping to stroke your dog or ask if you’re ok. I love that! Once through the barriers I met Beth and her new Guide Dog Connie who is a German shepherd and a little bigger than my BFG. Oh yeah and Connie is classified as a ‘fast’ dog, the quickest walking speed a Guide Dog can be, Calvin is a ‘quick mod plus’, but this meant we had to get our skates on a little. I’ve met Connie once before, so had a chance to practice my power walk before hitting the capital.

On the Saturday we went to watch the afternoon performance of Wicked in the West End. I was supposed to go the year before, but cancelled at the last minute so I could go to an athletics competition instead, surprise, surprise! I was concerned that because our seats were up in the heavens that I would find it difficult to concentrate with not being able to see the lights and thought the sound wouldn’t be very good, but in fact I could see glimmers of light and the sound was amazing. There was certainly no room for the dogs to join us, I could hardly fit my legs in the gap and I’m 5ft 2”! The dogs were left in a good sized room to relax/run around like wild animals! The musical overall was enjoyable, although I could see where they were trying to be funny and I didn’t always crack a smile. The storyline was also a little confusing, probably because I didn’t realise the Wicked Witch wasn’t really wicked!

On the Sunday we went to watch Glee Live at the O2. Again the dogs were left with staff members, but we didn’t get to see the room and apparently they were taken on a walk by the river, which I’m not sure they should have done, as there are so many rules you’re supposed to follow even when a Guide Dog is not working, such as walking on the left of a person, stopping at curbs and steps etc. Prior to Glee coming on stage there was a dance act for the support. I’ve never found something so dull in my life, the music wasn’t even great that they were jigging to! However, I realised how close our seats were to the stage, as without microphones I could hear them speaking. When Glee came on the atmosphere was electric, singing just as good as on the show and character roles sustained. There were video clips of Shooster and Sue on the big screen, which were amusing and The Warblers were there too and sang a few songs. The actress who plays Mercedes stole the show for me, I know she has a massive diva voice, but honestly listening to her hit the most complicated notes at the end of songs left me spell bound. I’ve been to a hell of a lot of concerts and I’ve never heard anything so incredible! The downside to the show was it was just over an hour long, so pretty short and sweet.

The next musical I’m seeing is The Sound of Music for my birthday. I’ve wanted to see this for years, as have watched the video and DVD a million times growing up!

Don’t stop believing!

4 comments:

Jen said...

My friend went to Gle and said it was too short as well.
Aw, Sandy's retired then? Does she still live with Beth? Is the German Shepherd really big? That's cool the staff looked after them, but strange they walked them without asking you.
I couldn't imagine working OJ in London. It must be mad busy!

Torie said...

I don't really like the idea of someone else walking the dogs without asking you. If they couldn't control the dogs, for example then that could have been. They deffinetly should have asked you first.

I'm glad the music was okay though. Xxx.

Roshni said...

Awwe your trip sounds amazing! I’ve not been to London for ages and your post reminded me of how much I’m missing it! I went to the sound of Music a couple of years ago; its my favourite musical of all time and trust me; it will be a night to remember; I just know you’ll love it!

Selina Litt said...

Jen yeah Sandie has retired and is living with Beth's parents, which is nice. Connie is a very slim and slender dog, marginally taller than Calvin and possibley a little longer, but she only weighs 32kg.

Yeah Tori i'm not sure about the dog walking either, I just gave them a funny look when they said it.

Roshni you've got me excited about The Sound of Music now!