Matt, pt 2

A second Matt -- of the Stambaugh variety -- stopped thru town on Monday. He stayed with some family/friends way up in North London, but we still managed to meet up for the Southbank pub crawl I take as many of my visitors on as possible.

London is many things: tourist destination, cultural hub, political center. Yet, when people come into town -- especially Kris and his crowd, but even my sister and parents -- we ineviteably end up doing the pub circuit. I suppose I could have taken Kris on a sights tour, but he didn't care. And Oakes hadn't the time. And Stambaugh had done it all that day, and had aching feet.

And it's not as tho one does not see the city, on my pub crawl. The Stambaugh version started at London Bridge, where we walked past Southwark Cathedral to the pub next to the pirate ship. After a pint of Greene King IPA, we wandered down a cobbled lane, past the Clink -- the first jail to be called that -- to the Anchor, a multiple-hundred-year-old pub along the Thames. After a pint of bitter, we walked to past the fake Shakespeare's Globe the last pub on our circuit, the Founders Arms. It's an ugly building, with horrid staff, but it's hard to complain when you're sitting on a patio, alongside the Tate Modern, with a pint of Waggledance Honey Brown in your hand, a plate of fish and chips on your table, overlooking the river and a lit-up-at-night St Pauls Cathedral.

From there, a quick walk to Waterloo station -- taking in views of Parliament and the Eye by night. Not too shabby for a pub crawl, eh?