Day 17 (May 16)

We’d dim sum lunch at the Gerrard’s Corner, China Town which is getting somewhat old and noisy. Afterwards M&M went shopping and I spent the rest of the afternoon at W & G Foyle Bookstore (claimed to be the world’s largest and my second favorite) at Charing Cross Road. I bought two books, “The Hot Shoes Diaries” (the author got the same camera and flashes like me which is good) and ‘Waiting for the Light’. Then I proceeded to the National Portrait Gallery. For some unknown reason it’s the first time that I set foot in the place which on display over 1,000 portraits featuring men and women who have shaped British history from the Middle Ages to the present day. There was a peaceful demonstration by the Palestinians at the Trafalgar Square when I arrived at the National Gallery. It was over when I finished viewing my favorite paintings by Velázquez, Dürer, van Eyck, Titian, etc. I also went for the special exhibition of Picasso – “Challenging the Past*” (from 25 Feb to 7 June). Then I took the Bus 24 back home.

* culminates in a display of the artist’s Variations where, late in life, Picasso makes direct reference to masterpieces such as Velázquez’s ‘Las Meninas’ and Manet’s ‘Déjeuner sur l’Herbe’, turning them into “something else entirely”.