"Probably that you're going to be eaten by a giant marshmallow or something"

The weather is ugly. There is no other description. We woke up this morning hoping for the best. On the way to the hotel last night, there was wind and drizzle. It now is raining. After three weeks in Europe this is our first really bad weather.

It is a "heads down day". You walk with your head leaning forward. There are water spots on your glasses. I cross the street to Starbucks with attention and care to traffic. I am only slightly better at looking at the direction of traffic when stepping off the curb.

I have a new theory. It takes three visit to the same Starbucks at the same time each day for the barista to recognize you. London is a heterogeneous society. This morning I assist two French girls with their order at Starbucks. Now, this is humorous because I do not speak French. I use my Paris Starbucks experience. I recognize a few words. The cashier and the barista deal with multiple languages all day.

Betty and I decide that this is the day to continue our tradition started in Rome. "Let's have lunch at the  'Hard Rock Café'".  The London "Café" is the original. We take the Tube to Green Park Station. It is a pouring rain. The station is near Buckingham Palace. We walk by Duke of Wellington's home and museum for the fourth time during our visits to London. The Café is on the edge of Piccadilly and very upscale.

There is something about a steady rain that makes wrong turns painfully. Betty corrects. Within four blocks, we are in front of the Café. There is no line, but there is a few people in front of us. The process is guided by a gentleman whose look and attitude fits the 1971 opening day of the Hard Rock.

"It will only be a few minutes".
"American?"

He has that London international tone to his speech. He wears a Hard Rock leather bike jacket. Very Cool. Parents with two children arrive a few minutes later.

"Quanto dura l'attesta?"
"Venti minuti."

The weather is turning even nastier. This is not the spring shower forecasted.

The door open and the waitress ask if we have a preference for a table - front or rear of the restaurant. We volunteer "either". The table is next to the bar area which is great.

The waiter is very experienced. Restaurants should learn that staff makes all the difference. Our waiter is pleasant and conversational. He projects that he cares about our experience. This is very much our experience in Rome. We had a great waitress. We feel at home at Hard Rock. The feeling is that these are friends we have yet to meet.

While the rainy afternoon continues, a long lunch is ideal. Betty orders a Margarita. To order a mixed drink - particularly, a frozen drink - in Europe is risky at best. Betty orders the special order which includes the glass. The glass is large and the drink is tasty. We do not take the glasses.

The food is definitely American which, at one time, was probably the exception in Europe. Now, the gourmet cheeseburger rules.

As with Rome, the customers are a mixture of tourist and locals. It is 16:00 (4 PM) and the restaurant is no longer full but the tables are starting to fill up again. The rain has let up. Betty and I are full and happy. The feeling is not quite like Rome or Siena where I felt at home. But, I am definitely enjoying the city.

The Hotel television is the best we have had on this trip. It is a 26" flat screen. There is cable. We were slow to learn to use the menu. But, now, we have about thirty four stations. As with the USA cable, most of the channels have nothing to offer.

Also, the shows are reruns. I had high expectations that we would see new episodes of our favorite BBC or ITV series. The program is an odd mixture of local travel shows, US TV and British reruns of the same shows we watch in US.

We are beginning to understand how tired we are. It has been a long twenty five days.