A Weekend Of Coincidences

Image above:  Azzi’s restaurant details on their website

After two solid weeks of just getting the final report I needed out for work on the Friday, I met up with Sylvia for drinks at Sketch (yes, I did actually drink … or should I say sip … some alcohol) to unwind. First time I’ve been there in the evening and it had a really nice chillout vibe to it which we both enjoyed.

Then feeling just a little dizzy, we moved on to Azzi for Korean cuisine. I’m pretty sure that I hadn’t eaten there post-revamp whilst Sylvia was sure we had. Since I had alcohol I bowed to her better judgement and proceeded to order pretty much all of the menu. And whilst dish upon dish flowed to our table we chatted about pretty much everything under the sun – including her crazy yet perfectly out there idea of relocating to Spain with Nestor for a few months to learn Spanish properly.

So about four hours later, God knows how much food, two bottles of sake (which Sy was encouraging that I try just a bit more – in her usual inimitable charming way), and me not actually collapsing but possibly flirting a little too much with our waitress – Tae Yun, we realised we were the last in the restaurant and time to head home. One of those classically memorable nights with a really great friend.

Got up on Saturday to check out a pool and encountered the first of four random encounters. On the way, I bumped into Eugene and Leanne who were recently back from their two weeks home in Australia. I was rushing for my appointment so met up afterwards over coffee and had a fun catch up since we hadn’t seen each other since before Christmas.

As for the pool, it was at Virgin Active Canary Riverside which turned out to be one of their flagship gyms. Seriously, walking into their lobby was like walking into a boutique hotel! And their pool was simply stunning. For once, it’s actually a reasonable size and designed to be an infinity pool with the River Thames just outside the glass enclosure.

Exactly what I wanted – a tranquil space that I could swim in late at night and just enjoy the stillness at the end of a day.

Image above: Exterior shot of the rather awesome swimming pool at Virgin Active Canary Wharfside with the backdrop of the River Thames behind. [Source:  www.fourseasons.com/canarywharf]

Of course, all that luxury doesn’t come cheap but figured it was worth joining for a few months and see how it goes.

The second bit of randomness came after I went to join Kay, Andrew and Jayna to check out the Chelsea Physic Garden on Sunday morning. Arriving earlier than expected I relented to get some hash browns and went to a nearby McDonalds where, to my surprise, both Kay and Andrew were already in there too enjoying breakfast.

Making our way to the garden, the third encounter came when I got a random call from a French number which turned out to be one of Sylvia’s friends, Angel, who is getting married in July. Hadn’t spoken to her since we met for the first time at New Year’s Eve for 2007 and she was kind enough to invite me to her wedding in Paris … as well, as ask me to be her wedding photographer on the strength of the one or two photos I took of her that evening. Completely honoured but not entirely sure if I’m really qualified yet!

The garden itself is the second oldest botanic garden in Englandand being walled it was like finding a little treasure hidden away off King Street. I’m not really one for horticulture but it was really beautiful being in the 3.5 acres of oasis in busy London. Plus it made for a good opportunity to try out a friend’s new Canon 5D Mark II camera.

Image above:  One of the many flowers growing in the Chelsea Physic Garden

And completing the set of four came after that, when the four of us were walking through in Paddington Basin and I ran into David and Lin whom I’ve not seen for about a year. That was totally random and just the excuse we needed to organise a proper catch up over some fantastic food.

Phew … that’s it. Whilst London isn’t as big as it seems I rarely do bump into anyone accidentally and to have so many in such a short space of time was pretty lucky. Maybe I should’ve played the lottery too!