A Right Proper Pub Crawl

After afternoon tea, we couldn't eat any more, but we could still drink.  Since it was our last night, we went on an old-fashioned pub crawl in our apartment's neighborhood.

When I was in London in 1984, in the city and during my travels on the British Isles, I went to 138 different pubs.  Back then, you could buy affordable lunches at pubs -- pasties, meat pies, bangers and mash, and so on.  So I would go to a city to explore on a Saturday, have lunch at a pub, dinner at a different pub, and then another lunch at a pub before training back to London for work on Monday (my Member of Parliament was a tough taskmaster!).

(Editor: Really, you've never mentioned that about Geoff before.  Writer: Well, it's more of a test to see if he's reading the blog.)

Our first stop was The Market Inn, built in 1808.  Being a drizzly Friday night (except when it rained), the place was packed.  We grabbed a couple of pints and a corner table.  The Mayfair website says it "oozes Victorian charm" but fortunately nothing oozed on us.

From there we went down the street to the Kings Arms.  Like The Market Inn, it's in the lively Shepherd's Market area of Mayfair.  We had the best of both words.  Our apartment was on a quiet street, while just a few short blocks away was a fun area with restaurants having tables outside and pubs where the clientele spilled out onto the street, with some talking about their jobs, others talking about sports, and everyone looking to either woo their date or find one, at least for the evening.

Our last stop was at Chesterfield Arms pub, which was our local -- we had been there early on in the week.  Rick chatted up a young American couple, and then after Rick, Sandy, and Carol headed back, I chatted with them as well.  Delightful folk.

Back at the apartment was our fourth pub, as Rick and I cracked the last two cans of beer in the fridge and listened to Beach Boys songs in honor of the recently late, always great, Brian Wilson.

Remember, if you are planning your own pub crawl, the rules are simple:

1.    Don't get in fights

2.    Go to the next one after pint/drink.

3.    Speaking of which, if nobody with you is having beer, then it's not really a pub           crawl, it's more going from bar to bar, innit?

4.    Take turn buying rounds (we didn't follow that rule, but we're brothers, so that           gets a pass.

5.    Talk often

6.    Listen more often

7.    Have fun.