Day 16 - The Hobbit Hole gets a cleaning

As you can tell from the title, we have another exciting day planned.  Tomorrow we leave for Bath, more about that later, which means today we need to bring order to chaos and pack.  Hubby and I are both squirrels.  We pack everything.  You know, like ticket stubs and the receipt for the sandwiches we ate on the train, etc.  Little snips of paper can be found just about anywhere, sometimes where you least expect them.  We've been here just a little over two weeks and you'd think we'd lived here for a month.  I'd take a picture, but I don't want to scare you.

Anyway, I'd like the place to be a bit more organized before we leave it for a few days, especially since we'll only be back from Bath for one day before we take off again, this time for Edinburgh.  So, while hubby goes out to roam the streets of London, I'll stay behind and clean.  Fun, fun, fun.

We have one glass-topped table in the flat and the bathroom walls are covered in mirrors.  First discovery.  Just because a product claims to be "smear free" doesn't mean it won't leave streaks.  The flat had two cleaners that promoted a "streak-free" or sparkling shine.  One left so many streaks I had difficulty seeing the mirror beneath it.  That one is "Mr. Muscle" made by.... ta da.... SC Johnson (a US company).  The second one actually did what it promised, "Tesco's Window and Glass Cleaner."  So, I had to use Tesco to clean up what Mr. Muscle left behind.  Typical.  I'll bet Mr. Muscle is related to Mr. Clean.

The kitchen comes with a stainless steel sink, which shows water stains very easily.  The sink polish did a fair job of removing them.  Lastly, their Pledge product came in a liquid that need to be diluted with water, rather than a spray.  Unfortunately, I really didn't have a good applicator for the wood floors, but I found a flat sponge cloth to use on the two wood tables.  It also did a fair job of cleaning and polishing.

All-in-all, I'm pleased with the results.  The place smells like Pledge right now, which isn't a bad scent to live with.  So, on to what hubby managed to accomplish today as he ran amok and unsupervised throughout the city.  Like many other cities, London is filled with numerous memorials and statues.  His first stop was to take a picture of the Edith Cavell statue in St. Martin's place at Trafalgar Square.

Edith Cavell statue

If you've never heard of her, Edith Cavell was a British nurse and patriot celebrated for saving the lives of soldiers from all sides without distinction, and in helping some 200 Allied soldiers escape from German-occupied Belgium during World War I, for which she was arrested. She was subsequently court-martialled, found guilty of treason, and sentenced to death. Despite international pressure for mercy, she was shot by a German firing squad. Her execution received worldwide condemnation and extensive press coverage.

Moving on, hubby captured a picture of the statue of George Washington in front of the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square.  Don't think I need to tell you who he was.  Right?

Next came a picture of the fourth plinth at Trafalgar Square, taken from an angle that included St.Martins in the Fields church and the National Gallery.  Over the past several years the Fourth Plinth in the northwest corner of Trafalgar Square has become home to some of the world’s most innovative artworks. The plinth was originally designed by Sir Charles Barry in 1841 to display an equestrian statue, however due to insufficient funds the statue was never completed. In 1998 – over one hundred and fifty years later – the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce commissioned three contemporary sculptures.  Since then the fourth plinth has been the base for many "unusual" creations.  Not sure what the rooster is meant to represent.  A wake-up call, maybe?

The Fourth Plinth at Trafalgar Square

Next hubby captured Nelson's column, also at Trafalgar Square, which was built to commemorate Admiral Horatio Nelson, who died at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. The monument was constructed between 1840 and 1843 to a design by William Railton at a cost of £47,000. The column is built from Dartmoor granite, the Craigleith sandstone statue of Nelson is by E. H. Baily, and the four bronze lions on the base, added in 1867, were designed by Sir Edwin Landseer.  The pedestal is decorated with four bronze relief panels, each 18 feet (5.5 m) square, cast from captured French guns. They depict three battles and the death of Nelson at Trafalgar.

Nelson's Column

The advertising plastered on the sides of London buses usually promotes soon-to-be-released movies and popular West End musicals.  However, there was one that captured our attention, and we thought we'd share it with you.  Succinct and to the point.

Continuing his walk, hubby next captured the Crimean War Memorial that commemorates the Allied victory in the Crimean War of 1853-56. Unveiled in 1861, it consisted of the statues of three Guardsmen, with a female allegorical figure referred to as Honor. Like the panels on Nelson's column, the figures on this memorial were cast in bronze from the cannons captured at the siege of Sevastopol. The sculptor was John Bell.

Crimean War Memorial

Lastly, as he turned back to the flat, hubby captured the front of the St. Martin theatre where the longest running play in London (perhaps the world) is still playing.  Agathie Christie's Mousetrap celebrated its 60th year in 2012.  We saw it in 2010, and at the end, they make you swear not to tell the ending so that others can be as surprised as you were.  Long standing tradition.

Mousetrap at St. Martins Theatre

He did manage to procure his next free CD in the Daily Mail collection, with the last one being offered on tomorrow.  We'll need to find it before we leave for Bath, which already means an early wake-up call for us.  Something we tend to avoid.  Both of us tend to be nightowls.  We'll be riding the train to Bath where we'll meet the owner of the flat we booked there.  We're supposed to have wi-fi and we're returning on Sunday.  So, if everything goes well, I'll be posting each day.  If not, I'll catch everyone up on Sunday.  But that's it for today.