It started a little like Harry Potter and Hagrid on their way to Diagon Alley with a wander in Leadenhall Markets. Max and Ruth had snuffled a table from a group of young financiers and held a spot until our arrival. These are things one learns to do in this city. Seats are at a premium and it is a case of the quick and the dead or just brazen charmers like our Max and Ruth.

We arrived and it was delightful to meet up with Ruth again after seventeen years!!!! A warm and wonderful person then and nothing seems to have changed. Has anyone else noticed how faultless English skin is and how it just tans with a whisper of the sun? Ruth and her family had been on holiday to Marseille. Instant tan! We were lucky to catch her and Max was off to the ‘flats’ of Lincolnshire the next day so doubly lucky. We fell into conversation as though time had never separated us.

Max had a plan- next stop Fen Garden. None of us had been there before, so we allowed Google to take us the long way round. Inititially it said ‘1 minute’ then the moment we hit the footpath took us an alternate way. Who knows why but we eventually located the truely beautiful rooftop garden with great views of the city. Simetimes its actually better not to be up too high as you lose proximity. This was lovely….and it was free!!!! So much free stuff in London and the Londoners know it all.

Debate about where to eat was next on the agenda and seeing John was hanging out for Chinese, it was on the tube and off to Leicester Square and Chinatown. Ruth had taken her family to Wong Kei’s before where the food was good, inexpensive and the staff questionable. We feasted!

Ruth had family commitments so we saw her to the tube and continued to party. Seven Dials, Neal’s Yard, Covent Garden: it was all hopping- even the parking officers wanted in on this vibrancy. It eventually had to end so we parted ways- Max heading North and us back to Leicester Square to catch the bus to Victoria.

We were chatting about the Shard and a local overheard us and agreed there were loads of great rooftops and viewing places. We hopped on the same bus and he introduced himself and was so eager to share his love of London. In fact we shared mobile numbers and he messaged a half a dozen places to go in the local area including a great breakfast deli which we visited the next morning. He was right!!!

The thing about London is that it is full of wonderful Londoners and that is exactly what makes this city exceptional.