England, Day 11: Miss Saigon and Le Beaujolais

I will fall asleep tonight thinking again about Vietnam. And why, you might ask, would the SconeLady be thinking of such? Hasn't it been a very long time, and weren't we all just glad to be clear of it? Maybe, but I can't help it right now because we just saw the London production of Miss Saigon. No one who experiences that can just fall asleep willy-nilly. 

I am one of the lucky ones who got to see the original production, starring Lea Solanga in the early 1990s. It was so powerful that I thought of it for ages afterward. Friend Rosie went to it with me then, and we went together again today. If you don't know the story, it helps a bit to know that it follows along the themes of Madam Butterfly, and is just as touching. 

To see a London production of anything is to see excellence. The matinee lasted 3 hours including the Interval, and it all was so intense as to be certainly exhausting for the cast. They then had to go almost straight back and do it all over again. That is dedication. And it felt to us as though they did it all especially just for us. That is originality.

We wandered the London streets afterward, discussing this, until it was time to meet the family at Le Beaujolais Club. Le Beaujolais Club, dear Readers, is a Club of all clubs - with a superb menu and a welcoming, hugging, laughing proprieter. A truly superior human being! From the appetizers to the cheeses at the end, there was nothing we needed that did not make its way to our table.

And now - sleep. I will be thinking of

• a young Vietnamese girl who fell in love with a GI
• a loud and amazing helicopter that seemed to fly straight over us and onto the stage
• an audience that was as amazed and shocked by it all as we were
• the wonderful people I then shared a meal with
• their wonderful young people
• the imminent arrival of the SconeLady's husband (!)

This last will be the sweetest of all the exciting things that are going to happen on this beauty of a trip! It A massive privilege.

So here's to wonderful trips filled with interest, and kindness, and generosity. And best of all, here's to the advent of the SconeLady's husband!

See you along the way!

the SconeLady