Of Pirates and Dictionaries.

Walking, walking, walking up Fleet Street, my new favorite place. Think Sweeney Todd, lawyers, tiered churches, winding alleys. I walk into a side alley leading to something called the "Inner Temple," one of the four Inns of Court that function like Bar Societies in the US. And suddenly, it's 200 years ago. The maze of narrow paths twist between buildings with signs proclaiming their occupants in curling black brushstrokes: Mr Bailey, Mr Winslow, and Miss Carton, Barristers. There are small gated gardens and wrought iron fences in this mini-city within a city. There are even elegant horse-drawn carriages parallel-parked on the side of the road. But wait, even if the lawyers retain the historical integrity of their offices, there's no way they take horse-drawn carriages to work...

And then I see a sign propped against a nearby wall: "Caution: Filming in Progress. Please Be Quiet." Eagerly, I turn the corner, following a trail of signs until the street opens up into a square that looks like a market scene out of the 1700s. There are rough wooden tables covered in vegetables, whole quails hanging from racks, and oak barrels stacked under canvas tents. I find a man with an official-looking ID badge and ask what they are filming. The next Pirates of the Caribbean movie, he replies. I look around quickly, half expecting Johnny Depp to sneak up and surprise me (it's been known to happen! http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1649580/20101008/story.jhtml  )

Sadly, Mr Depp did not arrive, as the elaborate set is only meant to appear in about 3 minutes of film, with stunt doubles standing in for the stars. Oh well, it was still a highly amusing diversion on a walk filled with surprises. I love how you can just walk around London and find something new at each turn. Or something old, I suppose, as most of the treasures are historically significant. Before the Pirates adventure, I followed a series of signs that led me through a knot of tiny alleys to a small building labeled only as "Dr Johnson's House." It turns out to be the home of Ben Johnson, author of the first dictionary, a great writer and fascinating figure in the history of London, preserved to retain its 17th-century character.

"When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford." So said Ben Johnson, so proclaims the sign outside his house, and so I learn each day as I revisit my favorite places and find new ones to delight me. I miss all of you terribly, and I wish you could be here with me because there truly is something that each one of you would love.