Gotham Gal

48 hours and counting in london

Josh and I decided another movie was in store today.  Not that there are not plenty of cultural things we could opt for, we have just both had enough. 

Our movie wasn't playing for awhile so we stopped at a pub in Leicester Square.  I had half a pint.

We split the ploughman's lunch.  I basically lived on the ploughman's lunch and ale my semester abroad.  No wonder I gained about 15 pounds when I lived here. 

Still time to kill so we went to see an exhibit at the National Gallery called Close Examinations:  Fakes, Mistakes and Discoveries.  The exhibit shows how vital science is in investigating a paintings physical properties and can determine if the piece was really made by the supposed artist.  Interesting but neither of us are big fans of art made before the mid 1800's which is really what the exhibit was about.   Outside the National Gallery has an ice cream cart.  Really good.  We shared an ice cream.

Took a look at the Maze that has been erected in Trafalgar Square.  Is Trafalgar Square every quiet?

Movie time.  We went to see Eclipse, the new Twilight film.  Yes, we did.  We knew it was going to be terrible but Josh felt he had to see it.  He read the first three books and said he bagged it when he began the fourth.  Brutally slow and the whole plot is contrived around the age old tale of two boys are in love with one girl.  She must pick between the two of them.  Ugh.  Torture.

Dinner was really delicious.  We went to Bocco di Lupo.  Great menu, great vibe.  Felt like we were somewhere in Milan.  Loved the chandelier in the back room which is the only dining room.  The rest of the dining takes place at the bar.  Small place.  Not my favorite neighborhood but perfect for pre/post-theater.

Almost everything on the menu comes small or large and notes the region.  You can order fried items a la carte.  I got mozzarella, artichokes and zucchini flowers stuffed with mozzarella and anchovy for the table.  The artichokes were beautiful.  No reason to stuff anchovy in the flowers but still good.

Jess went with the caponata, her favorite.  I really liked how chunky it was.  Delicious.

I had the salad of shaved radishes, celeriac, pecorino cheese mixed with pomegranates and truffle oil.  Excellent.  Crisp and a really nice mixture of flavors.

Fred and Em went with a ravioli.  Nettle and chard stuffed ravioli with a walnut sauce (pesto sauce using walnuts instead of basil).  Wow.  Rich and beyond good.  Josh has the chilled broad bean, zucchini and basil soup.  Simple, tasty and a nice start.

For the mains, Josh and Fred had the roast suckling pig.  A tad dry but I liked the presentation.  I would have liked to peak in the kitchen to see how they went about cutting up the pig.  Each piece was a totally different.

Em and I went with the whole grilled sea bream with lemon and oil.  Simple.  Well done.  Jess had a plate of red prawns, sea bream, langoustines and scallop crudo seasoned with a little bit of rosemary oil.

Side were cold spinach with lemon and oil.

Roast fennel with thin slices of crisp oranges and red onions.  The orange was key.  Very good.  Might have to recreate this at home.  Some cannellini beans with tomatoes and sage went around too.

Not that easy to get into.  I made the reservations when we first got here.  Not a lot of seating.  Glad we went.  Good spot.  Recommend it. 

The Class

We went to see the movie, The Class, this weekend.  I wouldn't say I loved it but it is an interesting film.  If it hadn't been for the fact that I have seen this movie in real life through the eyes of MOUSE, I might have been more intrigued vs seen that before.

The conversations around this movie could be much more interesting.  The Class is a French movie which takes place over a course of a year in an inner city school in Paris around a school, a particular teacher and a group of 14 year olds.  The kids are mostly immigrants who have arrived in Paris and French is certainly not their first language.  The class we spend the year with is French class. 

The teacher attempts at all levels to engage these kids.  His frustration level ebbs back and forth.  On one hand, he wants to transform these young citizens into thoughtful, respectful, adults yet on the other hand he isn't their parent, he is their teacher.  These kids come with their own baggage into the class and all he can really do is try and mold them and make an impact.  Try he does.

This particular situation, although not in terms of immigrants, is happening in inner city schools all around our country and bleeding out to the suburbs.  There is not enough capital flowing through the education system.  Sometime around the 70's, the system took a turn.  Our education system is missing the best and brightest teachers, the respect of the students, and the funding for books, art, physical education and top technology.  What has happened is that families with means have pulled their kids from the public education system and put them in private schools.  We've divided the system in 2.

I am a huge believer in the public education system.  The diversity in the classroom is powerful.  But, after watching the Class, you wonder if we can ever return to a place where kids want to come and learn. 

As the economy has turned sour, and more people might be wondering if they can truly afford a private education for their children, and more of these kids will return to the public school system due to lack of cash.  I put the change of schools in the parents hands of these kids who hopefully will push Government to spend more on our kids because the future is them. 

It is time for a much needed change in how we educate our kids.