The planes were all on time, and landing in Heathrow I was more than happy that I’d elected to spend less time in London that day. I was wiped out. I’ve never really been able to sleep on planes, and today was no different. It was going to be a good day though… we were in London in the early morning and in Terminal #2 of Heathrow… which means one of my favorite restaurants…
The Perfectionists’ Café was first recommended to me by a stranger on a flight to London. They said if I liked eggs that I would be floored by the eggs benedict offerings (they have many) at this restaurant, and they were right! I stop here every time I fly through Heathrow if I have time, and today we had a few hours. I was traveling with my friend from work, Mike, and I was excited to share the restaurant with him. Some of my favorite moments with good food is sharing the hidden gems I’ve found with others and this place is no exception!
I had the eggs Florentine, my staple, and a side of delicious sausage, and finished it all down with a few cappuccinos to hopefully keep me up until I got through to Ireland. From there we stopped at the Aer Lingus lounge, another staple of my trips to Heathrow, and we relaxed for a few hours there until it was time to board our flight. Another quick hop into the air, and we landed in Cork, Ireland.
No matter how many times I fly into Ireland, the amount of green that you see always surprises me. Maybe it’s just that everywhere is so much greener than Colorado where I spend most of my time… I’m not really sure, but I love it. We landed and went straight to the hotel. I was tired!
We took some time to relax and settle in before heading down to the bar. Mike and I both grabbed a drink, and soon I was teaching him how to play the card game cribbage at the table with a deck of cards he brought. I asked if the bar had a board, something which in the US would almost always be answered by pulling an old, dusty Cribbage board out from behind the bar, but not at the River Lee. Moreover, I would come to find out, most of the Irish I asked had never heard of the game at all. I found out later it’s a British game, so perhaps on principle it’s never spread there… but honestly Ireland you are missing out. You can still play without the board, but tracking points becomes less fun without the tactile progress!
A view of Cork from The River Lee Hotel
I called it an early night, and went up to the hotel room to iron my clothes for the week, and get some shuteye after a very long day of travel.
