What a Great Four Days

Australia all out for 190, the Poms could not contain themselves as they declared the series 'done & dusted'. Somewhat more subdued in the afternoon when McGrath had one of the greatest spells in modern cricket taking effectively 5 for 2 in 35 balls! Lord's lived up to all our expectations and more as the greatest place to experience Test cricket. In a most civilized way spectators enjoy an ambience unknown in Australia. Food is of the highest quality and beer, wine , and champagne are consumed from glass bottles in a true picnic fashion either in the stands or in beautifully maintained garden settings. Rain could not deter Australia's onslaught and we won on the fourth day by 239 runs.
As you probably heard there was an element of excitement in London whilst the cricket was underway. Unfortunately, we were involved to the extent that we could not return to our hotel as it had been cordoned off as a crime scene after a bombing scare. Our hotel is immediately adjacent to Warren St Station where the police believed a bomber had attempted to set off a charge and was in the hotel. We were transported from Lord's to a waiting position however, the cordon remained all night and we were driven to the airport and lodged in the Radisson Airport hotel. All is well that ends well but there continues to be a very high profile police presence with sirens continually heard and convoys of police vehicles speeding from one place to the other.
It has taken some while to get over the jet lag, Today we both seem better able to cope. The big drama today was being trapped in our overcrowded lift at the hotel. We had arrived at the ground floor but the doors would not open and the air in the quite small cabin was becoming hot and one lady in particular was very stressed. The frustrating thing was that we could not get the emergency phone to answer. Donna believed she could hear voices outside and she banged on the door with the heel of her shoe. Fortunately an Australian tourist heard the banging and alerted staff who prised the door open. Bit of a worry really when the emergency phone does not react!
Donna and I explored some eating houses today. The 'Mortimer Arms' produced two of the best pints of beer I've had in a long while accompanied by a great plate of chips. Tonight we ate Italian at a local restaurant. Insalata for Donna and Linguine for me set off with a Sicilian merlot was first class.
With no play tomorrow the time is ours and the plan at this stage is an open top bus tour of London where you can get off wherever you wish. Looking forward to it actually.