PUB FINERY

British pubs have a thing about flowers.  Nearly every pub is adorned with foliage and hanging baskets.  The ones that aren't are sure to be gloomy inside in my opinion.  We will pass them right by.  The ones that are seem welcoming and cheerful. And pub food is always a treat for someone who goes to Britain as seldom as I.  I don't know whether the riot of color is a sign of a tastier ale or half-pint.  But the tonic and lime, diet Coke and bitter lemon are uniformly good. This trip, our Fall Excellent Adventure as I decided to call it, I took bunches of photos of glorious pubs.  After all, there's no room to bring home souvenirs.

Some say the naming of pubs began with the Romans, others not until the Middle Ages.  Since most people couldn't read, signs were the best means of communication:  a shoe for a cobbler, a Coat-of-Arms or Rose and Crown, perhaps for an Inn.  And because the water could make anyone sick, it was good to know where to find a fermented replacement. Since every neighborhood has a pub--the local--and we lived in Bloomsbury on Mecklenburg Square many years ago, we too "have a pub."  Called The Lamb, the original meaning allegedly referred to Christ as the Lamb of God, back when all things, even a watering hole for a pint, had Christian associations.  Then again, it could have meant that sheep were once herded down the way since the street is called Lamb's Conduit.  But the most likely name source is William Lambe, who donated money for a water cistern and pipe. So much for romance. 

We remember when pubs smelled of cigarettes; you could barely see the blossoms for the haze.  But now in the spots where ordinary working folk (and we visitors) go, the fragrance and charm are not obscured.  People can sit outdoors or in and have an affordable meal and drink on virtually every corner where the rainy days and nights of Britain give a lushness to every blooming plant. 

I'm sure there's a downside.  Promoting alcohol is not a good thing.  But the greenery is a bright addition to some otherwise admittedly uninteresting urban sidewalks where the trash pickup may be spotty or late.  

What I'll do with these beguiling photos I'm not sure, but I've already an array of creative ideas.  I'm hoping that one or two of them won't be too hard.                    Nina Naomi