DO NOT USE LIFT IN CASE OF FIRE
It amuses me, anyway, even if it doesn’t quite come up to the high
standards of semiotic ambiguity set by DOGS MUST BE
CARRIED, seen next to the escalators on the London
Underground.
I’ve had three days of very mild debauchery in Dusseldorf. Nothing too
extreme, but in a Champions League week that featured critical 2nd legs
for 4 British teams, it was impossible to avoid the siren calls from
McLaughlin’s Irish Bar in the Altstadt with its 3 large TV screens,
each showing a different game. I spent yesterday evening there, barely
knowing which way to turn. Eventually I found a spot in the corner from
where I could see both the Arsenal-Real Madrid and Liverpool-Benfica
games almost simultaneously. And with a 90 degree swivel, could even
get an update from the AC Milan – Bayern Munich contest which, to the
great delight of the Germans in the bar, Bayern lost 4-1.
For the benefit of anyone reading this in future centuries, I’ll
mention that Arsenal made it through to the quarter finals, while
Liverpool and Bayern didn’t, joining Chelsea and Rangers in that big
dustbin upon which is scrawled: Oh how the mighty have
fallen, and look how unhappy we are, Hee Hee!
Had Chelsea won on Tuesday, I’d have picked up £120, with a
further £600 if they’d gone on to win the competition. It’s
my annual insurance policy against them collecting the prize they are
so desperate to win. The premium isn’t that high if you put it on early
enough. What a pleasure it is to lose my money.
Despite the Guinness and pizza last night, or perhaps because of it, I
managed to get out for a decent run this afternoon after work. Being an
hour ahead, there’s an hour more daylight to take advantage of here. I
managed nearly 6 miles on a footpath alongside the Rhine, the river
that flows through the heart of this city. Since my wine trade days,
I’ve had an over-romanticised view of the Rhine. I used to salivate
over all that stuff about the precipitous vineyards coating the
sun-baked slopes alongside the river.
Here in Dusseldorf it makes a more functional contribution to the life
of the community, being a well-used thoroughfare for naval and cargo
boats, and the odd pleasure steamer. Still, it’s a daunting sight in
this handsome city, and it made a fine travelling companion for my 6
mile trip. Better than the many other runners out today, so few of whom
returned my hearty Shearer salutes.
The good news is that neither of my twinges made a reappearance.
The suspense continues.
