After a timid start consisting of billiards and a movie, the week kicked off on Wednesday night at a networking event at The Collection in South Kensington.
This fashion bar/restaurant reminded me of the Fashion Club in Riga. There’s a runway element at the entrance (the one in Riga is behind the bar), the screens play Fashion TV, but unlike the Latvian Club no models were in sight on that night.
Conversations on these types of function are very easy to play out. They usually start with questions like “What school did you go to?”, “Where are you from?”, and “What do you do?” dispersed with awkward moments of silence.
As mundane as it might seem, I actually met some interesting people and swapped business cards. Unfortunately, on that night, interesting didn’t lead to more fun, as no one seemed eager to go for another round of drinks. It didn’t help that there were no other happening spots (except for Bijou) in the area.
On Thursday night, Roommate and I took our nocturnal habits to Paris. We first checked out a cool place called Point Ephémère, a warehouse along the canal Saint-Martin converted into a gallery / café / bar / concert hall (short review on The Guardian), and then moved on to Favela Chic, one of my favourite bars in Paris.
Favela is usually dynamite on Thursday nights. It’s one of the few spots in Paris, where people my age go out dancing and are not afraid of wandering off from their own circle of friends. But this time, however, I noticed the buzz wasn’t there. It turned out that most people were at le bar du coin celebrating (or moaning) the launch of Le Beaujolais Nouveau.
Friday night was a write-off. I contacted several people but only one came through at the last minute. We ended up grabbing a couple of drinks on Les Grands Boulevards, the clubbing HQ of Paris. But again, the streets were rather quiet. I suppose most stayed in to recover from the previous night.
Since this was my penultimate weekend in Europe before New Year, I couldn’t risk spending another day unamused. So I skipped the Saturday night in Paris and booked an earlier flight back to London for an emphatic night-out.
Upon arriving in the UK, I dropped my luggage home, grabbed a quick bite to eat and joined my buddies at the Hoxton Bar and Grill. I thought that this was THE place the first time I was there – no cover, few people sitting, lots of people dancing (to oldies, pop and rock music) and a good mix of guys and girls – but it’s now starting to wear off. Or maybe it was because we arrived too late, after 11pm.
(I’ve noticed that the makeup of the crowd at Hoxton B&G changes drastically during the course of the night. People seem younger and less sociable at later hours. I surmise the locals get turned off and go home early at weekends when tourists and suburbanites invade their turf.)
In the end, my final weekend in London this year just wasn’t meant to be. But that’s ok. Weeknights at mega cities are usually better. And with three nights left, I still have ample time to make up for it.
Addresses (London)
The Collection: 264 Brompton Road, www.the-collection.co.uk, South Kensington
Hoxton Bar and Grill, 2 Hoxton Square, Old Street
Addresses (Paris)
Favela Chic: 18 rue du Fbg du Temple (11e), www.favelachic.com, République
Point Éphémère : 200 quai de valmy (10e), www.pointephemere.org, Jaures
