Versatile Barnes. Valldemossa revisited.

Three buses drove me to work this morning.
Here are pictures from Bus 65, the first one:
South Ealing   

 

Between Richmond and East Sheen, Bus 33:



In Barnes, Bus 209 
...
It was hard work and hostile conditions: bad smell from the basement which hadn't been cleared for a good few years creating perfect mold habitat, and which someone from the headquarters turned up to sort out just today. Hence, both the front and the back door had to be open wide exposing us to constant draft. Enough complaining though...
Finally a lunch break came and I stormed out into the fresh air heading for the best bench (with armrests) by the Barnes Pond. As soon as I sat down and even before I took out my homemade sandwich, all the birds headed towards me. To their disappointment, I had not a crumb to offer them and they soon walked or rather waddled away.

 

Badly needing coffee, I headed for the OSO (The Old Sorting office Arts Centre) by the aforementioned pond. (Inconveniently, the establishment next to the shop was closed.) In the OSO window I noticed an interesting invitation:


It brought back memories of a visit to a village of Valldemossa in Majorca in the footsteps of Fryderyk Chopin and George Sand with her two children who went there in search of a better climate: 'In the 1830s the Spanish government confiscated monasteries, and the historic estate was sold to private owners, who have since hosted some prominent guests. These have included the Polish composer Frédéric Chopin and his lover the pioneering French writer George Sand,^[1] who wrote a notable account of A Winter in Majorca, describing their 1838–39 visit and praising the island's natural beauty, but criticizing what she perceived as the prejudice and vices of the natives.' (Wikipedia).

Valldemossa... A beautiful place... Forced to stay in, I reached for some old pictures to share here. I'm glad we went at the beginning of May when it's not so hot.

Look! Frederic Chopin and George Sand are here!

Then you get distracted by a view and...

 the couple has disappeared...

Now back to Barnes:
With a cup of coffee I looked around to find a seat. There was a choice between a table with many chairs or a coffee table with a leather-like settee. Chair appealed to me more. As soon as I sat by the table, a large group arrived to occupy the settee. One man approached me asking if I needed the other chairs. I didn't. Soon it turned out that the group were not just hanging around there. They were making a film!
 

The twelve minutes allocated to my coffee drinking was soon over, but I may find some more information about the Barnes film-makers in my mailbox! I shall share it with you, that's a promise.

What else will I mention about the day in Barnes?

The best Halloween shop window I've seen so far this year:

Mr Pickwick arrived at the above shop today:

A picture of Warsaw Old Town is waiting for a new owner there:

There is yet another Polish reference among today's pictures: a book cover:

The book author, Isaac Bashewis Singer, was a Polish-born  Jewish-American writer who wrote in Yiddish. Look at a few illustrations:
    

This object looks intriguing, doesn't it?
 

French version of a book about my ever-favourite bear:



And yet another book: a guide to... beards!


Two books about cats:
 

And a dog hoping to share a pizza with his owner:



I had to dash back to work and thus cannot tell you who ate the pizza!