The Capital has so much to offer and I can see why it acts like a magnet to the young, affluent or rich. One has to ignore the cost of everything for example I had a bacon sandwich in a very popular cafe (they were waiting outside in the cold for a table) which cost as much as the steak and dumpling stew I had in a pub the previous night.

<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/PSX_20180121_112208.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-4745" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/PSX_20180121_112208-123x300.jpg" alt="" width="123" height="300" /></a>First off was a visit to the <a href="https://courtauld.ac.uk/gallery" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Courtauld</a> gallery at Somerset House. This is an unbelievable gem of a gallery because there are so many familiar art works from all the major artists. I was there specifically to see the <a href="https://courtauld.ac.uk/gallery/what-on/exhibitions-displays/soutine" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Soutine</a> portrait exhibition. He is famous for his depiction of staff working in hotels and restaurants. He manages through these images to show their shyness and humility as they consider themselves to be servants and almost unworthy to be captured as a painting.

It is strange how he still manages to capture the essence of the person despite most of the image being distorted.

&nbsp;

<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/PSX_20180121_112223.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-4744" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/PSX_20180121_112223-236x300.jpg" alt="" width="236" height="300" /></a>After lunch we walked from Somerset House to the National Portrait Gallery to see the <a href="https://www.npg.org.uk/whatson/cezanne-portraits/exhibition/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cezanne Portrait exhibition</a>. A strange collection of portraits many of himself or his wife. I find it interesting that rarely, if ever, anyone smiles in portraits. I don't understand why not, maybe because it's difficult to capture a smile, artists can't paint teeth or it looks if held in a pose for too long it becomes an inane grin.

I particularly liked this pipe smoking farm worker resting his head on his hand looking particularly bored.

It was a fascinating exhibition of works for which Cezanne is not famous.

<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Antony-Cleopatra-RSC-RST-11.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-4741" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Antony-Cleopatra-RSC-RST-11-247x300.jpg" alt="" width="247" height="300" /></a>And so for the evening's entertainment and for me the highlight of the weekend a visit to the Barbican to see Antony and Cleopatra by the RSC.

Outstanding doesn't cover what happened over the ensuing three hours. Superb orchestration, incredible acting and of course the Shakespeare script.

I'd forgotten it was the final performance and when it came to the curtain call many of the actors were in tears because it was the end of something they really enjoyed doing. I walked out stunned...