Background Notes

Have Glass Slippers, Will Travel...

Researching Have Glass Slippers, Will Travel was more fun than I had any right to expect.  I went to London for a week on my own and wandered from sight to sight, trying to find all those places where the "in" crowd hung out, and where the "aristos" and stars walked their dogs or looked at art or bought their clothes.

Alas, I don't know that I saw a single famous person -- or if I did, they looked like everyone else.  But the great fun was in exploring London on foot, with the occasional help of the Tube and the inexpensive walking tours given by London Walks.  And having a book to research, I had a reason to go places I wouldn't have otherwise, like the so-trendy hotel where they don't put the address or the name anywhere on the building.  You just have to know that that's it!  Fortunately, I had the address and so could figure out which building it was based on the numbers of the buildings to either side.  The staff were happy to answer questions I had about the private (and tiny) nightclub inside, just as the clerks at hoity toity boutiques were happy to answer questions about the women who shopped there and did naughty things like return garments after wearing them once.  I soon got over my nervousness about asking questions as I realized that the people who work in the fancy-schmancy places are, after all, just regular people like you and me.   

The rebuilt Globe Theater, on the
South Bank of the Thames. 
I saw a matinee production of "A
Midsummer Night's Dream" there. 
Oy, I was glad I'd rented a cushion
for my tush.  The benches are hard!

The view from the walkway atop St. Paul's Cathedral. 
That's the Thames, and the Millennium Bridge -
a pedestrian bridge - crossing it.  The tall tower is part of
the Tate Modern, which is housed in an old power station.
The Globe is to the left (the white building with the brown roof).