Table for one please: a day trip around London and Lichtenstein

This Monday I decided to treat myself to a fun-filled day in London by myself. Apart from getting over the initial shyness around ordering breakfast for one, the pleasures of travelling alone far outweigh the downsides.

I started the day wishing my best friend farewell in Sunningdale and hopping on the 8am train to London Waterloo. Starting with breakfast at The Table in Southwark, this breakfast spot was the perfect spot to grab some breakfast between Waterloo and Tate Modern. Jess and Ben introduced me to this little place a few years ago and I've been craving their salmon and eggs ever since. I had salmon and scrambled eggs with a cuppa and it was a great way to start the day. I highly recommend The Table for breakfast - It's wooden and cream with a light and airy feel and they serve everything for breakfast from pancakes and granola (this did look really good too) to a full English breakfast. It's not cheap at £12 for my breakfast and tea but worth a treat trip when you're in the area.

After polishing off my food I headed to the Lichtenstein: A Retrospective exhibition at the Tate Modern. The exhibition was busy (as expected - they were warning two hour queues the previous day!) but bearable and the exhibition itself was much better than I expected. Lichtenstein's pieces up close are really cleverly thought out and certainly not the 'copies' I originally thought them to be. I was initially drawn to the exhibition because of the reviews; I have enjoyed Lichtenstein pieces in the past but would never have considered myself a 'big fan'.

The exhibition was very well curated, with specific themes in each room (Black and White, War and Romance, Landscapes, Art about Art, Nudes, etc.). The War and Romance room was my favourite and had a real buzz around pieces in the room. The pieces were cleverly juxtapositioned next to each other with paintings of crashing planes next to weeping women. Here's a panoramic view of the room.

I hadn't really come across the black and white work before and I really liked these - even if they are of every day items like radios and diaries there was something very stylised and appealing about them. I didn't particularly rate Lichtenstein's landscapes as I found them quite flat and lifeless - he really needs something to focus on in his pieces to give them a focal point, rather than landscapes.

I find it interesting that Lichtenstein didn't use nudes when painting pictures of nude women - he used cartoon strips and 'imagined' the women naked. I found the nude paintings some of his more interesting paintings as I'd not seen them before. The exhibition is worth a visit (especially if you can go when it's a bit quieter). It's great if you've got a National Art Pass as you can get in for £7, rather than the usual £14.

Moving on I went for a walk along the South Bank to head towards The Light Show at The Hayward Gallery. The show was incredible but I'll write about it in another post as it was so good! I popped along to Covent Garden for a spot of shopping but nothing much to report there- just some nice photos!

I finished off my day with a trip to The Photographers' Gallery just off Oxford Street. It always surprises me how quiet this gallery is considering its proximity to the hustle and bustle of all the shops on Oxford Street. I always enjoy a trip to this gallery but sadly nothing much to report on this time. There was a small exhibition of collage but I've definitely seen better shows here - a least it gave me a chance to swoon over the pretty lomo cameras!