There's only so much you can do in advance. I had sorted out the Indian visa by post in early July having got the Australian visa at the end of May and decided to get Nepali and Thai visas while on the road. Any others that might be needed could be dealt with as and when the need arose.
So having nothing to do I decided to go to watch England playing India at Lords. It was the 5th day of a Test Match. Tickets were reduced because the match was practically over. In their first innings England had made their highest ever Test score against India thanks in large part to Graham Gooch's highest ever score of 333. I had been listening to the match on the radio and it sounded interesting. Given the high scoring by both sides there was a chance that India might pull off an amazing win.
I didn't have a car anymore and it was a lovely day so I decided to walk to Lords. From the top end of the Holloway Road I walked down to the Camden Road, then all the way to Camden Town and from there round Regents Park to Lords. It took a little longer than I had thought it might. I also might have left a bit later than I had intended. The probability is that I had, having nothing important to do, started the day with an exotic cheroot. The walk may therefore have been a little loose limbed. I was listening to the TMS coverage on my headphones and arrived a short time after the match had started. It was about a 4 and a half mile walk and took about 1 hour and 20 minutes. I have to say I felt quite virtuous in having walked it.
I had never been to a cricket match before. I have never been to one since. I gained admittance but was surprised to be told that before I could take my seat in the stand I would have to wait until the end of the over as if it were a play or a classical music performance. When I was finally allowed to sit down I was very disappointed. I have to say that I don't understand what all the fuss is about. From where I was (and I don't think there was a vantage point much nearer given that all the action was in the middle of the pitch) I could see hardly anything.
It made me wonder why I had not been allowed to take my seat until the break between overs. I mean, if I could hardly make out what was happening in the middle, what could they see going on in the stands? It was like watching something through the wrong end of a telescope. I did wonder why people bothered. I had been to catch a glimpse of rising young star Sachin Tendulkar. I think I did see him but from where I was sitting he seemed to be about 6" tall. After watching for a couple of hours I wrote the idea off as a mistake. Honestly, you get a better view listening to the commentary on the radio!
I walked into the West End instead. I needed some new trainers which I found on Oxford Street.
