When I tell people I’m going to London, they inevitably rattle off a list of the top 10 tourist attractions – the Tower, Big Ben, London Eye – and ask which ones I’ll be seeing there. I always laugh and tell them I haven’t a clue. What people don’t realize is that for me, London means visiting my step-daughter. She’s the main dish, and everything else is gravy. (Actually, everything else is usually cheese or chocolate when we’re together!)

The bottom line is that I fly to London to see Naomi. Like any parent, I want to make sure that he is happy, healthy and getting the most out of her life. After that, I yearn for heart to heart conversations, belly laughs and simply enjoying her companionship. She’s one of those people I can have fun doing nothing in particular with. You don’t live on a tiny island with someone for 5 years without learning how to entertain yourself (but that’s another story.)

Naomi and her husband always ask if there’s anything in particular I’d like to see in London, and while I’d love to do all sorts of touristy stuff, I tend to go blank when they say this. As I mentioned in a previous post, we usually have a picnic in Richmond Park when I’m there. (Tasty meals are always on the agenda when I visit them.)

This time, aside from fox sightings, excellent cheese and trousered turkeys, we went window-shopping (or window-licking, as they say in France) through Bricklane. Naomi shares my goofy sensibilities and love of the absurd, so the sight of this chipmunk wearing a beret stopped both of us in our tracks. We both whipped out our cameras and started snapping away. I haven’t seen her photos yet, but I’m sure they came out great. She’s quite an accomplished photographer.

I recently bought a Fodor’s guide to London, however, as well as Frommer’s, Irreverent Guide to London,so the next time I visit my son-in-law and Naomi, I will be prepared!