KONG TO COCTEAU

Last night we dined at  'Mr Kong', one of the numerous chinese restaurants in Soho's Lisle Street.  It is located near to a gabled building, which was until recently. the St Johns Hospital for Diseases of the Skin. Now it houses the 'Slug and lettuce' pub.

We ate a good meal. It consisted of: crispy seaweed, razor clam, hot and sour soup, roast pork with garlic shoots (these look like thin green beans), fried mussels in black bean sauce, and deep fried salted aubergine and tofu. The latter, a vegetarian dish, was as delicately fried as the best Japanese tempura. It is one of the dishes on Mr Kong's special vegetarian menu. I could not decide which I enjoyed more - the mussels or the 'veg' dish. In any case, this restaurant has been one of the best in London's China Town since it opened in 1984.

A short lane leads from Lisle Street to Leicester Square. Almost next door to the Prince Charles cinema and surmounted by the flags of the francophone nations is the main entrance to Notre Dame de France, a French Roman Catholic church. After climbing a few stairs, the circular church opens up in front of you.

On the left side of the high altar, at ninety degrees to it, there is a side chapel that contains a wonderful surprise.

The walls surrounding the altar, whose front is decorated with a mosaic by Boris Anrep (1883-1969), are covered with a mural depicting the Crucifixion. This was drawn on the wall by Jean Cocteau in 1960. It is an unusual crucifixion because the only parts of Christ that have been drawn are his nailed feet and the lower part of his legs.

Now, why not read  "ROGUE OF ROUXVILLE" ?

Dicing with debt, Jakob Klein struggles to support his growing family. He'll stop at nothing to achieve this. His dubious business ethics inevitably lead him into trouble with the law. He is imprisoned. His family have to flee from the small town in the Orange Free State, where they have lived. 

What wll become of them, and of Jakob? Will they ever be reunited? 

Read all about it in Adam Yamey's historical novel "ROGUE OF ROUXVILLE", available on AMAZON (Click HERE FOR KINDLE)  and also on www.lulu.com (Click HERE FOR PAPERBACK ) .

For more details, click HERE