England

“Too often travel, instead of broadening the mind, merely lengthens the conversation.” – Elizabeth Drew
We arrived at 5:30am (thanks flight scheduling) into a grey foggy Heathrow. After a flurry of WhatsApp calls we found our driver for the trip to Highgate. She was Eastern European and did the driving jobs to support her studies. Nice electric SUV.
Warm welcome by Sue and Blaise. Ursula acclimatised by socialising and a couple of local walks. Tony, for the first time ever feeling poorly after the flight, rested for several hours. Sue: “You looked grey faced with blue blotches”.
Thursday 2 May. On our first full day in London we completed our Regents Canal walk. The canal runs from Little Venice to Limehouse Basin on the Thames River. We have done 2 previous sections on other trips. Remaining is Islington to Limehouse, right near the apartment in which we used to live.
There was a little interesting back-tracking and bus travel before we finally found the towpath. Then it was a lovely long walk featuring the canal, locks, a stop for a really nicely made flat white coffee, varied and new housing, lots of narrow boats, long stretches of lovely parks, lots of cyclists and joggers. Walked past our former apartment at Limehouse to Canary Wharf for lunch. Then back home via DLR and bus. We much prefer the slower and cheaper bus over the tube. MUCH more scenic, especially from the big front windows up the top.
Dinner out with Blaise and Sue at 500 Restaurant. Sounds much classier in Italian – Cinquecento. It is named after the famous Fiat 500. Had a delicious meal there last time we were in London (2017). The restaurant is Sardinian. Caught the bus there and back. Too much to eat. Too much to drink. Perfect. Food still as good.
Friday 3 May. Grey miserable looking day. After the usual healthy and stimulating breakfast we set off to the Science Museum. (Stimulating because Blaise introduced us to Worldle, another brain game to add to our Waffle and Wordle morning warmups.) For the museum you have to pre-book online because of the large number of tourists. Went by tube this morning and realised why we prefer the bus.
At South Kensington there is a long tunnel leading to the museum precincts. Full of tourists but protected from the steady but light rain.
Fascinating few hours here. 3 floors of exhibits. We looked at Science City (1550-1800), Mathematics, Information Age, Flight, and the Energy Revolution. Could have stayed all day.
Lunch at a café in South Kensington. Whole area was heaving with people. In the evening Sue had invited daughter Jo and Andrew for dinner. Lovely food and very interesting conversation. Late finish.
On Saturday, 4th May we bussed to Westminster. Walked across the Thames at Lambeth Bridge and along the South Bank walk. The VERY LONG national Covid Memorial Wall lines much of the walk. About 239,000 children and young adults died, and there is a small red heart painted for each one. We were stopped by the seething wall of humanity caused by Westminster itself and The Eye. The uniformed man Tony spoke to said £45 for a ticket ($85.41 Aus). The web says £30 if you book in advance. Further away from the river the crowds die out and we found Archbishop’s Park. Green, peaceful with people playing tennis, hockey and football.
We are meeting Patrick and Margaret (whom we met on a cycling holiday in France in 1994!) for lunch at the Garden Café in the Garden Museum. Green peaceful setting like the park. Lovely food. Nice to catch up with old friends. Afterwards we had a good look around the museum. Margaret and Tony climbed the 131 steps to the top of the tower. Spectacular views, somewhat cheaper than The Eye.
Tomorrow, Northern Ireland.Read more

Day out at the Tottenham Stadium to see the latest instalment of the North London Derby (& get to use my season ticket) - a pilgrimage I've made for over 50 years.

Of course it's not about the result it's all about the experience (probably just as well as we lost 2-3!)Read more