Storyline: 50 years later
Yes, we just dashed through London, which was not in our focus for this trip. There will be another time with a different budget, we hope.
We stayed near the Northeast corner of Kensington Gardens and enjoyed our long walks through the parks and beautiful gardens all the way to the river and further. We walked to everywhere every day we had, as we do wherever we go – rain, snow or 47C heat.
April 27
Yesterday London was nice, showing us its best side. In general, cold and impersonal to us, it was so photogenic that we could not stop taking photos.
Alex couldn’t stop snapping birds in the parks and Diana could not hold off snapping clouds and airplanes embedded in the them.
The dark skies threatening to wash us away at any moment contrasted to the bubbly white cumulus, and some blue skies in between were magical.
We walked through the gardens (Kensington and Hyde Park), stopped by the Canadian memorial in Green Park across from Buckingham Palace,
waved to the queen (she probably wasn’t watching, as Eastenders was on TV), swung to Trafalgar square, saluted Canada House,
ate in the café in the crypt of St. Martins in the Fields church and decided against the free concert due to time constraints (the acoustics were fantastic though),
crossed over Golden Jubilee Bridges, walked to London Eye
and then walked by the river all the way to Tower Bridge.
Took the tour on the top of the bridge with spectacular views (including a glass floor) and continued our walk on the north side of the river.
By that time the Tower of London was closed for the day, but we ran into a fantastic place on the river for our light dinner. What a great idea these Plexiglas igloos are! On a cold and very windy, but clear day we enjoyed the views, the river and London life over a jug of white sangria.
Walked all the way back to our hotel at the Northeast corner of Kensington garden (the Queen was watching something else on TV as we passed by).
Glad we spend the day walking. Today the city was transformed back to a soggy, gray and dull one (although not as grey as Manchester) with occasional splashes of color provided by a red double-decker or a telephone booth, but we still managed to wend our way through Paddington, Mayfair and Soho
to the National Gallery and the British Museum, and spend some time with the Rosetta Stone and incredible Masters.
All before trudging soggily back via Hyde Park and encountering a flock of curious and nibbling parakeets (both our hands have marks on them from the curious birds’ strong beaks and Alex has needle tracks up one leg where a squirrel tried to walk up his pants…but they are so cute and tame) and tending to Diana’s blistered feet (between the two days we’ve walked around 50km). Tomorrow is our last full day here, and we’ll decide on the agenda in the morning when we see what the changeable weather brings us.
And so… the next day was soggy too. We are glad we had a really nice first day. All in all, we had a great yet very short time in London. Our hotel was nice – great location and good buffet breakfast. We usually fill up at breakfast when we stay in hotels, so we only have one other large shared meal during the day.
We looked for affordable places to eat and there were plenty and really good, including the lunch in the church recommended by a friend of Alex. The café in the crypt of St. Martins in the Fields church was simply the best advice we were given for our walks. It was about an hour’s walk from our hotel and with our frequent photo stops it was a perfect location for a light lunch, coffee and bio-break. Food was inexpensive and good.
The dinner (shared rainbow trout, veggies and fries, washed with sangria) at Coppa Club restaurant igloo cabins by the river was delicious. Could not have found a better place for that day.
The Duck & Waffle Local sheltered us from the pouring rain for a while next day with duck confit leg and duck fat fries.
The photographers were hungry, so you’ll have to believe the empty plates.
Last day we popped into the very busy “Las Iguanas” on the south bank of the river and given the crowds we did not expect much. However, there too we were surprised by fantastic food.
Last evening, we stayed close to home and dined at the restaurant of the Corus Hotel Hyde Park. Again, it did not disappoint. Good wine, great sea food and desert.
And so, we’ll be back, knowing that we can find great and affordable places to eat, tons of free museums to visit and lovely parks to stroll in. And we know we’ve barely scratched the surface.
This is our last post from “50 years later” tracing Alex’s childhood memories – a storyline which began with one of our first blog posts “It was about time”. I can’t believe it took us 6 months to finish it.
Alex:
And how was it to visit my homeland for the first time since I was just a teenager? Well, as with many experiences, it was not exactly as expected. Reconnecting with my cousins and meeting their families was absolutely great, as was being back in the Lake District – despite the (normal and expected) inclement weather. Manchester and environs were ho hum. And I don’t need to revisit that area again – there are so many other great destinations in the UK. But one thing in particular was exactly as expected. England is not home for me. While I am happy to have roots there, I am Canadian now. Canada is home and where I feel I belong.
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