Tuesday 29 May 2018

Spring Wind in London





It was a bank holiday weekend in Ireland so Michael and I decided to hop across to London.  James and Amber were in Australia attending a wedding and they kindly let us stay in their apartment.  It turned out that we couldn’t have chosen a better weekend, as the weather was absolutely glorious – sunshine and temperatures in the high 20’s.
We began our Saturday with a canal walk to the Broadway Market for breakfast. It is always good there and we enjoyed grazing our way along the various food stalls.  It was such a lovely day that we decided to return to the canal and head over to Little Venice where the Canalway Cavalcade was being held.  It took us most of the day to saunter along with the crowds of people and we detoured along the way to visit Queen Mary’s Rose Garden. 

The garden was looking lovely with the roses budding however it was a little early for them to be in bloom.  We arrived in Little Venice to see the brightly decorated canal boats, over 100 of them, and people of all ages enjoying the sunshine. 

There were stalls, live music, street food and children’s activities.  Michael and I had a walk around before finding a place to sit and enjoy our first Pimm’s of the weekend.  It was great to be back in London.  
The following day I fulfilled my promise to take Michael to see the artwork at Kenwood House.  We finally arrived by a circuitous route, having got lost a number of times along the way.  It didn’t matter though, as it was another beautiful day and we enjoyed rambling across Hampstead Heath.    I was correct when I predicted that Michael would love the house and artworks and we spent a while exploring all that was on offer.  We finished with a walk around the grounds and the gardens were beautiful with bluebells carpeting the area.  It really is a lovely place to visit. 

 

We walked back through the heath and surrounding streets to Kentish Town to the Bull and Gate where we enjoyed a fabulous roast dinner.  Michael and I, feeling refreshed after our meal, set off along the canal to the Camden Markets. 


This turned out not to be one of our better ideas, as it seemed that the entire population of London had the same idea.  The crowds were horrendous, and after pushing our way through for a while, we decided that we would give up and have a drink at the Camden Head before heading for home.
Michael and I met his godmother, Margaret, the following morning at Victoria Station.  It has been nearly 18 months since we last saw her, and it was lovely to spend the day together.  Michael suggested that we head over to Gordon’s Wine Bar near Charing Cross station, in the hope that we could claim a coveted table outside.  I was doubtful, as I thought that on such a glorious day, everyone else would have the same idea, however I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was not crowded at all.  The bar is thought to be the oldest wine bar in London with a fabulous history behind it. 

We spent a lovely couple of hours eating, drinking and chatting in the sunshine before making our way across to the outdoor Café in the Crypt at St Martin-in-the-Fields where we enjoyed a final cup of coffee before returning to Victoria Station so that Margaret could catch the train home.