Whenever I visit family, they ask what I want to see. They worry that I have already seen everything interesting but is that even possible? I remind them that I don’t come that often so don’t necessarily remember everything, even if I have been there before. Also, there’s always new stuff to explore and discover. I discover new stuff walking Sadie each day and we have been walking pretty similar routes for the past 9 years.
Today we headed into London and to Canary Wharf. I had seen Canary Wharf from a distance but had never been there, so this was all new!
Everyone plays the role of tour guide a bit differently. My Uncle Hugh is the tour guide I aspire to be. He has so many bits of information about so many different things and usually has the patience to answer all my questions (and there are always many). He often starts by telling me that there’s “just a bit of history to start”. Unlike me, I don’t think he ever makes up answers when taking me around. It is not unheard of for me to invent a little information when I don’t know the exact answer, especially when doing a tour in a language other than English! 🙂
In order to get into the city we took the new Elizabeth Line. It was so sparkly and brand-new! It is London’s first accessible railway, running 100km and stopping at 41 stations (though not all are accessible or ready yet). It only opened in May so it was pretty cool to be able to ride on it. Each train has 9 walk-through cars; there were very few people on it when we got on so I tried to get a photo through, but was not overly successful.
We were headed to Crossrail Place Roof garden. First we crossed over the footbridge which was an experience in itself. So many photo opportunities- the colours and lights were awesome. As you wandered through, the colours changed and the light changed. I imagine it looks different at different times of the day as the light changes. There was a tropical garden to wander through and at the end there was a short story station where you could choose to print a short story of 1-, 3- and 5- minute reading times. I chose a 5-minute story called Maisie’s Quest for the train ride home. I love that they were graphic texts and that they were just the beginning of the story. You had to scan a QR code if you wanted to read the rest. And of course they stopped the story in just the right spot so you were left hanging and wanting to know what happened to Maisie!
What’s a wander around an area without some statue hunting? I love a “posable” statue, one I can incorporate myself into it. I was fortunate that my relatives were not only willing to find a couple of statues with me but also patient while I tried to strike a pose. My excitement was obviously infectious as soon everyone was posing with a statue. We wandered by the water, checked out the buildings and watched the people. I love some good people watching!
We took a stroll along West India Quay and decided to go into the Museum of London Docklands. So much to read and learn… just a bit of history! There were some interactive exhibits and of course I was happy to volunteer to try them out.
One of my favourite GIFs at work is the one where there are two hamsters on the wheel and they are running around and one gets thrown off. How excited was I to see the hamster wheel in the museum?(though I am not sure that was what it was called) I jumped in, tried to get it moving, felt like I was going to flip upside down but managed to rotate the wheel enough that I lifted the container. I exited ready to cheer and celebrate but could barely stand! Luckily the video wouldn’t upload.
We had done a good bit of walking and worked up an appetite so headed to The Big Easy for some American barbecue. There was so much food- we were all a bit exhausted by the end of our meal. Competition is a wonderful motivator and so knowing what our steps and kilometers walked were the previous day, we were not going to be outdone. We dusted ourselves off after our meal and headed out to find the traffic light art sculpture. How fantastic! Talk about confusion- you wouldn’t know which light was meant for you.
For a change of scenery on our way back home we headed to Lesnes Abbey, which was the ruins of an abbey. There was a huge wooded area and gardens. Just a little bit of history first… it was built to atone for the murder of Thomas Beckett. Someone was obviously feeling very guilty. What a construction! I loved the monks’ garden and the wooden sculptures that could be found around the park. It was a great space! It made me think about how much there is to explore even in my own neighbourhood.
After such a busy day we all hunkered down to watch some telly, capped off with a little Coronation Street before heading to bed.
And so this ended my visit with this set of relatives. Just as I settle in to a place and get comfortable, the time comes to pack up again and move on. So much family, so little time! How blessed am I?
Memoirs of a Wannabe World Traveller 