Lots of London

 Hello again!

Since my last post I've been to London three time for three different occasions hence the title of the post.  But before I tell you about them, let me take you back to a fortnight ago.

The weather has definitely turned into autumnal mode. It's quite chilly in the mornings and the last Wednesday where I left you was a very blustery day but by the afternoon pleasantly warm. I took middle grandson to Kempston on Wednesday morning as he had a job interview there. I went into Barnardo's and had a chat with the manager while I waited for him to finish. I said I'd treat him to breakfast when he was finished and asked him to choose where he wanted to go. Yes, you've guessed it; he wanted a Maccy D's breakfast. I had a cheese and egg Mcmuffin and the coffee was pretty good. It's been years since I'd been to a McDonald's. Then it was home to put on my walking boots and recce the third option for my Rambler's walk.

This was Thursday's outfit. I wore jeans and a loose shirt on Wednesday to walk in; plus a rain mac and a scarf. The scarf came off but the mac remained. I decided this would be the route I for my Rambler's walk in November; 7.5 miles with no climbs, stiles or kissing gates and only one ploughed field to cross.

First day wearing tights and boots. Everything pre-loved except the boots from Sainsbury's, I think. Skirt by M&S; shirt by Etam (remember them?) and sleeveless top by Dorothy Perkins. It had fringing on it but I cut it off. I don't like fringing very much on my clothing.

All jewellery pre-loved.

I went for the usual 46 lap swim on Thursday morning and got chatting to a woman (who swims in the fast lane) and manages 60 laps in the allotted hour! After a shower and a hair wash at the pool; it was home for breakfast and to get ready for the weekly food shopping trip. We'd lit the fire a couple of evenings and had very little coal left, so once again it's that time of year where I go to the farm shop at Sharnbrook for coal and kindling. Then off to Lidl and finally Sainsbury's for a couple of bits including lemon and ginger tea which cousin Marian introduced me to in Ireland. I'm still doing the IF; on week 6 by this point, and the lemon and ginger tea is refreshing in the fasting period if I want a hot drink. I haven't lost any more weight and seem to have come to a stasis. I made dinner for both grandsons and took the youngest to basket ball practice.

Friday was the unofficial bus walk day. We met at Jordan's Mill in Broom near Biggleswade and walked 5.3 miles along the river Ivel. We passed a dog training centre, below:

One of the many interesting things about walking in the countryside are the lovely old farm buildings. Below is one such example we passed. The walk leader believed the chimney was used when animal feed was prepared for the animals on this now defunct farm. It's unusual to see a stone chimney next to a wooden building and you can see below they're connected by a pipe.

We finished the walk with coffee and cake. I stopped at Sandy on the way back and had a quick look around their 4 charity shops. I found some fleecey PJ bottoms for the winter and a winter dress. 

It's been in the news constantly that this September was the warmest ever recorded and I have to say October seemed to be following in September's footsteps. Warm and sunny everyday so far even if the day started out much cooler. I needed bird food supplies and stopped at Home Bargains on the way home and stocked up on toothpaste etc.

Saturday was also a beautifully warm and sunny day; which was wonderful as my daughter and I were going to London to recce a walk. It didn't start well. We got to the station and there were engineering works; that meant going to Hitchin and catching a train to London from there. Once we arrived at King's Cross we had difficulty getting to Waterloo where we had planned to take an overground train to Syon Lane; and walk from there to Strawberry Hill in Twickenham along the river Thames. Unfortunately, the dreaded engineering works phenomenon struck again at Waterloo station so we could couldn't do the route we wanted. I should have checked before we left but we were determined to make the most of the day we had left.

Refusing to be daunted by transport hitches we took the tube to Regent's Park and decided to walk along Regent's Canal to Little Venice and along the Grand Union Canal.

I wore this outfit with my walking boots that don't really match the outfit, but were necessary for making sure my PF didn't flare up; I'm glad to say my feet were fine all day. Top; pre-loved; as were the walking boots and all jewellery; loose cropped white jeans; retail from Primarni. We walked 8.6 miles in total, including a diversion to Zara in Oxford Street (absolute hell; huge crowds and very noisy). From there we walked to Soho (more crowds and noise) to the grandson's restaurant (he's the manager; he doesn't own it) where we had a delicious vegan meal. We were home by 8.30 and I was pretty worn out so much so that I slept in on Sunday morning and missed my morning swimming session! Bugger.

The south, east and most of the west side of Regent's Park are lined with elegant white stucco terraces of houses designed by John Nash and Decimus Burton.

Regent's Park Mosque.

On the north side of the park is Regent's Canal where we descended stairs to reach it.

At various points along the canal were permanently moored narrow boats which had formed little communities. You can see in the photo below, to the right of my daughter on the tow path; the small outdoor garden spaces the narrow boat occupants had made. Some had planted tropical plants like banana plants and one had a huge agave planted in a old water tank.

We didn't make it as far as Little Venice. At one point we had to leave the canal tow path and climb up some stairs to road level; before long we reached a junction with Edgware Rd where we hopped on a bus to Marble Arch and then walked along Oxford Street.

Over the front entrance of Selfridges. I'm not sure if the stars are part of the Christmas decorations or not.They were all over Oxford Street. It's not unusual for local councils to erect their Christmas decorations in October...

 

I bought my first pair of earrings here in Selfridges in 1970 having just got my ears pierced for my 16th birthday; they were stud earrings made of red metal in the shape of a rose and were 15 shillings in old money - 75p today...

I spotted several blue plaques but only photographed these two.

This humble looking pump on Broadwick Street in Soho (a replica) was responsible for a major discovery by Dr. John Snow of one of the causes of contagious illness . In this case this pump handle was discovered to be the cause of a cholera outbreak in London in 1854 that killed over 600 people. You can read more about it HERE.

Another effort to wear more of the remaining summer clothes in the wardrobe that hadn't been worn this year. Everything pre-loved except the sandals by Doc Martens. Skirt bought in an Oxford charity shop; shirt by Glamorous and sequinned knitted top by Dorothy Perkins.

All jewellery pre-loved.

I had planned that Sunday would be a day OH and I went out somewhere instead of doing the usual housework and cooking dinner. It's good to change up the routine sometimes. I'd booked for us to go to Peckover House; a National Trust property in Wisbech in Cambridgeshire but once again things didn't go to plan. Instead, we paid a second visit to Anglesey Abbey; also in Cambridgeshire but closer to us. When we visited previously during one of the lock downs the house wasn't open to the public but now it was. It was another beautiful day, too.

Anglesey Abbey. 

Originally, it was the Chapter House of an Augustinian Priory founded in 1135. Following the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII in the 1500s; it was owned by various people with changes made to the property with each owner. The house was left to the National Trust by Lord Fairhaven; the final owner who bought the house in 1926.

The rear of the house and where we exited.

Lord Fairhaven was the grandson of Henry Rogers, the Vice President of Standard Oil; and one of the richest men ever in the history of the USA. His passion for collecting fine art and antiques can be seen throughout the house. He bought the house along with his brother as a country home for its proximity to their racing stud in Newmarket.

Part of the entrance hall.

 Two living rooms; one with a cosy seating area under a window (below).

The library.

A cabinet of curiosities.

Miniatures

Was I imagining it or did this portrait of James V's wife, Mary Guise (mother of Mary, Queen of Scots) bear a striking resemblance to Saiorse Ronan; the Irish actor?

You can see the monastic origins here in the dining room.

Two beautiful items from the living rooms. The carving on these cupboard doors was several inches deep!

Staircase. 

Almost every wall was hung with huge tapestries; probably to keep the cold out...there was also a huge collection of very dark and gloomy paintings. Lord Fairhaven was very smitten with Windsor Castle and the upstairs gallery has the biggest collections of paintings of Windsor Castle and its environs in the country. They were also very dark and gloomy!

My favourite rooms in National Trust types of properties are the bedrooms; the bathrooms and the kitchens. I like to get up close and personal to the habits of our forbears and to see where; if any of my ancestors ever did work in service; the places where they might have worked...

The family bathroom and the gentlemen's loo on the left.

This was the only room with a double bed. Lord Fairhaven never married.

This was just one of several kitchens.

The pantry.

I'd never seen one of these before. For Lord Fairhaven's buttonholes I assume? If there was a lady of the house; which there wasn't, I'm guessing it could be used for flower arrangements. 

Anglesey Abbey has 114 acres of seasonal formal gardens, woodland paths and wildflower meadows which we've explored before HERE in 2020. I hadn't noticed this before though!

We tried to get a cup of tea in the cafe but the place was heaving. The unexpected good weather had brought people out in their droves. Once we were back in Bedford we stopped at a pub and had a meal, so no cooking or washing up for us this Sunday...

This was Monday's outfit. Pre-loved Indian dress bought from the 3:16 charity shop a few weeks back. I didn't think I'd get a chance to wear it. It was greatly admired by the Indian women who work in and run the salon where I get my eyebrows done. I went there after volunteering at Barnardo's in the morning. I went to every charity shop in the town looking for more books in the Cormoran Strike series for my daughter who had just begun the first book in the series. I had 2 of the books already and I found a further 2 for her. When I got home I made a chicken stew for dinner and caught up with blogs and blogging.

Sandals; retail by Monsoon and all jewellery pre-loved. What a beautifully warm and pleasant day Monday was. The nights were closing in; it starts to get dark from about 6.30 pm and by 7 pm full darkness descends.

The Indian summer we'd been experiencing had kept the flowers in the garden blooming. The stocks still had flowers, the sinetti still had some flowers. The nasturtiums had two flowerings; the bargain begonias I bought in QD were still looking magnificent. Even the courgette plant Lynne gave me from her allotment had produced more courgette flowers.

Look at this variegated dahlia. The only one in a pot of yellow dahlias.

Fewer flowers but now in its third month of flowering.

Back to the food bank on Tuesday. Still no Celia. It seems the Covid infection had knocked her for six and she was still not feeling well enough to come in. Another volunteer came in to help us so I spent most of the morning putting toiletries away and organising them in a space efficient way. We thought we might have been moving to new premises this week but it's looking more like November, now...

Everything pre-loved. Trousers home made and found in 3:16 charity shop; top by Pepperberry via Barnardo's and shoes by Clark's.

All jewellery pre-loved.

As we'd be at OH's mum's funeral all day and evening on Thursday and the swimming pool would be closed on Sunday morning for a swimming event; I had booked my swims for the week on Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning. The pool was quite empty at first on Tuesday but then emptied out just leaving me and 2 others in the slow lane right until the end. I swam my 46 laps and then went to Aldi to do some of the weekly food shopping. I'd do the rest of the food shopping in Lidl on Wednesday afternoon. I also went to the Castle Road charity shops looking for a couple of books for my daughter but didn't find any more. I forgot to tell you that my daughter successfully passed her Master's degree.  She got the results last week; I'm very proud of her.

I started Wednesday with a swim moving into the medium lane as the slow lane was very crowded. Once I was home and ready I went to do the Lidl and Sainsbury's shop. When OH got home we packed an overnight bag each and I drove us down the motorway in heavy rain to cousin Marian's house. We were staying overnight with her in London and making our way from her house in Hendon to OH's mum's funeral in Willesden a few miles down the road on Thursday morning. It was lovely to see Marian and her family and have a catch up. We're planning a day out together early in November. Everything I wore on Wednesday was pre-loved except the sandals and the black denim jacket. I had tried to find a black denim jacket for months in the charity shops but couldn't find one. I bet now I'm not looking for one, one will turn up! Trousers by Next and tunic/dress by Vegas. All jewellery pre-loved.

The funeral was both joyful and sad and went on all day. We arrived home at 9 pm. This was the grave covered with flowers.

 

Some of the grandsons filled  in the grave. All the family wore white. I didn't take any other photos as it didn't feel appropriate. RIP Mum.

On Friday there was an official bus walk; but only 5 of us turned up. We met at the bus station and took a bus to Great Barford; a village about 3 miles outside of Bedford in the direction of Cambridge. From there we walked back to Bedford mostly along the river Great Ouse; a distance of 8 miles. 

This lovely thatched cottage in  Great Barford had an unusual thatcher's signature on the top. Not one I'd seen before; two dogs. With their long ears I suspect they might be spaniels.

This house caught my attention because all the top floor windows were bricked in. Why? Possibly due to the window tax in England introduced in 1696 and repealed in 1851. Or for aesthetic reasons as 'blind' windows have formed part of European architecture since the medieval period. There are several new houses in the village of Great Denham that have 'blind windows' like this.

Walking towards Great Barford church.

We picked up the river at Great Barford bridge and followed it until we got to:

The Danish Camp where I had Earl Grey tea and a scone with clotted cream and jam.

The Historical Environment Record entry describes the Danish camp as 'the remains of of a double island moated site and associated dock next to the River Great Ouse'. The site was known as the Danish Dock or Danish camp as  Danes/Vikings were known to be active in the area using the river Great Ouse to attack Bedford. SOURCE.  You can book a boat trip to Bedford from here complete with a cream tea - Wednesday's only.

Saturday was ex mum-in-law's 90th birthday. We had a marvellous day and she thoroughly enjoyed it. I made a cauliflower and chickpea curry and some pasta with pesto to take with us to East London where she lives. It was lovely to see sister's and brother in-law; their children and grand children. Here's birthday lady with some of her descendants including two of my grandsons:

 

Some of the grandchildren and great grandchildren. 

I wore this Next pleather skirt, M&S top; leather jacket by Gerry Weber; all pre-loved as was all jewellery. Boots retail; Sainsbury's.

My sister-in-law Dawn came back to Bedford with me to spend a few days.

Barnardo's on Monday was fairly quiet; I was on the till and processed donations all morning. I found a warm winter dressing gown for my son. In the afternoon I took Dawn to Newport Pagnell for a rummage as she was going to South Africa in December; it will be  the height of their summer and she needed some more light weight clothing. I may have found a few things for me...

I wore this outfit on Tuesday to the food bank. Everything pre-loved except boots. Trousers by Zara; jumper by Gap; jacket and boots as before. All jewellery pre-loved. Only me and Lynne at the food bank and we worked hard to make up all the food parcels that were needed. Once I was home Dawn and I drove to Clophill; a village about 8 miles outside of Bedford, to meet up with an ex-work colleague of mine from the university. We had a lovely lunch and it was great to see Yvonne again. She'd like to come walking with me so we've made plans to do that soon.

That was my fortnight. How's yours been?