Cannot quite believe we are sitting in Merchant Square, right next to our boat in Paddington Basin, watching Wimbledon on a big outdoor screen!! Our friend K in the long orange carrot boat is moored at Kings Cross and said that when she arrived, she took her boat right through a Wimbledon outdoor screening!! It’s such fun being right in the heart of London and arriving in the capital on the boat felt incredibly exciting.
The members of the Hillingdon boat club were very welcoming and we enjoyed a fun club evening with them. Ji was particularly helpful, setting me up with electricity and showing me the ropes. When he realised the issue I had with my bent stern strut he offered to try straightening it in the workshop along with the bent coupling. Both he managed to do, thus saving me the necessity of returning the strut to Melton Mowbray for replacement and then having to collect it from there a few days later. A logistical nightmare without the car! Discovering Ji had a passion for milk chocolate with caramel I set off to find both a sweetie shop and a shop selling mattress toppers as Ho suggested the dinette bed would benefit from one. Four miles later, a couple of downpours and I was back at the boat with my purchases, so relieved to see the pram cover looking shipshape!
I enjoyed being at the HBC so much I stayed an extra night, forgetting that it would take between 6 and 7 hours to arrive at Paddington Basin. It meant leaving before 7am on Friday morning and getting daughter Ho out of bed in order to work the only lock en route, which was shortly after we started the journey. Ho was keen to see how it was done as she has charge of the boat next week. It was a fine morning and traveling along the cut after turning left at Bulls Bridge, I was amazed at how much open countryside there is.
Arriving at Alperton, we were joined by my neice, over from Japan and her toddler, our youngest guest to date. I was thankful for the canvas barrier we now have in place encircling the stern, but even so we all had to keep a careful watch on Ka. We were drawing straws as to who would jump in after Ka, should he end up in the water. I said I was too old, his mum is expecting a baby, so it was Ho who was designated as lifesaver! Fortunately no such drama arose and we were all fascinated at seeing London from a canal perspective. There was a lot of wall art which cheered up many of the concrete expanses lining the canalside. Arriving in the basin itself I was cheered to see how attractive it was, thinking that it may have looked tired and run down. We are moored directly outside an M&S food store and there are numerous eateries, many of them afloat.
The reason for our timed arrival was our younger daughter’s birthday party which she was combining with a screen showing of a short film she has recently produced. Sprucing ourselves up, Ho and I set off for a bus that would take us all the way to Bow, a journey of an hour and a half and we appreciated the sights of London from the top of the double decker! Returning later on the bus with R we discovered many of the gates into Paddington Basin were locked at 11pm so it took a while to relocate the boat!
Yesterday we walked to family near Regent’s Park for brunch and then to Pall Mall for tea with R’s school friend who emigrated to Australia many years ago. A frequent visitor to the UK, this was his first visit home since covid so it was very special catching up with him. We hadn’t appreciated there would be an enormous gay pride march walking through Picadilly as we tried to make our way on foot to Pall Mall. It was quite complicated finding back streets that would get us past the march and with R’s knee still giving him pain I didn’t want him to walk further than necessary. Even if we had wanted to take the tube, that was also closed. I am sure for many, the atmosphere of crowds supporting their passion of a worthy cause make for an exciting day out, but personally I feel intimidated in that situation and was mightily relieved when we managed to reach our end destination. By the time we left, the march was over and although still busy, we were able to easily walk back to the boat. Mi came with us and we went on a short trip before darkness fell and then shared a venison casserole I had cooked previously in my non electric Ecopot slow cooker. I was relieved that it had actually worked!!
So today, a day of rest, watching Wimbledon outside on a big screen. It’s fairly nerve wracking as I’m watching Cameron Norrie, the last remaining Brit in the draw. Thus, I don’t feel particularly relaxed but it’s a great way to spend the afternoon!
NarrowboatTLC 