Photo Pest: Arrival in London

Sunday, October 23, 2022

Arrival in London

After checking in with Chris at our comfy Airbnb in Chelsea, a stone's throw from the River Thames, Thom and I headed for Portobello Road. It was my first visit to London since 2016 and my Oyster card still worked! But Thom had no trouble tapping his AmEx card to ride the Tube.

Flea markets aren't normally my thing, but we had fun. I found a couple of nice gifts and bought a pillow cover for my bed at the Folly.

A jazz combo performed.

These artists were using a broom and their feet to paint a very large canvas while soliciting pedestrian input.

I hope to see a real Banksy in Shoreditch before we leave.

Can it really be more than 20 years ago that Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant introduced Notting Hill to an international audience? Back then, gentrification didn't seem like such a dirty word.

The poshness isn't ubiquitous, however.

We met this group of Eastern Europeans while stopping for a drink at The Mitre. Marian, a Romanian painter on the far right (literally AND figuratively) had plenty to say about England as his land of opportunity, although he's also glad his ten-year-old son is growing up back home "where the forests are still wild."

Despite three previous trips to London, including childhood and after college graduation, I don't think I'd ever seen Kensington Gardens.

It isn't hard to find the statue of a very slim, 18-year-old Queen Victoria in her coronation robes. She's surrounded by a moat.

The statue of Princess Diana, commissioned by her sons and unveiled just a little more than a year ago, was a different story altogether. We asked three different people. You can't get nearly as close to her and the three figures who represent her commitment to children.

Benny Hill yukked it up in this fine example of Palladian architecture on Queen's Gate for more than 25 years.

Nissan must not have marketed this vintage (1991) Figarol in the United States. They could have done a collab with Pepto Bismol!

Despite the loss of five hours due to the time change and taking a double decker bus to Portobello Road, Thom and I still managed to walk nearly ten miles and do some grocery shopping. We may rent bikes if the good weather keeps up.