Anyone who has ever travelled with me will know I have my days planned down to the nth degree. It is always go, go, go and I’m sure it feels like you need a holiday to recover from the holiday. This trip has started out pretty much as usual for me, but I’ve started to ease off and listen to my mind and body when I need to. Today was meant to be long walking and busy but with my foot still giving me considerable grief, it was more of a choose your own adventure day.
The morning started with an English breakfast at a local family owned cafe - Valencia’s. Just reading the reviews I knew it was going to be good, and I loved that it was basic and no frills. For just under 10 quid I had two slices of toast, an egg, three rashes of bacon a sausage, baked beans and grilled tomato, sided with an orange juice. Suitable dates for the time being, it was a short walk to Euston station for a train and a bus to the Warner Bros Studio Tour.
This is the third time I’ve done the Harry Potter tour and there has been something new each time. This visit I could walk through Privet Drive, the greenhouses (and pick mandrakes) and through Gringott’s bank which is the most opulent and detailed set on the lot. Spent about three hours there before heading back to the hotel for a quick break and then off to do a spot of shopping as the heat here has been a little too much for the clothes I brought with me.
Witnessed a spat between a cyclist and a motorcyclist that resulted in the motorcyclist revving his bike and driving it into the cyclist to make her move. Thankfully she was ok, but a bit shaken by the encounter.
Ambled around the city and found the Florence Nightingale Museum which was a really insightful look into the mother of nursing and her story. Walked from there over Westminster Bridge, said a quick “hi” to the Houses of Parliament, got a photo of the clock sans scaffolding and made my way back to the studio, using a bit of public transport as my foot wasn’t coping well with the walking - the irony is not lost on me that I will be walking 990km soon, with a foot that isn’t happy walking 5k!
However, after some tears of frustration much self-doubt, and a fair bit of googling, I strapped my foot with the kinesiology tape I brought with me and jumped on the tube ready for the night’s adventure.
Ted Lasso fans would recognise Nick Mohammed as Nate from the series, others may know him from 8 Out of 10 Cats. His stand up gig, The Best and Worst of Mr Swallow, was absolutely brilliant, funny, self-deprecating and worth every cent I paid for the ticket. If you Google his memory card trick you can see part of the magic that was his show - he memorised the entire deck of cards and identifiedone card that had been removed - absolutely mind-blowing!
Finally time to head home and I debated between PT and walking. Given my foot felt good in the new strapping, I walked the 2.5k home through the darkened streets - feeling safe through most of the journey, given how much foot traffic there is in London at 10pm. The foot has held up (although the blister on my other foot was a surprise when I took off my shoes!)
And so to bed and ready for tomorrow’s adventure, whatever that may be.
Take care of those feet Sue
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