Friday, June 23, 2006

Kid stuff

The other day I told you of our trip to a streetcorner in London to find a pillar box. I didn't just drag the kids there and then home again. After our great discovery, we walked down Hendon Way to the Brent Cross shopping centre. This was a big mistake, because there's a big cross of roads. Motorways -- many-laned, pedestrian-unfriendly roads. With cars and trucks and buses zooming along! We found our way in alright, got our ice cream, and then tried to get to the Underground station. We stood outside and looked at the tangle for a few minutes before heading back into the shopping centre to find a bus to get us to the tube, and we eventually made it back down to town, despite work on the lines and key stations closed for the day.

Our new destination: the Diana playground!

This is a wonder! There is a pirate ship to climb on, even up to the crow's nest. There are little houses on stilts and teepees and gardens, and a moderate supply of water -- enough to moisten a sand castle, but not enough to get yourself soaked without considerable effort. And a million other children! Like many of these things, it should be twice the size to accommodate everyone, but then it would just be twice as busy. In any case, both kids climbed up that rope tube on the mast to get to the crow's nest, and had great fun exploring the whole thing.

Lucky me, there were also a few benches and rocks for the tuckered-out parents to sit on. I think I actually got some sock-knitting done. And after a while I discovered some large wooden sheep going across the grass.

We spent most of the afternoon there, before heading back to Kings Cross for our traditional London dinner of burger and fries before the train ride home.

I wish I could find more time for blogging, but things are getting more and more hectic here. I took Arthur's class to Kentwell Hall yesterday, and would love to show and tell about that! And just wait till the weekend, when I should have pictures of your favourite Cambridge knitters on my favourite Cambridge river, in a punt! That'll be fun, and surely multi-blogged... Stay tuned....

Added later: Ooooh, I wish I had the camera to show you what I just got! Boxes! Big empty boxes to put books and yarn and winter clothes in and then take to the post office! Lucky lucky me. Anything that can get packed away is a thrill for me these days.

1 comment:

  1. Such a great playground. We've spent many happy afternoons there.

    ReplyDelete

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