Sunday 13th August 2023
The great thing about having good friends that live in any specific place is that they have access to things otherwise unknown. Today was one such times when my friend had a colleague set up a Canal walk and food experience on Meet-up.
Meet-up is a very useful tool to do all sorts of different things and it's simply a matter of plucking the courage to join one of the (often free) events. I attended a few different ones in Johannesburg but had honestly forgotten about it here, so was very pleased to be reminded about it all.
Our small group gathered near to where we met our different friend yesterday and we waved at her building, as she tended the client in her care. Nearby this building was a nondescript passage which took us to to the canal path. There were a few mansions alongside the pathway and we all gasped at the size of them. Barges, boats, ducks and cyclists all passed us as we walked along the water. It was a perfect day for a walk with a bit of cloud but enough breeze to keep us comfortable.
The Regents Canal passes through the London Zoo grounds and we didn't see any monkeys in their enclosure but we did spot a hyena (pun intended) lol. The Canal itself is over 13km long but we were only doing about 7km of it. London is a fascinating place with the River Thames having been a main source of livelihood throughout the ages. The waterways were a form of transportation and business, with the early canals being used in 1700s. Regents Canal has been operational over 200 years. The last horse drawn commercial traffic was carried in 1956 and ten years later railways took all of the traffic.
Today we saw many houseboats, moored, and all sorts of leisurely pursuits being enjoyed. I find it all fascinating. We stopped for food at the Camden market which was daunting due to the sheer volume of people and not enough seats. We hovered on a railing eating some chicken strip and then met up with the group again.
After squeezing through a mass of power saw the late Amy Winehouse statue and then headed back for the quiet Canal path to get to the modern area near Kings Cross. We had some lovely unusual conversations and a good laugh or three and completely peopled out. After a helpful security guy came to our direction rescue, my friend and I parted ways on the tube again with happy hearts and throbbing feet.
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