Stamford Hill

Saturday 11, October 2008

And so we arrive in London after the most pleasant flight I can remember. It's 19 degrees, blue skies, green leaves turning russet and yellow.

In KL, after quizzing the luggage check-in guy, I ascertained that the plane would be one-third full and asked for seats at the back. We were assigned two in the last row, and no-one else came even close to us, allowing us to snaffle the whole of the back row (for me) and the one in front for Alex just as the “fasten seatbelts” sign was illuminated. We lay out full length like royalty, only raising ourselves to upright to eat the “food” or take the photos of Afghanistan you can see in Afghanistan from a mile high.

We took the Piccadilly Line from Heathrow to Manor House (another hour added to our 13 hour commute) where we’re staying at the Amhurst Lodge, in Amherst Park (Hackney). It was the the Shabbat and as we walked to the supermarket, we encountered small groups of boys, and men dressed in the costume above with great, furry shtreimel on their heads. No Hasidic women to be seen.

Amhurst Lodge: cheap and a bit smelly. Just three nights. (For Alex's review of our accommodation, click here.) Felt sorry for Jim, the proprietor, trying to be pleasantly Irish and friendly, wheezing jokes as he steadied himself in a chair. He’d carried my suitcase up the five flights. I should have heeded the travel article and left the books at home, just photocopied the relevant sections. But I absolutely needed to bring six with me. These are the ones I couldn’t leave behind: “Jane Austen: A Life”, Tomalain, Claire; “In the Steps of Jane Austen: Walking Tours of Austen’s England”, Edwards, Anne-Marie; “The Independent Walker’s Guide to Great Britain”, Booth, Frank; “The Independent Walker’s Guide to Ireland”, Booth, Frank; “A Reader’s Guide to Writer’s Britain”, Varlow, Sally; “A Driving Atlas of Britain and Ireland”. I forgot to pack the one I wanted to use tomorrow: “Time Out’s Best London Walks”.

Alex is looking forward to the London Eye, The White Tower, and I’m looking forward to walking about unencumbered by suitcases.

London photos are here.

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