Friday and our last full day in London. The light leaking around the blinds suggested a bright morning as we sank our respective cuppas.
There was just one place of interest on the agenda today, one that had been on my list for a long while. Mid morning we set off, accompanied by a packed lunch of sausage baguettes and bananas, on a journey that would involve two bus rides, the first being the now usual one down the hill to Sydenham station.
Thereafter the Overground, the two tube rides, before another bus brought us to our destination - a small industrial estate in Walthamstow. I take Sandra to all the best places you know!
Sandra continues:
"Richard had mentioned wanting to visit God's Own Junkyard some time ago and I was not sure where or what it entailed. Some online research only proved to catch my interest. It is certainly quirky and its location in the middle of a small industrial estate adds to its charm. There is a small cafe which serves the most delicious homemade cake, tea, coffee and alcoholic beverages."
God's Own Junkyard is basically a collection of old neon signs, created by Chris Bracey over 37 years. Chris was the go to man for neon signs back in the day, supplying film and TV as well as shops of all kinds. The collection is a gem of retro lighting and was well worth the trek:
Sandra:
"We returned back to Patsy for our evening meal of sausage casserole, again homemade by Richard, and had a little rest. Earlier in the day one of the wardens at Crystal Palace site and a friend of mine visited the caravan and invited Richard and I for drinks that evening with her and her husband. We had originally planned to make a short visit to the fairground further up the road but upon the invitation decided that it would keep for another time.
We made our way up to the wardens accommodation and spent several very pleasant hours putting the world to rights and catching up with each other. It was soon time to call it a night as we wished to make an early start the following morning back to storage and on to Brighton."
It was a lovely evening and interesting to hear about things from the other side of the fence as it were, particularly how the full timers manage the maximum 21 nights in one go rule. We also got an insight into the wranglings over the sites' future - as I've mentioned before, the site has been under the threat of closure since the original lease ran out in 2018. Bromley council want to flog off the land for housing and have been granting only short leases since. Another party had recently got involved, some members of which were in favour of the site staying open, citing the considerable income generated from visitors. At the time of our visit the site was due to close for good (again) in December but at the last minute another reprieve was granted, so it stays open for another year at least.
Sandra:
"We woke nice and early and after a quick breakfast and the usual cup of tea was soon hitched up and on the road by 8am. We had a very uneventful journey down the M23 and arrived at the storage in good time. We managed to park Patsy and unload her relatively easy and were soon on our way back to the flat."
As usual the early departure paid off, avoiding the inevitable heavy traffic on the Purley Way later on. We paused at the nearby Sainsbury's to pick up a couple of lamb shanks for dinner and were soon back in Saltdean. Unloading was much easier as Sandra was able to stand guard in the lobby and once upstairs the first load of washing was soon on, the lamb shanks prepared and put in the slow cooker for later. Sandra ran me to the college sports ground to pick up my minibus ready for Monday and I was lucky to get my preferred parking spot, out of the way behind the row of shops. Whilst I don't mind it being more visible over night I'm keen to have it as out of sight as possible over the weekend - not for the risk of damage but folk are less likely to complain. I've been fortunate in that regard so far but big vehicles parked in residential areas do get people's backs up.
Sandra:
"Sunday morning duly arrived and it was time to head north again. As I mentioned at the beginning of this account, I was unable to use the normal trains and had therefore to go along the coast to Portsmouth, head northwest to Newport South Wales and then due north back to the North West. Fortunately the return trip went smoothly for the most part, my assistance working well again, despite trains being way too small for the number of passengers. In summary I enjoyed a fabulous autumn break, great company, food and entertainment along the way. Thank you Richard."
Thank you Sandra and to everyone who has taken the time to read this, it's much appreciated.
Until the next time.
Rich