With more than a little trepidation, I decided to join Keeley on a bike tour of London. Angela had recommended Big Fat Tyre Tours to Keeley, so we thought we'd give it a go. It couldn't be worse than walking, or could it? I haven't ridden a bike for years- well apart from the stationary ones at gym- so I didn't know how I'd go.
We met up with our tour guide, an Aussie guy from Sydney, just outside Queensway Tube Station, and I was encouraged that many of the group were about my age. I can do this! We walked down to the bike garage and each of us chose a bike. I chose a lovely silver one, but was totally embarrassed to find that I had great difficulty tin getting my foot over the bar. ( No, it wasn't a boy's bike!) It's at times like these that you realise how much mobility you've lost without even noticing.
I had to put the pretty silver bike back and drag an ugly orange thing with a lower bar out of the garage. As luck would have it, it turned out to be the most comfortable bike of the lot as it had a very wide comfortable seat and I managed the whole four and a half hour tour without any butt bruising.
Off we rode into Kensington Gardens, stopped to take a peek at Kensington Palace, Princess Diana's home which was nothing special from the outside, and then right through Hyde Park to Apsley Gate. We had to dismount to cross the road to Green Park with monuments celebrating English victories in historical battles, as well as those from more modern times, and then on to St James' Park. Riding through the parks was fantastic, and being a Sunday many of the roads we rode on were closed to traffic too. We saw Buckingham Palace, St James Palace, Clarence House, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament, the Churchill War Rooms, Trafalgar Square and Nelson's Column, National Art Gallery, st Martins-in-the-Field and heard some interesting stories about each.
Keeley and I lunched at The Chandos (see photos) and enjoyed a pint as well. Of course, we were the last ones to join our group after lunch. The only slightly terrifying part of the day was riding on the road (with traffic) from St James' Park to Westminster Abbey. The funniest part of the day was Keeley making fun of me using the bike like a scooter and somehow losing her footing on the pedals and coming off her bike just as we were crossing at the lights- not a good place to come off your bike. She regained her composure and continued laughing, but at herself this time. That was karma!
We had a wonderful day together, and the "negative nelly" at the end of the day was Keeley and her bruised bum! She's still whingeing today! :-) Amazingly, I was not sore anywhere, so thought we'd finish the day with a ride on the London Eye. It was full daylight when we descended the tube at Queensway and pitch black when we emerged at Waterloo. We managed to find the Eye ( how could you miss it, you ask?), bought tickets and lined up. Luckily we only had about 30 seconds to wait before the next capsule was ready for boarding.
I'm getting really brave in my old age, and not so nervous about things going up in the air, as long as no one rocks the boat so to speak. The lights of London were never-ending, stretching for miles and miles,and there was even a fireworks display just for us as we reached the topmost point. Keeley refused to take a photo -"who hasn't seen fireworks before?" but everyone else did. Beneath us were the Christmas markets, very prettily lit with millions of fairy lights.
We skipped dinner at the nearest cafe ( fish and chips were £12!), hopped on the tube to Kennington - just one station away, but boy, am I glad we didn't walk! We thought we'd grab a bite to eat at the pub on the way home. The "pub" turned out to be an Asian restaurant, but beggars can't be choosers. Keeley's not fond of Asian food, but I love it. Keeley ordered vegetable tempura and fried rice, and I chose the scallops and prawns in sake washed down with a glass of vino. Delicious! (see photo) And so to bed. Asleep by 8!
We met up with our tour guide, an Aussie guy from Sydney, just outside Queensway Tube Station, and I was encouraged that many of the group were about my age. I can do this! We walked down to the bike garage and each of us chose a bike. I chose a lovely silver one, but was totally embarrassed to find that I had great difficulty tin getting my foot over the bar. ( No, it wasn't a boy's bike!) It's at times like these that you realise how much mobility you've lost without even noticing.
I had to put the pretty silver bike back and drag an ugly orange thing with a lower bar out of the garage. As luck would have it, it turned out to be the most comfortable bike of the lot as it had a very wide comfortable seat and I managed the whole four and a half hour tour without any butt bruising.
Off we rode into Kensington Gardens, stopped to take a peek at Kensington Palace, Princess Diana's home which was nothing special from the outside, and then right through Hyde Park to Apsley Gate. We had to dismount to cross the road to Green Park with monuments celebrating English victories in historical battles, as well as those from more modern times, and then on to St James' Park. Riding through the parks was fantastic, and being a Sunday many of the roads we rode on were closed to traffic too. We saw Buckingham Palace, St James Palace, Clarence House, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament, the Churchill War Rooms, Trafalgar Square and Nelson's Column, National Art Gallery, st Martins-in-the-Field and heard some interesting stories about each.
Keeley and I lunched at The Chandos (see photos) and enjoyed a pint as well. Of course, we were the last ones to join our group after lunch. The only slightly terrifying part of the day was riding on the road (with traffic) from St James' Park to Westminster Abbey. The funniest part of the day was Keeley making fun of me using the bike like a scooter and somehow losing her footing on the pedals and coming off her bike just as we were crossing at the lights- not a good place to come off your bike. She regained her composure and continued laughing, but at herself this time. That was karma!
We had a wonderful day together, and the "negative nelly" at the end of the day was Keeley and her bruised bum! She's still whingeing today! :-) Amazingly, I was not sore anywhere, so thought we'd finish the day with a ride on the London Eye. It was full daylight when we descended the tube at Queensway and pitch black when we emerged at Waterloo. We managed to find the Eye ( how could you miss it, you ask?), bought tickets and lined up. Luckily we only had about 30 seconds to wait before the next capsule was ready for boarding.
I'm getting really brave in my old age, and not so nervous about things going up in the air, as long as no one rocks the boat so to speak. The lights of London were never-ending, stretching for miles and miles,and there was even a fireworks display just for us as we reached the topmost point. Keeley refused to take a photo -"who hasn't seen fireworks before?" but everyone else did. Beneath us were the Christmas markets, very prettily lit with millions of fairy lights.
We skipped dinner at the nearest cafe ( fish and chips were £12!), hopped on the tube to Kennington - just one station away, but boy, am I glad we didn't walk! We thought we'd grab a bite to eat at the pub on the way home. The "pub" turned out to be an Asian restaurant, but beggars can't be choosers. Keeley's not fond of Asian food, but I love it. Keeley ordered vegetable tempura and fried rice, and I chose the scallops and prawns in sake washed down with a glass of vino. Delicious! (see photo) And so to bed. Asleep by 8!
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