Going in Circles

You might recall that when we sailed to London, I reflected that Max might have been just as happy with a travelcard and a day on the tube. Yesterday, we tested that hypothesis.

Gesa had an appointment in London, and I needed to look after the kids. The easy solution was to go with her on the train and amuse them in the city for a couple of hours, especially as my Network Railcard means that it's only another ten quid for all of us to go.
So we cycled down to the staion and caught the fast train to Kings Cross. Gesa wanted to have lunch somewhere 'like a pavement cafe' so I suggested we went over to Liverpool Street. It's four stops on the circle line, during which I hatched the crazy plan to ride the whole circle line and show Issie and Max each mainline rail station that we went through. Max thought Liverpool Street was cool, so this plan just might work...





First, lunch, and in the office complex just outside the station, there is an arena area where someone had set up a dirt circle and were giving animal shows. We saw Western Cowboy horse riding and some bizarre dog show where the trainer and dog do a synchronised dance routine to 'Cotton Eye Joe'. You had to be there - we'll show you the video if you come round.

After lunch, Gesa headed off across town, and we rode on. We had already passed, without stopping, Farringdon and Moorgate, but they are just Thameslink stations so it dosn't count. After that, we stopped at any circle line station that had the old BR logo - the red double arrow - signifying a mainline station.

So that was Canon Street, Blackfriars, Victoria, Paddington, St Pancras and Kings Cross.Max had a lot of fun, especially standing next to the super-noisy HST 125 as it revved up to leave Paddington. Issie was less convinced, as the pictures show. She'd insisted on shoes without sockes, and had paid the price with a blister on her foot. By the end of the loop, she had to be carried up and down stairs. Four year olds are not light weight.


We made our rendevouz with Mummy and caught the fast train back to Cambridge where the rain was falling steadily as we arrived, so it was a wet cycle home to collapse in front of a movie (Max chose the Polar Express - it has trains in it)