A Spot of Trouble

This day didn't go as planned. I had thought that I was going down to Redhill to view the house, take inventory, and get the keys. Instead, I went down to Redhill, walked into the agents' offices and was informed that my references didn't come back before Friday afternoon, and so I couldn't have the house yet. Further, since Monday is a Bank Holiday, no references can possibly come in before Tuesday, which, as it so happens, is the day that my free stay at the Chelsea Cloisters expires. It definitely would have been easy to be down.

However, I figured since I was in Redhill, I'd wander a bit and see what I could see. As a bit of reference, the house is in Merstham, which is in Redhill, however, it is north of the town. If you're riding the rail in from Gatwick airport, Redhill is one stop before Merstham. Nonetheless, I decided to walk around a bit. Redhill has its "high street" right there very close to the station, so I walked through it, and it even has a little mall. The mall has all the things that malls typically have, with a mini food court, toy store, clothing stores, etc. Outside on the high street there was the first large grocery store I had seen since I arrived, so I went in to look around, and mainly to determine whether or not peanut butter could be located. After meandering up and down several aisles, I found the much desired (by Americans, anyway) peanut butter - so it does exist over here. I didn't buy any, so I can't vouch for the taste. I did, however, buy some "baps". Every grocery store over here bakes their own fresh bread daily, and back towards the bakery, the smell was absolutely delightful, so I bought some cheese baps for 59p. After a bit more wandering, I headed back out and found Redhill Park, which is a nice size park with a playground for the kids.

Once I had walked through the park for a bit, I decided to head back into London. I got on the rail back into the vast (and vastly confusing) Victoria Station, and after heading back to the flat to dump off the stuff I had in my pack for the house, I headed out to Covent Garden. Covent Garden is a neat little shopping area, similar to the area down by the sea in Key West, with buskers and street performers, little kiosks and more established shops. It has a semi-carnival like atmosphere, with a carousel, stalls selling candy floss (that's cotton candy), and crowds moving all about. After walking through the market for a bit, I bought an ice cream and then sat down to watch everyone. I also strolled through the surrounding area, which includes the London Opera House and the various theatres, and Drury Lane. I, however, did not see the muffin man, so I have not had the chance to make his acquaintance.

I then rode back a few stations to Hyde Park. Hyde Park is basically one with the Kensington Gardens, except it's the eastern part of the park. If you didn't know they were two separate parks, you could walk from one to the other and never be aware that you had left Hyde Park and entered Kensington Gardens, or vice versa. However, Hyde Park has a lake, with boats to rent and a very, very large green field where several people were playing, or reading, or just lying there soaking in the sun. I decided to join the sun-soakers, and laid my pack on the ground, and lay down for a while. I watched an informal game of cricket, and about six or so decided that it was time to head home. I ended up walking all the way from Hyde Park to South Kensington. Some pictures of Hyde Park below.



Good night all.