Phil: (In his best Aussie accent) We want to go the Lancaster Gate.So we got a ride to Lancaster Gate for nothing because it was peak hour and the tickets were meant to be purchased before we got onto the bus and the driver was a kind-hearted bloke. You’ve got to love the English.
Driver: Primrose Hill? A very nice spot.
Me: Lancaster Gate
Driver: Lancaster Gate. That’s a great spot too.
Phil: (Holding open his wallet.) How much?
Driver: (Something in his best pommie accent.)
Me: Pardon?
Driver: Just say yes.
Me: Yes
Driver: OK then, hop on.
At Trafalgar Square we looked for St Martin in the Fields church. It was probably in the fields once upon a time but given its locality I had expected it to be tucked away in a side street. It was something of a surprise to see it right next to the National Gallery and across the square from Nelson’s Column.
We wandered inside the church to see where my ancestors, Henry Perryman and Elizabeth Clayton, were married in 1814. We then went down to the cafe, in the crypt under the church, for a coffee. It was interesting to see the memorials on the floor of the crypt, just as in Westminster Abbey and St Pauls Cathedral but probably for the not so rich or famous.
St Pauls was spectacular of course, and we climbed the stairs to the Whispering Gallery and higher to the outside gallery where we looked at the wonderful views over London and beyond while I recovered my breath. Afterwards, in a cafe opposite the Church Yard, we drank yet another coffee and drank in the view of the cathedral as well, and I was pinching myself that I was really there.
Good to hear Dad is opening his wallet ;)
ReplyDeleteI was wondering how they responded when Phil pulled out his Thermos every time Lorraine bought "yet another coffee"
ReplyDeleteGreat you are on the heritage trail - remind me please who was Perryman. Know the name well from family talk.
ReplyDeleteZachary Perryman lied in the Wedderburn area and his daughter Elizabeth married Gabriel Duckett. They were Gran's parents.
ReplyDelete