a trip down memory lane

Once upon a time you could park up and spend the day in the centre of London, return home - spending a mere £8-10 max on parking all day - and have no traffic there and back. This would also be on a busy weekend. 

I'm forever yearning for the London of my childhood. There's been a shift in energy since then and it doesn’t suit me at all. I’ll only visit the city centre if I'm doing something specific, such as visiting a museum or restaurant, and I spend the majority of the time thinking about getting back home. 

What I like doing, though, is walking past certain parts of the city which rouses a childhood memory. One memory in particular is embedded into my core and will always make me feel cosy and like a child again; naive to the world and what I had heading my way. 

"towards the river we'd pass the back alleys and tunnels which would make me feel like I was in a Victorian drama"

As a child, weekends were spent with my father (my parents divorced when I was three.) Every Saturday after Greek school we’d usually head to my great-uncle’s fish shop in Stoke Newington, North London. I’d help him serve customers - always getting the change wrong - or playing in the local park, Clissold Park. As it would reach dusk, dad and I would get in the car, sometimes my great-uncle joining us, and take a drive to the River Thames.

Back then - we’re talking late 90’s early 00’s - it was easy to find parking near the river and it was either past the time restrictions so we didn’t need to pay, or we'd only pay around £5 for the remainder of the time. Heading towards the river we'd pass the back alleys and tunnels which would make me feel like I was in a Victorian drama. They probably hadn’t changed since that era anyway! 

First stop on our tour, if there was a low tide and it wasn’t too cold, we would head down to the sandy banks of the river where you could find people mudlarking or simply appreciating being so close to water and sand in the city. Mudlarkers still exist along the Thames; I follow @carrie_on_larkin on TikTok. 

Afterwards, we would take a walk to the Globe Theatre, which was another transport back in time and made me feel like a Tudor. Back then the pier wasn’t exactly as sturdy-looking as it is today and I would imagine I was a pirate princess back from a voyage with my father, who was captain of the ship obviously, and we'd come to London to stay for a while.

My favourite part of the visit though was Waterloo Bridge. Below, along the pathway, there was a book market which exists today. Usually, by the time we reached it everyone would be packing things away and I’d be freezing cold as the evening started to take over. My dad would either give me his coat to wear or wrap me up in it, whilst he was still wearing it, hugging me and we’d walk together. As a seven year-old, having your big bear of an Eastern European father hug you was absolutely unbeatable in its level of comfort and warmth and even today it’s hard to beat. The only person to reach this level of comfort is my husband.

As we’d walk under the tunnel, listening to people discuss books and flicking through pages, the most magical part of my weekend trip would happen; a train would pass over the bridge. The echoing sound of the tracks was magical! A bit like Alice falling into Wonderland. Even now, if I visit the Thames I’ll always stall my visit under Waterloo Bridge just so I can hear a train pass over it.

Our final stop was the Royal Festival Hall for a cold beverage at its bar and a snoop around Foyles bookshop. It’s amazing how much freedom we had back then as children and how safe it was. I was allowed to go to the toilet by myself - fair enough dad couldn’t come into the women’s but we visited the Hall so often I knew where to go. I was never hassled and never felt uncomfortable, nor scared. 

I just remembered whilst writing this blog, if we both had to go toilet, dad would whistle throughout the whole process of waiting for each other. He did this everywhere for me as a kid so that I knew he was nearby. This memory has just put an extra smile on my face.

"unfortunately, for me, I think I’ve reached my limit with it and I’m ready for a new chapter"

As I said before, sometimes my great-uncle would join us, and he was - still is - the most legendary comical figure you’ll ever meet. Coming with us was a small break from working seven days a week and he made the most of it! We’d always lose him because he had a habit of wandering off talking to strangers and every time we found him he'd be flirting with old single ladies who were on a night out as a group. He definitely lived up to his nickname of Tony Curtis!

The night would end with me laying down in the back of the car watching the street lights flash by through the windows and watching the shadows make different shapes around the car. Dad always needed fresh air whilst driving so had the window ajar and I’d feel the cold air whizzing around my face. If I got too cold I’d cover myself with his coat. 

This regular experience has been embedded in me and out of all my memories this one is crystal clear; my London, my hometown, and my time in it is crystal clear. It saddens me to see how London has become. For those my age and older who remember it, you’ll understand. You’ll understand that we will never get the London, the England, of that era back and unfortunately, for me, I think I’ve reached my limit with it and I’m ready for a new chapter.

Rhéa x