Pedestrianisation, 29 October 2026

 

It is half-term week, and this means a visit from The Boys.  They are both taller than I am now, which is rather disconcerting!  I felt short....

So they came over around 11:15 or thereabouts, and we sat and chatted until their Granda came in - he'd been doing something down at church - and discussed fairly fruitlessly where we should go to lunch.  Boy Too was the only one who really expressed an opinion, and he suggested we go to the café across the road, which we duly did.  He had a smoked salmon bagel and a smoothie; the Swan Whisperer had a Full English breakfast, and the Lanky Teenager (actually, they are both lanky teenagers these days) and I had what is called Garden Bliss, which is a vegan plate, and absolutely delicious.  He ate all of his, and quite a lot of what I couldn't eat of mine!

In fact, it was just as well that we did go there, as it meant we came home for coffee, and then fire safety person, who was supposed to come tomorrow, was doing our neighbour's flat door as he was ahead of schedule and neighbour was in.  So he came and did ours, too, so that's done!  Apparently we don't need a new actual door, just some work done on it.  Not sure who they will recommend to do such work. 

Anyway, once that had happened, we went out and took the Victoria Line as far as Victoria and then a no 2 bus to Marble Arch (actually the next stop along), enjoying the autumn colours on Park Lane, 

which was a compromise between bussing all the way and being at the wrong end of Oxford Street!  

The object of the exercise, of course, was to walk along the newly-pedestrianised Oxford Street.  It's been closed to cars for many years, of course, but buses, taxis and bikes have always gone down it, mob-handed!  It was really nice not to have diesel fumes (not that many buses or taxis are still diesel these days) and traffic noise - in fact, it was really rather quiet, just a hum of conversation.  And I liked the bike holders they have put at every intersection, so that cyclists can, I assume, leave their bikes there while they shop (and probably find them stolen when they have finished!).

At least Selfridges is still there one end, and John Lewis at the other; most of the other big department stores have closed, though, and the street is very down-market these days.  I think most of the illegal American sweet shops have gone, but there were many tourist tat places.  Where Top Shop used to be is now Ikea, and there have been other changes of tenant, too.  

When we reached Oxford Circus, we said goodbye to the boys, who headed home, and we would have done the same except that the Swan Whisperer wanted to go and visit All Souls Langham Place. 

Sadly, it was not open, although people did seem to be inside, so we walked back again after a quick look at the BBC's shiny offices

and took the Tube home.

I actually was sensible today and realised that I could download my current book on to my phone and read it on the Tube, to save carting my Kindle around with me!  I wonder why that had never occurred to me before!

Anyway, the journey home was uneventful, although I was gasping for a cup of tea by the time we got there!