Chapter 1 - London

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CANAL BOAT TOUR – A STEP BACK IN TIME

The highlight today was a canal boat trip from little Venice to Camden Lock. The rest of the day was spent shopping at Camden Markets and the huge Westfield complex in Sheppard’s Bush. I did my best to be enthusiastic but shopping just really isn’t my thing!

JASONS CANAL TOUR
Jason Narrow Boat Tours operate from Little Venice, just down the road from Paddington. Little Venice is basically a lagoon which is the London base for canal narrow boats. Before power, rail etc the canals were Britain’s main industrial transport system. The boats were drawn along the canals by horses and the canal network extended throughout England. Generations of families lived on and worked the Canal Boats – the whole family living in a compartment at the back of the boat which was 10ft x 6ft, kids didn’t go to school they started working the river from the age of 6. The canals were almost lost after the industrial revolution but many have now been restored for leisure and tourism.
Many people live on narrow boats on the canal, the trip from Little Venice to Camden Lock is a step back in time and a wonderful experience. The narrow boat we travelled on was a 105 year old working narrow boat named Jason – a piece of history.
Once again the expert commentary made all the difference. As we meandered down the canal we were treated to the history of the canal’s, their demise and resurrection.
The scenery is spectacular along the route, with all the greenery it’s hard to believe that you are in central London and with a maximum speed of 4 miles an hour we didn't have to worry about missing anything! The route took us through London Zoo-although because we were so low down you could just see one Avery,and past Regent Park Mansions that overlooked the canal. There was also a range of wildlife-mainly birds along the way.
The trip took 45 minutes and ended at Camden Lock right next to the massive weekend Camden Market. You have the option of doing the return journey or spending time exploring the markets. We chose to stay and have a look around.

CAMDEN MARKET
Part of the market is built on the stables where the horses that pulled the Canal Boats were housed so there’s a bit of a horse theme going on in that area. It was a lovely sunny day (25 degrees) and there were huge crowds. The Market was the usual mix of junky stuff and individual hand crafted items, much of it leaning towards the alternative but overall a massive variety. We had lunch (Chinese) before heading out to Sheppard’s Bush and the big Westfield complex.

WESTFIELD SHEPPARD’S BUSH
It was huge, but very much the standard Westfield Mall, just a lot more shops and a lot more walking to get around them. I guess because the area it covers the mall seemed busy but not overcrowded. Jeanette got some togs and a couple of t shirts. I got really sore feet!
Then it was on the Tube and back to base before plodding off to the Victoria for dinner and a pint to finish another busy day. Just a couple to go now before we head off on our Insight Britain and Ireland Discovery Coach Tour.

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Photos

Canal Boat - Jasons
A step back in time, travelling the canals from Little Venice to Camden

Canal Boat - Jasons
The long boats on both sides of the canal are permanent homes for people.

Camden Market
Originally the horses that pulled the canal boats were housed here - hence the name for this part of the market