Local News and a Not-so-local Trip Out

I have exciting news. So exciting that I had to call Nathan at work and tell him. For phone-related reasons, he had to put me on speaker and so I think he was quite relieved when my exciting news turned out to be innocuous and not the kind of news that incurs any parental leave. But that is coming up later.

First, a trip to Whitton. Having been to East London three days running, I decided to do something different today and go as far west as I possibly could while still technically being in London. And that saw us lunching at a big, Wetherspoons-esque pub called “The Winning Post” on the A316 that Nathan and I have often noticed when driving back from Winchester. We were there to meet my mother, brother, sister-in-law and new niece CousinZ. It was a lovely lunch and very cheap. They had a kids’ menu, a big road outside for CousinZ to gaze at and they seemed pretty tolerant of small children running around. The reviews on the internet were fairly grim, but if you’re not expecting haute cuisine it’s a great meeting place halfway between Winchester and Vauxhall (and it’s a direct train from Vauxhall, which takes 20 minutes)

I may have gone overboard with the weather-proofing, as Reuben and Eva were both in head-to-toe waterproofs but, to be fair, it was raining on and off all day. Then Roo “attacked the rain wiv my rain sword” and that made it stop. Kinda

It was on the way home from Vauxhall that we noticed some exciting things. One was the playground next to the Tea House, which I may have mentioned before. It’s finished, and it looks so much better but it was a bit soggy for playground-ing, so we walked on by.

Last week, when it wasn’t quite so soggy, we discovered another new playground, with Reuben’s best friends J&A. If you know Kennington well, you’ll…still struggle to find it. But it’s behind the Hurley Clinic. Walk up Kennington Lane, towards Elephant and you kinda take a left at the Boris bikes. It’s hidden away and it’s small, but it’s lovely and untouched. Like the one next to the Tea House, it’s a “natural” kind of playground, all wood and green  colours. Have a look:

I seem to have a LOT of photos of Reuben bouncing on things lately. All at his request, naturally. So, a small, hidden park but a very lovely one in the middle of a big 60s estate. Most convenient for post-doctors’ runarounds!

So, onto the exciting news and…what’s that Roo? You’ve done a what? No, I don’t want to have a look. Hold on there readers….

I know you would never doubt the authenticity of this blog, but just in case you do, let me assure you that that last interruption was 100% genuine. The boy has an amazing sense of dramatic timing that will one day seem him working as a scriptwriter for Eastenders, I’m sure.

Anyway, back to the point. When we walked into Vauxhall station this morning, I noticed some building work going on, under the first arch after you cross the road. Kinda opposite the Royal Vauxhall Tavern. There was a wooden revolving door and not much else. But by the time we got back, four hours later a hoarding had appeared and it turned out that the building is going to be a….

NANDOS!!! A Nandos! In Vauxhall! You have no idea how much I have missed having a Nandos within walking distance. The idyllic Saturday lunches of Camberwell can be revived, Vauxhall-stylee. This will change our lives. We will never need to eat anywhere else ever again. Oh my, this is gonna cost me so much money…

In conclusion, if I you have missed my earlier lectures on the subject, I love Nandos. This is the best news ever. And doesn’t involve buying new, elasticated-waisted jeans. Who’s going to join me there for a chicken pitta combo, mango and lime with peri chips, corn-on-the-cob and perinaise? Once more….Oh my, this is gonna cost me so much money…

(dum, dum, dum dum dumdumdumdum….credits roll over map of London)