Chelsea weekend

Hello!  It’s me, Wilfred!  And I am still living in London with my two dads.  During the week, I go to Ravenstone Preparatory but on the weekends, Poppy and Daddy and I always try to do something fun. 

This week, I was excited for the weekend to come because I was having my first play date with a new friend from my London school.  My friend and I planned what we wanted to do and I asked Dad to email my friend’s mom to set it up.  My dad thought my friend’s name was “Merrily”, but Dad didn’t understanding me properly – because my new friend’s name is Mir Ali.  Mirali is from Karachi.  Karachi is in Pakistan which is as far from London as Toronto, but the other way around the world.   

Mirali’s mom dropped him at our flat and we played cars and Lego and then went to the Kensington Gardens to feed the ducks and swans.  Mirali was a little afraid of the swans because they came right out of the water and wanted to eat the bread before Dad could even get it out of the bag -- so we went over to the Princess Diana playground and played on the pirate ship.  Mirali was nervous about going up into the crow’s nest, so we pretended he was the captain and I was his pirate crew in the lookout. 

Mirali says Karachi is very poor and it is very different in Pakistan from here.  In London, Mirali lives with his mother and his sister, because his father died.    Mirali is still very sad about his dad and was very glad to see his mom when she picked him up.  He is a good friend for me.

There was lots of Saturday left and that afternoon, Dad and Poppy took me over to the Victoria and Albert Museum.  The museum is named for Queen Victoria and her husband, Prince Albert.  There is a big statue of Prince Albert near where we live.  Queen Victoria named a lot of things after him, because he died when he was young and she loved him and missed him, just like Mirali misses his dad.

The V & A is interesting, but it is mostly for adults.  There is some kid stuff, though.  A whole part of the museum is full of silver stuff and kids can make silver coins using a press.  

There is a display about the Crystal Palace, which was a big building Prince Albert had made out of glass, and you can make one of your own using clear blocks.   

And there are even some old fashioned costumes from Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s time that you can play with. 

 Poppy and me had fun getting dressed up, but Dad made us take them off.  He said they were for trying on and not for wearing all day.

On Sunday, I wanted to do something else fun.  Dad and Poppy think that going for long walks is fun… which it is not always, but it is okay if there are interesting things to see along the way.   In London, we live in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and Dad thought we should go see the boats working on the Thames along the Chelsea Embankment. 

We walked down Queen’s Gate (which starts at Kensington Gardens near the statue of Prince Albert) and past  the Natural History Museum.  Pretty soon we were into Chelsea.  In Chelsea, we went down Old Church Street.  It is called that because there is a church at the bottom of it by the river.  Dad explained that the Chelsea Old Church had been bombed during the war but that they had put it back together so that it looked just the same.  I saw some ladies tidying the church up after Sunday morning and asked if I could come in because I wasn’t from there.  The ladies laughed and said they could tell from my accent. 

They told me the church was very, very old.  Henry the 8^th married his third wife there and a man named Thomas More, who had a fight with King Henry, was buried there – except his head which was buried someplace else…    

After our church visit, we crossed the Thames on the Prince Albert Bridge, so I could show Dad and Poppy Battersea Park where I go with my school to play field hockey. 

We walked back over Chelsea Bridge and through the park around the Royal Hospital Chelsea.  It is a great big building built by Sir Christopher Wren, who built a lot of famous buildings after London burned down a long time ago.  It is very beautiful for a hospital.  Retired soldiers live there and there is a statue of one in the park that you can sit beside for a picture.

We walked up to Sloane Square, where there are lots of shops and a big theatre that Poppy wants to visit called, the Royal Court. 

At last we stopped in for a cup of tea and a snack.  Dad said we were almost home.  I was glad.  I like looking at London, but I’d rather take a bus.  My legs get tired. 

Talk to you next week.  Wilfred