Thames!

It's been months since I saw the Thames. Fred suggested that we cycle into the city and I wasn't enthusiastic at first – I've got too used to walking and was a bit concerned I wouldn't be able to deal with traffic. However, we got geared up and, although I was a bit wobbly at first, I soon got my bike legs. We spent a little while in Dulwich sorting out a stopping technique that I wanted to try – I tend to stop while still still in the saddle, which makes me a little wobbly if my foot can't touch the ground properly. With Fred's patient teaching (he's SO patient), I can now stop by moving forward off the saddle and putting my foot flat on the ground. No more wobbles. I need to work on setting off again from that point, but that's for another day.

Dulwich Park was so very busy and I was very pleased to find a cul-de-sac in which to perfect this move. Fred showed me the wildlife area off the Green Dale. We saw blossom (see extra) and magpie's building a nest.

Several tower blocks have come down in this area since I last cycled through it – I feel a little sad for all those homes destroyed. The street is so very different now from when I first started cycling in London 15 years ago. I'm a bit skeptical of all the shiny glass balconies in the new buildings. I'm not sure they will weather well and some of the walls have started to stain already. I bet none of the buildings will smell of mince 'n' tatties. There was always one corner of the road that made me really hungry on my cycle home from work.

Cycling through Burgess Park was almost as hectic as Dulwich. If my eyes could take a picture, I would have snapped a shot of a couple sitting on a bench with a stack of small dogs. The dogs were sitting on the chap's lap, but looked like a totem pole of small heads. This made me smile.

Elephant and Castle is another one that has loads of new tower blocks and the area around the South Bank University.

From the Elephant all the way into central London, the traffic was almost non-existent. What a dream! We cycled on roads we'd never normally cycle due to the dangerous junctions, but mostly we were with other cyclists. The Mall was full of people on bikes, which is lovely to see – entire families, too. It was really busy on the cycle lane around Westminster, so we took a quieter road. 

I took a picture of one of the windows of Fortnum & Mason because I liked the little people (see extra).

It was so nice to have a whole afternoon out and about somewhere different. Juno was in a bit of a sulk. Either he missed us or we didn't stay out long enough. He spent all evening in the drawer under the bed. If we reached in to say "hi", he went a by Ninja and swiped us. Oh dear.

We finished watching the Queen's Gambit this evening. That was an excellent series. I quite fancy reading the book now.