a day of surprises

so off we went on our latest expedition down to the metropolis - a trip to greenwich for an exhibition by train and river-bus ..... how exciting - i was so pleased to find out that we could get to greenwich fairly easily by train - then i discovered that there was a convenient river-bus which we could take and turn a routine journey into something a bit more scenic

we both liked the idea of seeing all the developments along the thames - it has changed so much in the years since i left - the river pier was much closer to our destination than the station and we could get a special deal on tickets, allowing us to stop off on the way and take in some extra treats .....perfect ...... on paper!

the reality ......

after a slight setback with a detour at blackfriars station due to a broken lift we headed down past the tate modern to the pier - the river-bus service signposted itself as accessible, was ramped all the way to the landing stage and had a great view

....... then we were refused access .... only mobility scooters with a "permit" were acceptable!!!###!! where did it say that? not at the pier - it's on the website somewhere but it takes a bit of looking for (that's a different story though)

rather disgruntled and disappointed, not least at the attitude of the river-bus staff, we trundled off down to london bridge station for a rail connection


there were plenty of trains and we soon got to the station closest to our destination ...... to find that there was a bridge to cross to reach the exit and NO lift - a bit of a slip-up in my research there! oh well, never mind, we just had to brace ourselves and carry the scooter over - luckily help was supplied by a nice young man

approaching from a less used path we reached the venue - found ourselves faced with no directions to the entrance, steps, tales of a broken lift and "no you can't leave the scooter out here and walk"....... it was all beginning to sound familiar! but we eventually found the way in and a functioning lift - the exhibition and the rest of the venue were great, thank goodness

 greenwich was a lovely surprise - strolling around the site of the royal maritime museum was a pleasure on such a fine day - no time to visit the cutty sark but it looks good in its new setting ...... the glazed structure surrounding it gives the impression of the clipper being at sea rather than marooned high & dry

the market was also a good find - full of "vintage" stalls and small creative shops .... and a tantalising selection of veggie and vegan food stalls ..... but we had already eaten - all the more reason to return


























thankfully an uneventful train ride back to london bridge then exploration of a short stretch of the thames river walk

crossing the millenium bridge and finding a funicular to take us back down to river level .... what a lovely surprise that was - the sun was breaking through some late cloud, casting a warm glow - a cheering touch








and back to blackfriars for the train home, recovered from our riverboat disappointment and happy with how we had coped with the day's challenges

then, as a final touch the lift at st albans station was out of order!!!!! but the cheery and helpful station staff saved the day by helping us carry the scooter (broken down to easy to carry components)
up and down all the stairs to the far side

we learned a lot on that trip ...... i'll need to make sure i cover every possibility in future and have plans b & c ready, just in case