The Rooke Family Blog: February 2024

Apologies: For any of you Londoners reading this please accept our apologies for not hooking up with you during our whistlestop tour of the sights. There were simply too many people we’d love to have seen and really not enough time to see you all in. Next time we promise we’ll have more time!

7.15am Saturday morning and the gang of five are racing in a taxi towards Glasgow Central, having helpfully left their lunch and snack bag still sitting by the front door. Food can be bought we thought, but the 8am West Coast service to destination London could not be missed. A fairly uneventful journey, and we arrived to mayhem at Euston. Escalators and lifts out of order. Staircases shut. And, worst of all, Three mobile was down. Not a good start. Still we eventually found our way to Chalk Farm and thankfully Ly is on Vodafone so we managed to navigate our way to our wonderful Airbnb by Primrose Hill. Quick bit of food and gathering of bearings, then it was off into the hustle and bustle of the Big Smoke.

First up a short walk from Waterloo was the London Eye. I must admit, I had been pretty sceptical about forking out for the Eye (and I confess I was also pretty sceptical about forking out for the whole trip in general) but I have to say it was amazing. We’d timed it for the sunset and were not in the least bit disappointed as we pointed out the sights to the kids. A stunning perspective on London. Safely down and fleeced by a local tourist shop, we stood in awe soaking up the sunset and the atmosphere before crossing Golden Jubilee Bridge to see Trafalgar Square and heading to Covent Garden for what was the best sushi I have ever eaten at Sticks ‘n’ Sushi. By now the hustle and bustle and sheer excitement had intoxicated us all and we were all buzzing as we headed to Leicester Square for our underground ride home. Agreement that day one had been a hit.

Next morning we were up early to head to Chinatown ready for Chinese New Year celebrations, arriving at a perfect time to get a view of the parade and then to join the masses to shuffle round Chinatown and soak up more atmosphere. At Shaftsbury Avenue we’d taken as much as we could and headed to Buckingham Palace via Piccadilly Circus and the Mall for some 'quieter' time. We were now in full London tourist flow and the kids stopped to feed the squirrels by hand in the Green Park whilst we gathered our breath. Then it was a quick visit to Hamleys which brought back childhood memories for me before we dashed over to the Natural History Museum for a late lunch and a date with the dinosaurs. Not enough time to fully appreciate the Natural History Museum before we needed to dash on to the Royal Albert Hall and the Cirque du Soleil. The show just blew us away. They were literally unbelievable. Incredible talent. Then it was a final pit stop for a late pizza at Da Mario in Kensington before getting some shattered children home for some kip. Definite agreement that day two had also been a hit.

Final full day and we were up ready for early action with a short sunny walk along the canal to Camden Market. A wonderful morning spent browsing around the endless shops and stalls before a quick bite from some of the many eateries and a dash to the underground and a trip up to the Sky Garden at the Walkie Talkie Building. A gentle hour spent enjoying the sights and the breathtaking views over London (Tower Bridge, Tower of London, The Shard etc) before down we descended to the Docklands Light Railway. The kids (and Tanya) loved riding the automatic train, before our destination of the Cloud Cable Car over to the O2. Again this was timed to perfection with the sun setting as we glided up above the Thames. A view of the future at the 02 and we realised what country bumpkins we are before grabbing more street food at the Food Hall in the Design Centre. And then another weary, broken 3 kids and 2 adults rode the underground home again. Agreement that day three was, yes you guessed it, a massive hit too.

Final morning and we took it easy packing up and a walk up Primrose Hill to say goodbye to the Big Smoke, before heading to Euston for the West Coast service to Glasgow.

Phew, it was epic. Despite my previous non-London fandom, I have to admit I loved it. It was intoxicating, exciting, ever-changing, atmospheric, delightful, futuristic, charming, and well yes, a tad expensive, but worth every penny. London we rocked you and you rocked us. Boom. And yes, we’ll be back. Thank you, you've made memories to last for us all.

Everyone's top moments:
Me – The views from the Sky Garden
Tanya – DLR/Cable Car
Ly – The London Eye
Emily – Cirque du Soleil
Niomi – Cirque du Soleil

All change for the gang of five on the 8am to London Euston

London from the Eye

A sunset to die for

Crossing the Thames on the Golden Jubilee Bridge

At Sticks 'n' Sushi

Riding the Tube

Videoclip: Chinese New Year 2024

Or you can watch the videoclip here

Chinatown was heaving

Videoclip: Squirrel feeding

Or you can watch the videoclip here

Big kids at Hamleys

Camden

The crew at Camden Market

Stylish Camden Market

The view from the Sky Garden

Cloud Cable Car

Pit stop at the Good Hotel

The London Belles

Sunset over the O2

One of Niomi’s favourite phrases is “It doesn’t matter!”. As adults we spend an awful lot of time trying to, and getting our children to, behave to norms. Anything outside those norms is deemed ‘unusual’ or ‘different’ and is often thought of negatively. Niomi is a little unorthodox but she’s equally mostly a very, happy little thing so will often pronounce “it doesn’t matter”. Trying to take a 3 foot toy rabbit to school – “it doesn’t matter”, drinking her juice with a teaspoon – “it doesn’t matter”, wearing a princess dress in the snow – “it doesn’t matter”. And she’s right. These things really don’t matter. As parents we often think they do but really, where’s the problem? With a child or with our concept of normality? Some things do matter – hitting others, behaving unkindly; but the vast majority of what we think does matter really doesn’t.

I’ve been listening to a podcast by Michael Singer (author of The Untethered Soul) recently – its fundamentally all about letting go of our emotions, not getting hung up on things, letting things flow. There’s much truth in this. Our need to try and control our own personal universe that in reality is far from within our control, is a very worthwhile thing to challenge. We surround ourselves with things that aim to increase our pleasure and decrease our pain – distracting ourselves from our reality; rather than accepting and letting go, and enjoying each moment for what it is. I have much to learn from our recently 9 year old Niomi, as we all have much to learn from children in general. Children just live for the moment and are so much more accepting of difference and change. Honestly, much of all that we try to attain or do doesn’t really matter. Happy Birthday Niomi!!