The Jerome K. Jerome Sequel: One Girl in a Boat

Bridges Crossed: 5/12 (Westminster, Hungerford, Waterloo, Blackfriars, and Millennium)[1]

Train Stations: 4/10 (Waterloo, Paddington, Euston, King’s Cross)[2]

The weather in the Kingdom has been sparkling as of late. 

On Thursday evening there was a party for MPs and their staff, held in the big Westminster Hall that Henry VIII used to play tennis in when it rained, in honor of the Queen’s Jubilee. The 6 quid ticket gave you entrance, one small drink and as many bags of crisps as you could eat—we wouldn’t want the taxpayers complaining about any extravagance. The highlight included a band consisting of MPs who were surprisingly good. They covered popular British and American songs clear as a bell—but when they paused singing to speak to the crowd, their thick Welsh and Scottish dialects were nearly incomprehensible.

This weekend I took the train to Henley-on-Thames. Henley is an adorable river town about an hour from London, just north of Reading, and the home of the last known operating Blockbuster video store. From what I observed, the store was thriving.

I tramped all over the countryside, sticking chiefly to the river, stopping at one point to take a nap in a particularly soft grassy valley. The river was packed with boats. The locks had lines of boats idling on both sides. The passengers carried on joyfully however, passing drinks in nets and dancing on the decks. Henley itself is marvelously preserved. I’d decided to go there on a whim, based on a TimeOut London posting that said, “Henley is one of those dainty old market towns where the Thames is a thing of joy.”[3]

Drinking cider at The Argyle that evening, a local 'character' informed me that reading in a pub was “no way to get pulled,” and then proceeded to give me a thorough history of the pub and the town. I did learn from him that Henley was one of places that Jerome K. Jerome’s Three Men in a Boat stopped. This classic is not very well known in the States, but it is one of the earliest examples of hilarious travel writing, and not to be missed, in my opinion. The three stop a great many places along the Thames so I think I can be excused for not recalling their exact adventure at Henley.

At one point in the day, I did see three young men in a rowboat and had I been a bit quicker with my camera, you would have been able to see them too. A day of sunshine and rambling made me slow-witted, I fear.

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[1] Due to the vast number or bridges that cross the Thames in London, I have limited my goal of bridges to twelve: all the bridges fit for pedestrians between the Albert Bridge and the Tower Bridge. For those of you have crossed more Thames bridges and would care to challenge my limitations by calling me a sissy or a namby-pamby, I would welcome a spirited glove slapping.

[2] Also given the vast number of train stations in London, I am again limiting my goal to the major stations, i.e. those operated by Network Rail: King's Cross, Fenchurch Street, Euston, Charing Cross, Cannon Street, Paddington, Liverpool Street, London Bridge, Victoria, and Waterloo. The above challenge also applies.

[3]http://www.timeout.com/london/aroundtown/features/10334/Perfect_day_trips_from_London.html