Outnumbered & Abroad; Camden Market (Part 4)
Public Transportation, our nemesis.
Camden Markets (Tuesday, September 26, 2018) - We had filled these little blue, hotel-like keycards at the airport called “Oyster Cards.” These held money on them that allowed us to pay and navigate our way around the city’s public transportation system. Jumping on the underground train, Nicole, who had seemed to have regained most of her health, was able to use the maps that Lauren had recommended her to get to take us to Camden Market.
Camden Town is famed for its market, a warren of fashion and curiosities by the Regent’s Canal. A haven of counter culture, the area is popular with tourists, teenagers and punks. The thriving nightlife scene includes live music in alternative clubs and old-school pubs, and major stars playing at the Jazz Cafe and the Roundhouse. Cafes bustle during the day. Nearby Regent’s Park has formal gardens and the London Zoo. Founded in 1791.
Warren Clayton, Nicole, & Randi.
(I’m behind the camera.)
Camden Market was sprawling and bustling. There was so much to take in and I can’t help but wonder at how overwhelmed the Johnson’s must have felt as even I was so busy looking around that I couldn’t even tear my eyes away to see how they were coping.
There was one part of the market called the “saddlery” or something along those lines. It was a former livery of sorts that used to house all of the horses of London and, specifically, keep them safe from the air raids of World War II. WhenI heard that little fun fact, all I could think about was the story ‘Miracle of the White Stallions’ about the white Lippizanner stallions and the efforts that they had to take to preserve them and keep them safe during the war.
Now, each horse stall houses a different shop selling similar items, for the most part, as another lady or gent down the way. Being the history buff and country girl combo that I am, I couldn’t help but wish that I could have seen it in its grandeur; full of amazing hardworking horses. Can you just picture it? The excited anticipation of the bustle of the morning as horses whiny at grooms, moving too slow in bringing their breakfast, steam rising from their back in the morning light, and the sight of man and horse heading off to work in tandem to bring money in for their family.
But I have to shake that romantic image from my head. The horrors of the cart horses of London were forever immortalized in the writings of Black Beauty. It was a tragic life for the horses, worked to the bone, starved, and barely kept.
We decided to get some grub and, after being bombarded by vendors offering us free samples, the Johnson’s got a Panda Express like Chinese food bowl and Nicole and I split a steak quesadilla. It was hands down the worst quesadilla I have ever had in my life. The Johnson’s were equally disappointed in their food. It was like, overall, everything was extremely bland and lacking in any sort of flavor. With my tummy rumbling and a fear in my stomach that I was going to be sick from the cess pool of grease that had conglomerated under the quesadilla, we headed back to our apartment for a much needed afternoon nap.
That quick little nap was MUCH needed!