Santa and Elves at John Lewis, Brent Cross

We went to the top floor of John Lewis in Brent Cross to have coffee and cake at tea time. By good luck we were able to see Santa and his elves. 

Seats at his feet for tiny tots were sold out.

Santa and his smiling elves. John Lewis department store, in Brent Cross shopping mall. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Mayfield Villages Update

I wrote about Mayfield Villages in a previous post. It is a retirement block with a large downstairs communal area, with an indoor swimming poo. Here, for my own benefit as much as yours, is a reminder of what I have learned. Mayfield village, in Watford, north west London, is a retirement home for the active retired.  Not a nursing home, nor a home for those who cannot look after themselves. Although you can have a carer to live with you. One and two bedroom flats.

Advantages

1 The flats all have balconies.

2 Helpline in the flat. 

3 Call-in system, so if you don't call in they investigate to check if you are ill.

4 The swimming pool

The slender swimming pool has only room for three people to do laps up and down. So you have to book your slot. But most people prefer the sociable water aerobics activities, exercises with dumbells in water. 

Residents can set up their own activities. Once a month on a Saturday night the residents organize an activity or entertainment.

Any Disadvantages?

Not enough storage space for a hoarder. I have a three bedroom dwelling, with a large living room, a conservatory, a shed, a garage.  

The lease is only 250 years. If you are over 55 it won't lose value in your lifetime. Four generations of people could live there. I suspect that in the last hundred years, the lease will be extended at a cost to the then current owner.

But lots of people not quite ready to buy have stayed on the mailing list. 

How do you book an appointment? To see a flat and be on the mailing list for activities open to visitors who are potential buyers. 

The Brent Cross development will be one block, not two. One block sounds more convenient to me. No need to go out in the cold to get to the swimming pool, sauna and whatnot.  So I am more interested in Brent Cross. Which is nearer to the centre of London. And my family.

Is there a Jacuzzi. That's a brand name. The general term is spa bath.

Some people like to have a two centre day. Sit and read in one block. Then go back home to yours. For them, Watford is already open.

My contact is Gordon Osborne, gordon.osborne@mayfieldvillages.co.uk

Costa In London and Bear Biscuits

 We sought refuge from the rain in a large branch of Costa near Brent Cross. 

The Costa had restful peacock colour walls with green leaf patterns. Stools carried on this theme wirh pattern on the fabric. Varied seats, as you'd expect.

Two toilets, one for the disabled and wheelchairs.

I instantly discovered my favourite almond bake. A bit like a British Bakewell tart.

My husband ordered a doppio espresso con panne (double espresso with milk). He off-loaded the superfluous white cream from adop his coffee onto my portion of cake.

Our almost four-year-old quickly found a packet of bear-shaped biscuits.

Useful Websites

Costa locations in London and England

Edgware - my memories including Handel's Organ

Problem
How do you spell Edgware? With an e at the start and an e at the end but no e in the middle, only e on the edges. The letter e twice is e-nough. Somehow the middle e got dropped from Edgware.

The Edgware road runs from Marble Arch north through London to Edgware. This was the old, straight, Roman Road. Watling Street, if I'm not mistaken.

Driving north from Central London you will pass Brent Cross shopping Centre and maybe get stuck in traffic in the middle section. Finally, you reach Edgware.

You pass the Premier Inn on your left and reach the crossroads.


To your left is small B & K restaurant.

Premier Inn, Edgware.

 Ahead you have some medieval timber buildings. Drive further on and you will notice some art deco blocks of flats with the flat bay windows but curved edges. An indian girl recently asked me, "What's art deco. This is art deco. parallel lines and curves. Flat rooftops. Long, flat bay windows. Strips of horizontal panes of glass. Like a ship.

Art deco flats. Photo by Angela Lansbury.

Turn right at the church and on your left is the biggest building but sadly in disrepair. It's not that old.

By car, this is what you see. What wonderful twisted brick chimneys. 

Waiting at a bus stop, with those horrid seats too narrow to sit on, and likely to tip you off, designed to discourage rough sleepers, a view of the adly descrepit old pub.

B & K is small and moderately priced. For somewhere larger, try the Aviv restaurant. Aviv means spring. 

Look more Medieval style black and white buildings in Edgware.

Edgware has a busy, too busy centre. The best parts of Edgware, the old parts, are hidden and you have to look for them.

The Pond
For example, as a child I would be taken walking along an elegant private road,  Canons Drive, past grand Tudor-style houses to watch the ducks on the pond.

My family knew the Brons, whose daughter Eleanor Bron became a well-known actress.

St Lawrence's Church and Handel's Organ

Take the bus along Whitchurch Lane, or drive, and you will reach the park leading to North London Collegiate School. Alongside is St Lawrence's church which has Handel's organ.

St Lawrence's Church, Whitchurch Lane, Edgware.

You might do a search on the church and find that it is listed as technically in Little Stanmore. However, if you measure the distance along roads, it is 1.15 km to Edgware station and 2.6 km to Stanmore station. I should know. As a child I used to live almost opposite and walked into Edgware nearly every day.

 I belong to three branches of Toastmasters International, one in Singapore and two in London. Harrovians Speakers Club meets in St Lawrence's church hall behind the church. The minister gave us a talk on the church and Handel and the school.

Do an image search and you will see lots of great pictures of the inside of the church.

My favourite place to eat is B & K, unpretentious, but filling food, chicken soup, salt beef and latkes and lokshen pudding. I have written several posts on B & K branches in Edgware and Hatch End.

B & K salt beef on rye bread with chips.

http://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/handels-church-in-england-st-lawrences.html

On Handel in Edgware and central London:

http://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.co.uk/2016/12/handel-sights-in-edgware-and-england.html

visitbritain.com

visitbritainshop.com

Author, Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

What's New In Intu Shopping Mall, Watford?

Shopping and Entertainment

Always some entertainment in shopping malls in addition to the shopping. The bigger malls have events on major holidays such as school half terms and Christmas. At Brent Cross mall in Hendon and at Intu in Watford I have seen contraptions flinging people up and down like a funfair. You also get performers interacting with the crowd, calling out to encourage children to join in talent shows, or singing (often noisy), and choirs singing carols at Christmas. 

You also get the same sort of events in the middle of some of the malls in Singapore. Pick up the local free newspapers given out at the stations in the morning and check out what's on and where. Sometimes it is a place to keep the children entertained, or to park grandma, granddad or Dad, with or without the children, while you go shopping.

I loved this house with the bird pictures. What a great idea for a nursery. Not just an empty house, but one with pictures on the outside. I would have liked more information on the birds.

Here's an ad for free broadband. Some shopping malls have free wifi. Or you can go into a Costa Caffe or pub. I've joined free wifi whilst I stood waiting in the lobby of a gym (in Harrow) when I was attending a sports injury session (paid for by insurance of the other party after a car accident). You also get free wifi on a lot of railway stations in London, though there may be a limit of half an hour, usually enough when you are waiting for a train, for example on Watford station.

I imagine you can't go inside the house because it's not designed that way. You don't want children getting shut in or damaging it. But if you are a designer that could be the next thing to add to a children's play area. 

Further along the shopping mall you come to an open area with little wooden animals just the right height for small children to climb over and sit astride. Hours of entertainment and delay.

Back into the shopping mall on your way back to the station. The birds on the house on the lower level of the shopping mall amused me. The same artist has created several more artwork.

A train runs around the mall taking children for rides for a charge.

The train is not free? No. Alas.

Anything free? Yes. You might get a free fortune cookie from the information counter. Last time my fortune cookie told me I needed retail therapy. Once a message said something like you can never have too many shoes, or if you like them buy two colours. I was amused by this subtle or blatant promotion of shopping.

Intu shopping mall, Watford. A short walk from the Watford High Street station.

www.intu.co.uk

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer

Want a pick-me-up snack whilst shopping? Yogurt, fat free, sugar free, gluten free, at Watford and elsewhere

Walking uphill from Watford High Street station, you cross on the triple crossing towards the shops. Take a detour into Boots and try to avoid buying. (I ended up with three nail varnishes, which I wanted, at least I wanted one or two but the offer was three for two.) The Boots entrance brings you out at the lower level passing the toilets, baby change area with the drinking water fountain. As you pass towards the escalators on your left is the Yogurt kiosk. They often have a free taster of their yogurt or you can ask for one.

If you like the yogurts, take a card which gives you a free topping after five separate purchases, and a free yogurt after ten.

I tried the yogurt with the granola and blueberry topping. De-lish.

Want Calcium?
I'd previously avoided the kiosk and went to a coffee shop because I'm wary of sugar in smoothies. However, I love yogurt, and think I need calcium more than caffeine, calcium to build nails, teeth and bones - if you've ever had a cracked nail, broken tooth, or broken bone or backache you may share my concern.

How Much Sugar?
So reading the literature and claims on the signboard about the sugar and fat and gluten content, I was reassured I was getting calcium, without too much sugar. However, do read all the literature and check for yourself that what you are choosing, whether in a coffee shop or kiosk suits your needs in general or on that occasion. If you bought a low calorie coffee from a coffee shop, but added sugar, obviously you end up with more calories and more sugar. So if you buy yogurt, then add honey, you have to take into account what is added.

Onwards and Upwards at Intu, Watford
If you are aiming for a second storey shop, you are right by the escalator. If you want to sit in the shopping mall, Intu has lots of seats. You can eat the yogurt and read the literature.

Location, location, location
As Hilton used to say about a successful hotel, Location, location, location. Where can you find Yog yogurts?
Their website lists outlets in: Intu, Watford; Brent Cross; London - several including Greenwich; Brighton and more. You can also buy their products from Tesco.

More details and locations from:

yogyogurt.co.uk

ANGELA LANSBURY AUTHOR is a travel writer, speaker and English tutor and speech coach.
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