London Docklands – Passport collection

Given I only had one empty page left in my passport (for entry and exit stamps) and it was fast approaching it’s expiry date, I thought it wise to get the thing changed before I fell foul of an airport official… So off to London’s Docklands and the passport office, where I handed over my old burgundy EU passport and replaced it with the new dark-blue (UK) version.

We lucked out with the weather, so in the four-hour wait between handover and collection, we decided to make a day of it.

I used my old geezers’ railcard to reduce the fare by a third, and within an hour of leaving our front door we emerged at Customs House on the swanky new Elizabeth line. I wish they all looked like this!

I was actually born a stones-throw from here in London’s East End where both my parents families have roots. We moved out when I was about five years old to the other side of London. At the time, it felt a million miles away. So looking at the Elizabeth Line rail map, it was strange to see many of the rail stations close to the places I grew up… Hayes & Harlington, West Drayton, Southall, along with all the Heathrow terminals. They feel so close now, how I’d have loved this rail line operating when I was younger!

The passport office is located on the edge of the old Royal Docks, so it was nice to spend some time wandering about. It was near here that both my grandad and father had jobs back in the day. Grandad worked on the docks his entire life, both man and boy – from the 1930’s to the 1970s. Dad started off his working life as a messenger boy. Indeed, I also spent a few years here in the late 1980s during phase one of the Canary Wharf project. This huge new city, built to worship the finance gods, was constructed on the site of the West India Docks, just up the road. I cut my teeth on this mammoth project in a new profession, after having screwed up my first career, but that’s another story.

We headed for lunch at The Ivy, Canary Wharf and tried out their ‘Heritage’ menu, two courses for £22; you can’t go wrong. Well, perhaps if you order wine you can, it pushes the price up a bit… but it was 25 degrees outside, and it’s not every day we get a scorcher like this so early in April.

We then went for a wander to kill off some time. Canary Wharf was alive with people, many doing the same as us, families and workers enjoying the sun, sitting on benches or the grass and chatting.

The trees have woken up after the winter, leaves starting to sprout, and it’s green everywhere. It’s a lot cleaner and nicer than I remember from my last visit. The water features, mature trees, and dark green grass make this sprawling metropolis look quite attractive.

We were going to walk off our meal with a longer stroll along the Thames to Greenwich (and the pedestrian tunnel under the river that links Millwall Park with the south), but we ran out of time and decided to head back to the passport office to make sure I didn’t miss my collection slot.

We found a pub called The Gun which we’ll need to visit at some point in the future. It’s right on the edge of the river and has lots of nooks and crannies, plus a nice-looking menu – one to remember.

Oh, and lots of wildlife along the docks and river, swans and geese nesting, living in water that actually looked a lot cleaner than I expected.

So, all in all, a great day out, and a little teaser of the nice summer we hope to enjoy.

Back home

…and those extra calories had to go.

So off we went to a spin class when we returned home.

No longer feeling as guilty for a mid week treat!