Explore London 2

London Canal Museum

Our visit to the London Canal Museum was the most popular trip we’ve had this year, with over 30 of us journeying from Windsor to Kings Cross.

From Kings Cross we had time (after dodging the heavy showers) to explore the cafes and shops in Granary Square and Coaldrops Yard. This is a very historic area and much improved in recent years – rather than warehousing and work, it is now a vibrant area for all types of leisure activities.

After lunch the group walked to the London Canal Museum where tea and biscuits were available, followed by a welcome talk by a very knowledgeable guide. The group were then split into two for a guided “nature” walk along the canal towpath, ending at the Camley Street Nature Reserve. The tow path is surprisingly colourful.

The warehouse that the museum occupies was once an ice warehouse, with two huge ice wells – one of which is still partly open to view. The ice came on boats from Norway, was stored and then distributed around London using barges pulled by horses. The horses were stabled on the first floor of the warehouse. It is certainly a museum with a difference!

Maggie Reeve

To read this article and enjoy more pictures, please see this separate post.

The Physic Garden, Chelsea

Another delightful adventure for London Explorers 2 took them to the Chelsea Physic Garden which is celebrating its 350 anniversary this year. It was established as the Apothecaries’ Garden in London, England, in 1673 by the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries to grow plants to be used as medicines and to train apothecaries to identify different plants, and to understand their uses. This sculpture is inscribed with the names of head gardeners since the garden was established.

In the 1680s, Sir Hans Sloane, trained at the Chelsea Physic Garden and became the personal physician to the Duke Albemarle in Jamaica, which was then a British Colony. Having made his money, Sloane returned to England and bought the manor of Chelsea. (Hence Sloane Square!). This included the Chelsea Physic Garden.

In 1722, Sloane agreed to rent these four acres to the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries for £5 per year in perpetuity. This ensured that the Garden would forever be used as a place to teach people about plants and still today investigations and experiments are being carried out into the medicinal use of plants.

Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and pointed out beds of poisonous plants, edible plants, useful plants and plants being used medicinally for oncology treatments, for ophthalmic treatments and urology.

This is a fascinating garden and well worth a return visit.

Jackie Wiggins

To read this article and enjoy more pictures, please see this separate post.

Gardening 1

This month, Gardening 1 will visit Savill Gardens to enjoy the Autumn colours. Meet on Thursday, 19^th October at 2-00pm at the entrance to the building. Entry will be half price with an advantage card for a pair of members. The car park will also be free.

Contact details are visible if you log-in.

During September the Gardening 1 group visited Broom Acres garden in Sandhurst.

For many more photographs of this surprising garden and its owner, please see the separate post here.

Local History

• 27^th November: Our borough’s town crier, Chris Brown, will regale us with the history of his role the purpose of which is to bring happiness to the people of Windsor and Maidenhead. What a great theme for our pre-Christmas meeting. Oyez!

This group meets in Windsor Methodist Church Hall in Alma Road, Windsor, SL4 3HH. Talks begin at 2-30pm. Admission is £3.00 on the door. No need to book. New members are warmly welcome.

Music

David Oldcorn’s three music groups will be on their usual days in October except for Ballet Appreciation which will be on the second Monday, 9^th October. All three groups have vacancies for newcomers.

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Tea and Jazz

Live jazz is booked for 24^th October – The Woodhouse Jazz Band with singer Catherine – and for 28^th November – the Gambit Jazzmen return, who were much enjoyed by our audience in April.

All u3a members – from any u3a branch – are welcome. There is no need to book – just turn up on the day. There is a fee of just £7.00 cash to pay towards the cost of the band, hall hire and refreshments.

All performances start at 2-00pm, with a break halfway for tea and cakes and finish at about 3-45pm.
There is a car park outside the hall and when this is full, there’s a public car park a short distance back towards Datchet village centre.

Please note there will be no Tea and Jazz in December.

u3a Amblers

The morning amble on Thursday, 5^th October is to be around Eton.

Convenor contact details are visible if you log-in.

On a very hot day in early September, several group members had a pleasant amble of 3.7 km (2.5 miles), encircling Braywick Park, passing the Nature Reserve, Braywick Arboretum and even Braywick cemetery, returning north alongside ‘The Cut’. The trees kept the sun off us most of the time, it was a fortuitous aspect of this route. The amble was followed by refreshments from the cafe within Desborough Bowling Club, from where we started. My thanks to Eileen Harris for sharing her pictures.

by Eileen Harris

by Eileen Harris

by Eileen Harris

by Eileen Harris

by Eileen Harris

by Eileen Harris

by Eileen Harris

by Eileen Harris

by Eileen Harris

by Eileen Harris

by Dave Humphries

Windsor Area Walks

On Friday 27^th October there will be a walk of about 5 miles starting at 10-15am from the car park of the Stag and Huntsman in Hambleden, RG9 6RP. Please contact Philip Ross to confirm your attendance and if weather is extremely inclement.

Logged in members can see contact and precise meet details.

The November walk on Friday, 24^th will be based on Boveney Brook and the Jubilee River. There is a possible coffee stop at the Palmers Arms in Dorney. It will be led by Roy. Meet at 10-15am in the free car park at Eton Wick Library, SL4 6LT. Approx. 4.5 miles.

Please let Roy know if you would be happy to organise one or two walks a year.

Logged in members can see contact and precise meet details.

A New Group

The Windsor and District u3a National Trust Group have held a preliminary meeting at which Pat Oldcorn and Jackie Wiggins agreed to become joint convenors. The plan is to organise 4 coach trips to NT properties each year and to visit more local properties by public transport or by car. Pat and Jackie will organise the coach trips and other members will be expected to work in pairs to take turns on a rota basis to organise visits, talks or activities at or about local NT properties. Some properties will provide visiting speakers and it may be that in the Winter months, the organising pairs may choose to book a speaker. Approximately 30 members showed interest. If all were to take a turn on the rota, everyone would have less than one visit/talk/ activity to organise each year. Please contact Pat Oldcorn or Jackie Wiggins for further information.

Logged in members can see contact and precise meet details.

learn – laugh – live