Monday, April 20, 2015

A Weekend in Colo(u)r


Hey. How was your weekend? I had a colo(u)rful one, and would love to share some photos, if you'd like to see!

You know those languid, lazy Saturday mornings, where you sleep until you think you can't sleep anymore, and then you stretch out underneath your thick covers and revel in the sunlight streaming through your windows? I had one of those mornings. Until I remembered that I was late to meet Robin for lunch, so I hopped out of bed, threw on some hole-y jeans, grabbed my mom's bright red vintage Dooney & Bourke, and painted on a slick of red lipstick before heading up to Jones & Sons in Dalston.

After we had our fill of pancakes and I overdosed on bacon (Robin's veggie, so she passed hers on to me ... I kind of don't want to see, taste or smell bacon for a few months) and we chatted all things expat and friendship and writing (she's the best at that), I met John in Dalston before heading up toward Walthamstow to explore a park.

I spotted the Hackney Peace Carnival Mural while waiting for the bus and couldn't help snapping a pic ...


It's crazy how a piece of art can make you start imagining sounds ... does the same thing happen to you when you look at this? It sounds so loud and joyous to me, even though I can't hear anything!

On our way to Walthamstow, we saw a sketchy amusement park (you know, the kind that's just set up on the side of the road somewhere and the people running it are a bit scary looking?) and, for some reason, I just had to stop by.

So we got off the bus, paid the £1 entrance fee, bought some tokens, and ran to the elephant ride. I know. I'm an adult, I promise.


We didn't know that you had to press the pedal by your feet in order to raise the elephant, so we were going around in circles at ground level until one of the children's parents shouted at us through cupped hands, "PRESS THE PEDAL! PRESS THE PEDAL!" "WHAT?" I mouthed back at him. Then the ticket collector got involved. "What are you DOING?" he shouted at us, hands clutching his head (a bit dramatic, right?). "PRESS THE PEDAL!" My bad. I've not been on an elephant ride lately.

Then we moved on to my personal favorite, The Ghost Train:


As a kid, those rides always seemed to last forever (while I clutched my dad's arm in sheer terror), but as an adult, it's all over in about 5 seconds and you wonder where your £3 went. Sigh.

After buying ice cream and cotton candy (I know, we went all the way), we ended up in the bumper cars (or "Dodgems", as they're called here, apparently - another instance where John was like, "Let's try the Dodgems!" And I was like, "What?" Him: "Dodgems!" Me: "What?" Repeat x 25 times), which I did not enjoy and remembered why I didn't like them when I was aged 5, either.

I disliked it so much, I removed all the color from this photo:


So, there.

Here's to colo(u)rful weekends, spontaneous moments, blue skies and sunshine. I hope you have a great week!
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23 comments

  1. I love a bit of a fun fair. That mural you photographed at the top - the guy in the red hat and yellow t shirt playing the sax is my best mate's dad :) LOVE seeing that image pop up on people's blogs!!

    Rosie xx

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    1. WHAT! Rosie, that's an amazing fun fact! Tell me more! How did he end up in this mural?

      p.s. thanks for reading! xx

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    2. I know, I have a huge smile on my face whenever I see it in real life or online. It's really bad but I don't actually know why he ended up on there - he's from a long line of successful jazz musicians, and obviously was a musician himself. He lived in the area most of his life, and used to play lots of gigs in Hackney/Dalston, back when it was quite so gentrified round there!! A good 40-50 years ago.... :)

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    3. That's fantastic! Love that you have a personal connection to this.

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  2. Ahhh...I love it when you can play at being a kid for day :)
    Lots of love,
    Angie

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  3. Love it - and cotton candy, oh the cotton candy! It always seems like such a good idea at first...

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    1. Bahahaha ... yes, until your teeth fall out and you feel sick. Definitely felt sick. Teeth pending.

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  4. Haha great read! I've been meaning to go to my local Fun Fair aka Amusement Park for the past week.. The lights look so inviting. Great place to snap some colo(u)rful shots!

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    1. Haha, thank you! I think that's what made me hop off the bus ... the colors looked so amazing against the blue sky!

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  5. What a fabulously colourful post! You certainly did better than we did in West London.

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    1. Thank you, Ruth! The colors were truly fantastic. Hope you get a good dose of color this week :)

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  6. Such a great post. Love the pictures! The sun makes such a difference.

    K.

    www.wonderingthrough.co.uk

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    1. Thank you, Kelsey! Yes - the sun and the blue sky makes everything better. I'd just love the temperatures to heat up a bit more ... and then I'll be even HAPPIER! :)

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  7. What a fun-filled weekend! Also - vintage handbag, gorgeous outfit, hanging out in Dalston and a funfair...how cool are you?! Love the colours in this post, and FYI I hate the 'dodgems' too. Cricked neck central - not my idea of fun at all!

    Polly xx
    Follow Your Sunshine

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    1. Uhhhhh ... the OPPOSITE of cool. I'm more like "granny chic". But thank you, sweet Polly!!! :)

      Yeah, never again re: dodgems ... should have opted for the giant slide instead, doh! xx

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  8. What a wonderful weekend you had! As colourful as your photos! :)

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    1. It was a blast, Charlotte - and definitely something a little less ordinary, which makes for a nice change! Weekends are so precious.

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  9. Haha! Rendering a photo in black and white is definitely the way to punish it for bad memories ;) So glad that you indulged your inner child with a trip to the fair! xx

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    1. Haha, your comment made me laugh, Tamsin! Punishing indeed ... ;)

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  10. I lol'd at the black and white photo. The people in that mural look like they're going to reach out of it. So many colors!!!! My eyes are vibrating! I love it!

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    1. Seriously, though, bumper cars? Remembered why I hated them as a child, even with my dad driving. It annoyed me to no end, getting bumped! Which is bad, since that's the ... point.

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