Today we were up town again but this time for the return of the Destinations Travel show at Olympia after three years due to the Pandemic. We were a bit worried as there was a rail strike today but we needn’t have worried as we had no problems getting a train to Richmond, tube and and another train and then two trains on the way home.
I was looking forward to the show and although it was good, it was nowhere near as good as previous years with number of obvious absences and a lack of stalls featuring specific countries rather than travel companies. However one highlight was that Simon Calder - the man who always pays his way - was a speaker on the stage. We waited for the previous speaker to leave but unfortunately they did not clear the auditorium so although Colin managed to get a seat (rather crushed) I had to stand for nearly an hour which was a bit of a killer on my knees!
It was great seeing Simon in person rather than on a screen and he kept us going during lockdown with his daily live broadcasts at 12.00 on FaceBook. I was going to ask a question and thank him for his broadcasts but he answered my question just before I asked it! I managed to get the microphone anyway an d amazingly he remembered me and even better, the fact he had met Mum outside the Penzance Lido. Here’s a shot featuring my double chin’s’ (I blame the photographer!) and Simon. Despite the lack of stalls, we still picked up quite a few brochures and leaflets to peruse when we get home.
