London: Time for Toys

After our St. Paul's/Tate Sunday, I needed a lighter day. Yeah, those feet.

Before we move on to today's post about Pollock's Toy Museum (a real treat!), I wanted to clarify something that I may have badly stated last time when I spoke about that first experience in the wheelchair -- here's the quote:  "And then I really broke because it felt so embarrassing to know you had to be pushed through a museum. I mean, going to museums is what I DO." And I feel I should clarify this, for I may have offended some with that word 'embarrassing.'

I know or have known loads of people rely on the chair to get them just about anywhere. My dad did in later years as does another extended family member whom I admire more than just about any woman I've ever met. I've never viewed the wheelchair embarrassing for those who need them. And we may all need one at some point or permanently sooner or later. The wheelchair can open up the world to those who can't see it on their own two feet.

What I was embarrassed -- and probably a little angry -- about was the fact that I was broken and could not do what I usually do -- walk about and enjoy the art under my own steam. I was embarrassed and angry that my body had rebelled in a very painful way, so painful I had to rely on assistance when in my regular world I would be the one pushing someone else. Embarrassed that this happened in public. By the end of the trip, any self-consciousness I had on that zone had disappeared and in fact, I was as likely to say to Rick, "hey, can you please find the wheelchair" as I was to try to go it on two feet. That first time is tough, knowing your limitations are greater than you planned. But it was also a great blessing.

So, if I inadvertently offended, forgive me. If anything, it provided a greater empathy that I know will be useful in the future. Now...

Those of you who have read Jenny Woolf's travel blog know that she'll often feature some fascinating and off-the-grid places and I found out about this one from her. Pollock's Toy Museum in London doesn't always make the guidebook cut but it is well worth a visit if you love old toys.

And for me, it had another attraction -- the wonderful toy theatres, some of which are very old and all made by hand. (Jenny wrote about a recent toy theatre production of Aladdin right here and here and she has some terrific photos.)

So, while Rick went back to the guitar center, I took the tube to Pollock's, and when I rounded the corner, this is what I saw.

Now, isn't that the most charming building? Actually, it is two buildings, from the 17th and 18th centuries, combined.

And it's full of all the features old buildings like that have -- low ceilings and narrow, winding staircases. (In other words, not for those who can't climb.)

In brief, the museum, in London's Fitzrovia, was originally a shop and printers dating back to the 1850s. The collection is largely Victorian and displayed in six small rooms and on every available bit of wall space. Of special interest (especially to me) were the toy theatres. Benjamin Pollock hand printed, constructed and colored much of the toy theatre material housed in the museum today.

It came to it's current location in the late 1960s. 

Well, of course I bought my low-priced admission ticket and stepped inside to enjoy a time travel trip, back into the toys of the past. Come take a look!

You wind your way up the narrow staircase and into various rooms. Large cases protect much of the collection.

And what a collection it is! If you loved dolls, you have everything from the little baby doll...

...to elaborately dressed little girls...

...and fancy-dressed dolls.

 
This one was a little creepy.

Even Queen Alexandra was preserved in doll form!

Military toys dolls were not ignored.

Nor were dollhouses and miniatures.

This one was quite spectacular and it was just about impossible to get a halfway decent photo, much less a decent one!

Teddy Bears? We have a few...

...and a few more!

Blogger Elizabeth is a rocking horse fan.

These are for you!

This scene is supposedly of Mr. Pollock, creating one of the toy theatres.

There were board games and tiny animals, puzzles and puppets!

Of course Punch and Judy were included!

There were even toys I remembered and owned!

Every square inch was covered, ceiling to floor!

But my favorite part was the toy theatre section. The typical size of these was about two feet wide and maybe a little bit taller.

Benjamin Pollock created most, if not all, of these himself and they are elaborate representations of actual London theatre stages.

This is a bad photo because of the lighting but you can see there are several sections with grooves in the base.

These allow characters to slide in and out of a scene at different depths of field, adding to the perspective.

Can you imagine seeing a show in one of these? (Jenny did HERE)

The detail of the scenery painting was exquisite.

And you can only imagine the countless hours it took to not only engineer one of these but actually design, draw, create, cut out and assemble the various parts.

And of course the museum empties out into a fun gift shop where I found a few things from times past!

It was time to leave Pollock's and meet Rick back at St. James Church for another concert. Then we enjoyed lunch in the marketplace outside the church.

Wonderful crepes, made while you waited!

From there a short walk to the National Gallery and a special exhibit at the Canada House! Next time!

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London: My Biggest Travel Tip of All -- And Finding My Roots

My rule number one for traveling anywhere is to make a detailed itinerary of what you might like to do every day, checking hours if it's an attraction that might be closed, weather if possible, and location so you can best group your perfect day with the least amount of travel time. And of course, you take it with you as your guide, sharing it with those at home so they know just what you are up to that day (like they care).

My second rule is to blow that baby to smithereens.  And that's exactly what we did on our second day on our own in London! (You'll see weather forecasts in red on the itinerary -- these were from before we left for the month-ahead predictions, U.S. Farenheit scale. It was only partially accurate!)

I had it planned. We were going to go to Harrods, then hit the Victoria and Albert Museum and check out what might be playing in the West End and line up some theatre tickets. All good!

But then we ended up swapping out Monday's day (more or less) for that Friday and moving those other things along -- and once we did that, all bets were off. Things were added, things were crossed off. Some things were done twice. And it was just fine! (Or, as Seth Kugel writes in the New York Times, "The itinerary is just the rough draft for your journey.)

One of Rick's "musts" was to visit the Guitar Studio on Duke Street, just off Oxford. It was on our list for a different day but why not? So off we went.

He was in hog heaven trying out guitars! And he sounded pretty good.

Well, for as long as I listened. But as we were walking up to the shop, I noticed we were a block from Selfridges. Yeah. I was out of there soon and into this store I'd long wondered about and remembered from the popular "Mr. Selfridge" series on PBS.

It has a long history and if one looks hard, they can see things more or less as they were back "in the day," like the beautiful facade.

But for the most part, it was modernized, as one would expect. But there were still plenty of original touches.

I especially loved the clocks...

...and art nouveau style in the exterior.

We would return to shop later! (And Marks and Spencer, too. Although I did do a quick run through and especially enjoyed their holiday shop, along with others we saw on our trip. You can check that post out here if you missed it.)

While Rick was playing guitar, he learned that there were recitals taking place from a music conservatory in St. James Church, Piccadilly. Well, that was on our Monday list, too for a very different reason. So off we went.

For me, St. James was one reason I wanted to come to England. My second great grandmother had been christened there and her parents married in this Christopher Wren church. I longed to see it.

Back in the 1600s when St. James was built, Piccadilly was (as it remains) one of London's fashionable spots with a great deal of history attached to it, and quite near St. James Palace. In fact, in 1772, one traveler complained that to get a seat for a church service cost as much as a theatre ticket! I suspect it was the parish church for my family's district, for I'm thinking my bootmaker second great-grandfather was probably not buying a seat for the key services! In fact, during the 1800s, they built seats specifically for the poor.

St. James isn't one of Wren's more imposing facades -- in fact, that was a criticism of its architecture at the time. It was no St. Paul's in terms of impact. But it is a gem -- and a well-restored one. It was badly damaged in World War II.

Thoughts of both World Wars I and II are present everywhere one visits in England. Many churches either have war memorial plaques or indications of restoration. I applaud those who in less than a century could repair what was done centuries before.

At St. James, four thousand books of gold leaf were used to gild the ceiling in its restoration.

The baptismal font is original and by Grinling Gibbons, depicting Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. It is located in the back of the church and while I'm not sure if that's its original location within the church, I like to imagine Stephen and Elizabeth Grainger baptizing their twin children there on a cold December day.

The beautiful altar work in wood is also by Gibbons, the master carver of the period.

He also did the limewood carving around the altar.

Light and airy, the church has some beautiful architectural details and a handsome altar.

It also has some interesting plaques and the one below particularly caught my eye. While visiting Kensington Palace, we learned that Victoria came to the throne because the rightful heir, Princess Charlotte (daughter of George, the Prince Regent and his wife Caroline) and her offspring, died after childbirth. Princess Charlotte had been attended by Sir Richard Croft. She was put on a poor diet and bled liberally to encounter "morbid excess of animal spirits." Charlotte's child was stillborn and soon after, she, too, died. With a ruined reputation, Croft (who had treated a woman with similar symptoms after Charlotte's death who also died) shot himself. Many years after Croft's death, after the manner of suicide was somewhat forgotten (bodies of suicide were not allowed burial on holy ground) a memorial was placed, recognizing him.

While Rick was enjoying the concert, I checked out the church, then the rather delightful market outside.

And, with my guidebook and maps, settled down to enjoy a snack in the lovely attached Southwood Garden.

It featured a rather lovely sculptural display and the whole area was a delightful haven.

There would be more music to come in our trip. Much more.

But this day -- this unexpected, out-of-itinerary day -- ended with knowing we'd done just the right thing!

And that's the best! (Next time we'll check out some of the historic area around St. James and some of the fun shopping!)

Travel Tips:

• Window shopping is a ball. I loved seeing things I wouldn't buy in a zillion years because it told me what the neighborhood was like (or catered to). And you can usually find something low priced somewhere if you need a souvenir.
• Holiday Cards -- St. James had quite a selection of holiday cards for sale (I'm probably talking over 100 different designs) at very reasonable prices, all of which had profits going to any one of a variety of charities. I was delighted with some I chose and for 4 pounds, it was a fun souvenir. We were there in October, but you can often find holiday cards any time of year in a major tourist destination.
• Free Recitals -- I'll say this again -- check out churches for free, inexpensively priced or "offering based" classical recitals. We saw several and all were excellent (and a good break for the feet!)
• Eating on the Cheap -- That little street market at St. James offered some delicious food. You don't have to break the budget for a snack. A spot like this -- or the chain Pret a Manger -- offers reasonably priced food.