Dungeon to Dome

Ok the London Dungeon might not be everyone's ideal for an Easter Monday. Ok not mine either, but it was a treat for my friends' 11 year-old and it seemed to go down well. And frankly a happy 11 year old is quite infectious. In a good way.

If you have never been, and I hadn't for 30 years, its a combination of clever advanced ghost train techniques along with some 5th rate panto. At the start there is a rather clever mirror maze called the Labyrinth of Lost Souls and I rather liked that. Much of the rest are little scenes played out by the actors the RSC (and one imagines just about everyone else) rejects. And the end is the drop - meant to sort of simulate the drop when being hanged, but without the hanging bit, thankfully. Basically its a stationary roller-coaster. You get hauled up in your seat and then suddenly you drop. Very quick sudden shock sensation.

Tamsin wimped out of that bit, and then we returned blinking to the beautiful sunlit day outside and trotted off to nearby Southwark Cathedral. Nice spot, which includes a memorial to Shakespeare who of course spent his professional life in the vicinity

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Then after lunch we headed off to the big boy of cathedrals - St Paul's. Tamsin wimped out of the climb up the dome too this time so it was just me with gammy leg and Tom making the climb. Actually it wasn't too bad, and the views are terrific. But not to be undertaken by those who dislike heights or spiral staircases. Actually down is rather worse than up, not least as you get a bit mesmerised by spiralling down and down. Still a true marvel of architecture. And Tom loved the climb and the view, and he got a few very decent photos. I also like the crypt, and Nelson's tomb. But by then an 11 year old's tolerance of cathedrals had begun to reach breaking point. Well in truth he had done pretty well as not many would survive two cathedrals in a day.

And for me, well as much exercise as a broken ankle could really take. I don't think climbing St Paul's is quite what a doctor would order. See what my physio thinks tomorrow. Basically if I can walk through the pain barrier its not too bad, But getting up first thing in the morning is agony. I can barely hobble to the bathroom. Will have to see how long this persists for.

Just hope this weather can persist for the summer. Just so nice. And the garden really enjoys it too.