May 4, 2013 Canalway Cavalcade Boat Parade

Edward and Elaine at the Canalway Calvacade Boat Parade

May 4 was a “Banking Holiday” in England. Apparently there are four such holidays annually. The banks close for the Monday holiday so everyone else uses that as an excuse to take the day off. Since the first Monday in May is a Bank Holiday, it serves as the beginning of Spring celebration and everyone comes out. The weather was great so we went back to the “Little Venice” area about which we wrote earlier to see the parade of canal boats and the decorated boats.

Lovely Flowers in the Park. It is officially Spring here. Everything is in bloom.

Children in the bubble pool spinning around and in little boats.

Children learning to spin a plate on a stick.

 

Beautiful boats - this one is For Sale.   Look at that shiny engine.  Most of these boats have a lot of brass on them.  Most have been remodeled with modern conveniences and comforts and some have been preserved to their original appearance. The boats are very long, 48 to 70 feet and very narrow, about 12 feet. They have to be very low to fit under bridges and very narrow to make their way through the canals that have been dug over the centuries to connect various rivers in England. The canals were the primary means of transporting goods around the countryside.

Below are the boats decorated for the Boat Parade.

 

    

  This one had flags of various countries making it the “International Boat.”

This one is decorated as a “Showboat” with people in period  costumes from the musical.

The Waterway Pub on the Canal.  A great place to relax after the parade.

Boats going back after the parade.

 

  Edward with a beautiful flowering tree along the canal.

Elaine on a pedestrian bridge over the canal.

We had a nice Greek mixed grill dinner at a local pub for the evening meal. mmmmm!  Our friend Kim, the marathon runner who says she runs better on protein than carbs, would have loved this meal!

  Sunset at the apartment.   Beautiful view to end the day.