Orpington

Lunch with a friend down in Orpington in Kent.

Orpington is one of those places which is easily reached by train, and is only in Zone 4, but far enough out of London to have some of the characteristics of a country town.   In fact, we did not get the train, as there is a regular bus service from Bromley, and the train station is some distance from the High Street, whereas the buses run straight down it.

Orpington High Street has everything you need; most of the big shops, a market, lots of good charity shops, a supermarket (Sainsburys), etc., together with a large number of cafes and restaurants.   My friend wanted to try a new cafe that had just opened, so we opted for that; the food was excellent, with very good sized portions and the price was more than reasonable.

After that we went to have a look at the museum, to see if there was any new exhibition on; unfortunatley, there wasn't, although there is one coming up in the near future.   But out on the lawn there was dancing round the maypole, following the election of Orpington's May Queen; lots of little girls in frilly white dresses and pink shawls dancing to the music while a crowd of parents and friends looked on.   All very, very English and enjoyable.   There was going to be another similar event at Petts Wood on the Sunday, for the Petts Wood May Queen.