May 2026 Archives

A new sculpture by Banksy has appeared at Waterloo Place in central London, which is between the mall and Regent Street (Saint James' end). The sculpture is a political message, such as many of Banksy's works. It shows a marching figure holding a flag, but the flag has blown into the face of the marcher to blind them as they appear to step off of the plinth. I visited it today.

I captured another photograph of Banksy's signature.

Paul "Don" Smith, who is known for the "banker" or "tap man" stencil has also made a mark on the plinth.

At the moment, there isn't any calls to move the sculpture, so please go and visit it. 

Earlier this spring, Elephant Parade, part of Elephant Family, hosted a new elephant sculpture trail at Battersea Power Station to coincide with the Easter break. The train took place during from the end of March until the end of April, and I went to have a look last month. Elephant Family raises awareness of the elephant and ensuring that their habitats and wildlife is protected. The sculptures raise awareness and charity for these causes.

There were over twenty designs of elephants on display. This isn't the first time that they had a trail in London as there had been several in the past.

All of the elephants were easy to access around and inside the power station, although with the multiple levels in Battersea Power Station, it did take some time to locate the ones inside. It is a good day out to explore Battersea Power Station, and I also saw the Sunday market during my visit.

I am a little bit behind on my updates, and as I was looking back through my photographs, I discovered several that I have not gotten around to posting yet from the winter months. It did seem like a long winter this year as the weather was not great. Looking back on it, I did manage to do a few things to break up the time. As always, I enjoy the colour at Covent Garden with their seasonal floral displays.

Before the holidays, I had a trip to The Chocolate Cocktail Club again, and I had their seasonal cocktails.

Of course, I decorated for Christmas.

I had a Christmas lunch with turkey and vegetables.

Eastcote House Gardens always decorates the pine tree, so I got some photographs of this.

Ruislip's Duck Pond Market also had some festive markets set up for the holidays, and I bought some seasonal treats.

I loved the little edible flower pot cakes.

My friends and I also enjoyed a roast Christmas lunch together.

Of course, I always enjoy the local decorations.

The movie "Wicked 2" was out in the cinemas. I did go to see it. Everyone was talking about it.

At the beginning of January, I went to the HotWheels "Monster Trucks" event at the O2. That day, planned tube strikes meant that this took all day to get there and back, making a long day in a cold and gloomy month.

While I was at the O2, I went into the ice cream cafe "Snowflake" and had an ice cream.

In early February, I stopped by my friend's cafe for lunch, tea, and dessert.

I also started a couple of new fitness classes. The first part of the year was virtually impossible to get out and walk due to the rain on an almost-daily basis. However, it meant that my injury on my foot was allowed to heal. 

I also made Indian dishes from scratch and froze some of them. Below is a sambar, and it was really good.

Other than that, I kept busy with work and reading or listening to audio books.