West Ealing by night with Ealing Walkers and Talkers!

In London or planning to be here at the weekend?
Be prepared for this Saturday, December 3rd,  to join our Ealing Walking, Talking and Exploring Group on the first evening walk to see... the festive lights of West Ealing, catch up on the spots we had to leave out before, learn and share new things and ideas, meet more fun and interesting people, and end up looking at an art exhibition housed by the most exciting venue in the whole borough of Ealing! It only costs £10 per person, you don't need to pay for kids so wrap up warmly and meet us at 5 pm at the West Ealing Station!

Having just caught up with some nice local business people at the West Ealing Meetup organised by Carlene Bender of the Ealinger Magazine this afternoon, I found out that they do not know about my walking and talking initiative! What if we meet this Saturday?

The pictures below I took in West Ealing a few days ago. 

George and Dragon in Acton

Today I'll share with you a link to some pictures of a historic Acton pub that makes it's own beer. Click here.

However, what you might be more interested to know is that they have free live music on Friday nights! Seeing Anne-Marie Sanderson perform there was a heavenly experience. Ukulele and something else tonight, 22.02.2017, starting at 9pm! :-)

Arty Dining at The Orchard Cafe

A West Ealing venue in the redeveloped Green Man Estate can surprise you big way. Would you expect a signature six-course menu served there on a Friday night? I was most pleasantly surprised both by the taste and look of the food served by The Phantom Pig at The Orchard Cafe in Singapore Road, opposite the mosque. Wish I had more time to tell you about it. As I don't, just take my word for it and book a table for this Friday feast!

From walking and talking to singing in public!

I am so pleased to share with you more fruits of the Ealing Walking, Talking and Exploring Group project. 

Now learn about Magdalena Dobrzynska's recital at The Tate South Lambeth Library, some twenty years since her last public appearance, mind you! Her voice is very relaxing and good to listen to and the songs  she chose were mostly new to me. Many were poems by Agata Budzynska, a very talented poetess and singer who died young.

Probably I wouldn't  have met Magda if she hadn't started coming on our tours. Equipped with a good camera, she always takes great pictures, but yesterday she was to be photographed. That's not her only talent. When we became Facebook friends, I heard her sing for friends. Then I thought of  recommending her to Marta Sordyl of Poles Connect who had organised the Lambeth event and invited our group to do the tour in their area. It was so nice to listen to Magda live. My guess is you will be able to see her on stage at POSK next month!:-)

I met Kevin who played Prince Philip. No, not this one.

London, The Actors Touring Company at the Lyric Studio. Director: Mark Brickman. 1988. (British stage premiere) - this is about the play 'Ivona - Princess of Burgundia' by a Polish avangarde playwright, Witold Gombrowicz. It was easy to find the name of the troupe. I just needed to scroll down this page.You will be able to read much more about the grotesque tragi-farce play and the man himself. What made me look for it in the first place? Wouldn't my Dear Reader like to rightly ask?
Wouldn't I tell you? If I had the whole time of this world, or at least a bit more than I do, I would make it a long story and I bet you'd enjoy it, Dear Reader, provided you'd have the time to read it all. However, we are both short of time, aren't we? So let me tell you quickly. Well, yesterday I met Kevin O'Donohoe, the man who played Prince Philip in this performance:

 The Royal Court of King Ignatius and Queen Margaret is thrown into disarray when Prince Philip announces that he intends to marry the ugliest, vilest, most loathsome and lowliest creature in the kingdom: IVONA...

First outcome of my walking and talking tours!

They say find the job that you actually enjoy doing and you can earn your daily bread, and you will never feel unhappy about having to work.

Well, if I could do the walking and talking tours for a living, I think this saying would prove right for me. I have only started them, but there have been many years of hard work that have brought me to this point. It's hard to rival the sense of sheer joy that I experience while introducing and getting to know people, taking them places, telling stories and allowing them space to discover on their own, take pictures, ask questions, interact with one another.

There is no shortage of tours in London, obviously. What makes mine different?

• They are passion guided.
•  They take you places and show things you wouldn't notice even if you've lived there all your life.
• They give you opportunities to practise your conversational English, not just listen to the guide.
• They enable you to share your knowledge and experience with others.
• They don't have a fixed route, each one of the tours is unique.
• They enable you to meet new people and even make friends.
• They are great for networking.
• They help you get to know some useful facts about GB, it's present, past, culture and customs.
• They are affordable.
• They can positively change you.
• They open doors to artists' studios and homes. 

Can you believe that my tour participant has found a job on one of our tours?  I am very happy, and so is he and his employers!:-) I popped in there yesterday and saw some impressive work in progress:

 


Come to this Saturday, 26.11.2016. tour and check it out for yourself or ask me about the next one.  Click here for details.

A man unmasked;-)

One afternoon last week a man looking like Sherlock Holmes came into the Askew Rd informal community hub, Octavia shop, in Acton. My friend asked him where to get the hat he was wearing as she'd like one for her boyfriend. Not that she received an answer, but it started a fun conversation everyone at the shop enjoyed. That's how we learnt that he actually is an actor. I asked Mr Google and here is the proof: you are one click from it.:-) For pictures you can click  here   and this way you will also have an opportunity to read more about what's up in Ealing. Why not join The Ealinger mailing list and be up-to-date?