A cold Christmas Day walk in Southall 2

                                                                                                                                                             
This lovely little bridge across the Grand Union Canal connects North Hyde Lane (London Borough of Hounslow) with Regina Road (London Borough of Ealing). Both sides of the canal are called Southall, both sides have a similar diverse populations, both sides have the UB2 postal code.

The second part of my walk took me from the Brent Road via a short stretch of the Western Road to the Grand Union Canal which I followed till the Regina Road.

The London canals are a great asset, mini nature reserves in the middle of congested urban areas. It is a pity that too many people use the canals and the canal banks as a dumping area for anything from the common and garden litter (tins, crisp packets, paper) to mattresses and shopping trolleys. Are the dumpers off their trolley ? 

It is all part of this idea that ‘them’, meaning the council got to clean up after them, what else are we paying our council tax for ? And when the council tax goes up these are the first people to join the protest.

Near the bridge (see picture) was a gathering of swans, who hissed at me in a most alarming way as swans do. Years ago I was out in a rowing boat with some friends when we came too near the nest of Mrs & Mr Swan and were chased out of the area by the two of them. They are not the sort of animal you want to pick a fight with ! The white bits on the towpath next to the canal are mostly swan litter, bits an pieces of feather.

From the bridge I walked to central Southall via Regina Road, Williams Road, Lea Road and Adelaide Road. I took some pictures of the Guru Amardas Hall and the Sri Guru Amardass Gurmat Society & Education Centre, which is a dera where neither Gurmat nor education is very high on the agenda. It is housed in an old pub, and on the Adelaide Road and the Norwood Road facing sides of the building are banners announcing that this is the site for the Guru Amardass Gurdwara, suggesting construction work, but so far no sign of any builders.

On the other side of the Norwood Road is the old Pratap Hall, now the Guru Nanak Dabar of the Afghan Ekta Cultural Religious Community Centre. There are serious building plans here, just next to the underused Havelock Road Singh Sabha. One good result is that the ‘Afghan Ekta’ bought and closed the pub around the corner in King Street.

       

    

A cold Christmas Day walk in Southall 1

The Namdhari Community Centre in Southall, not very glamorous looking to say the least, but nonetheless at one stage on the receiving end of minor violence by local young Sikhs. Námdharis are not Sikhs, they believe in a living Satguru which is against Guru’s teachings. But throwing bricks through windows is not going to do anybody any good ! 

Christmas Day, no public transport to anywhere in this blessed England, so I had no choice but go on a local walk after visiting the Park Avenue Singh Sabha.

I went across the railway bridge, turned right into Featherstone Road, continued through Dudley Road, Spencer Street, Balfour Road, Johnson Street, Caxton Road, Scott’s Road and Brent Road.

Not a very scenic area, but there is a variety of smaller and bigger houses in the area, and most of them not of the newest or more prestigious type, which makes the area attractive to newcomers. Many South Asians live here, and many of them are Sikhs or of Sikh background. Those that have lived here for a while often have done up their houses very nicely.  There are also houses that seemed to be used as a first cheap abode, to be left as soon as the owners can afford a better place, which results in neglect of maintenance.  There are also people who have lived here for a while and who have either no ambition or no money to improve their property.

And it was very grey, windy and quite cold !