We walked from home to Hamleys

Pete, Nicola, Lola, 9, and Nell, 6, spent three happy months during summer of 2007 travelling around Britain. Now we’re home, but the travel bug is still there. Join us for the occasional sightseeing plus tips on how to shrink your carbon footprint. This post is from Nicola

I love going on big walks but recently (in Norfolk) this meant driving to the start of our route. In a bid to remind myself that this is a crazy way to behave, and to help teach the girls over half term exactly where they live in London we walked from home to Hamleys.

It took us nearly four hours to cover the five miles but our adventure included stop offs at shops, cafes, parks and a bagel break at Brill Cafe in Exmouth market. We were accompanied by a model dog (christened Pizza by Nell) and a ball which Lola uses to practise basketball. It was tiring hammering along the pavements - the children kept suggesting we should get two dogs and call them Footsore and Blister, but just as I thought they were about to give in (on a side street in Covent Garden) Nell spotted a dead rat, and interest revived.

Hamleys was picked by the girls as a place they really wanted to go too. It also gave them a chance to spend the tiny amount of pocket money they'd saved up since January (this is because I rarely hand it out, not because they spend it).

My next plan is to walk with Pete to West Ham's Boleyn ground. Unlike the rest of the family I don't need a destination temptation as I'm just as happy walking around the city as I am in the country. Meanwhile my neighbour suggests looking up a walking website...