My original plan was to arrive at Watford, a couple of days (canal time) north of London, just before Rianne, Cohen, and Ayden arrived in order to scope out the good mooring locations, access to the shops, and the best route to Heathrow. Having said that, the main reason was to figure out the best way to get to Warner Bros. Studio, where they filmed much of the Harry Potter franchise! We are all big fans of the books and movies and when it was discovered that the canal went right past the studio, it seemed too perfect.

Once that planning started, an epic trip to London was, of course, added to the plan. I was so excited about the whole idea, I ended up arriving in Watford almost three weeks too soon! It was a nice break though, and I managed to meet up with old friends and make some new ones. Jamie, my original boat broker that had facilitated the purchase of the boat came with his partner and dogs.

It was a fantastic visit, I’m so happy we’ve stayed in touch, he’s a great guy and I owe him so much. I also met up with Bill and Jan, and this turned out to be a very fortuitous meeting. More on that in a later blog, but they are great people that I’m very happy to know.

Anyway, back to the purpose of the stay in Watford. The family was scheduled to arrive on a Saturday, and during the preceding weeks Westjet mechanics were making noises about a possible strike. Then suddenly it was a reality. I quickly booked alternative flights (with much stress and excessive cost) with Air Canada. As the subsequent day unfolded, it was announced that they were to go to arbitration and the strike was called off (according to Westjet). So, naturally, I cancelled the very expensive Air Canada flights. Then, the very night before they were to fly, the mechanics decided to strike anyway. So, again naturally, I freaked out. But by then is much too late to do anything. Except not sleep. I had booked not just the studio tours, but things in London as well, which were not cancellable. 

To make a long story longer, of the more than 1000 flights that Westjet was forced to cancel, the three that Rianne and the boys needed weren’t!  Unbelievable luck. Here’s the story of this part of the visit…

If you ever have a chance to visit the studio in Watford (and are a Harry Potter fan), it’s well worth the visit. Just book well in advance! I’ll start with some photos, there’s just so much to see!

I think some of this made its way into us. So many things went right, and it continued for the whole trip.

We apparently had some trouble with Platform 9 3/4. Muggles?

 

The pictures tell much of the story. Almost everywhere you look were the actual items used to make the movies, items that many of us know very well and now know a bit better. Learning about the movie magic, how things were done, was interesting and exciting too. We all loved the whole experience. If you do go, plan on a long day. There’s lots to see!

I’ll break these blogs into segments, the logical separation of each one will make sense. I hope…