Souvenir …

One of my favorite souvenirs from all my trips to the United Kingdom is this one from 2014. It was the second time I visited the country and the first time I journeyed to Notting Hill to check out the famed Portobello Road antiques market. I picked up one of these small type trays and set about exploring the street stalls and shops for small items to fill the slots. My most-prized find was the cast-iron spaceman figure, which was a bit pricey, and dates back to the 1950s, purchased from a street vendor who specialized in this type of toy. (He was one of the friendliest and happiest people I’ve ever met in my life; I went back in 2016 and bought an even pricier robot figure from him, too.) I also got the police Bobby and the Queen’s Guardsman from him; that was 3 of the 10 slots filled. The type pieces I believe I bought from the same place as the type tray: 2 Gs, the ampersand, the cat, and the British phone booth. The old keys and the King George medal (something given away for some royal anniversary in the mid-1930s) filled out the other slots. I very carefully sealed this as seen here into a tight-fitting plastic bag and packed it in my carry-on bag to bring home. It’s one of my favorite treasures from a great trip, one that sealed my love for London and all things British. I can’t wait to go back again.

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