Paying respect for Her Majesty in an oasis of flowers

But what was Sunday in London, the day before the funeral, like?

The train from Newark to King’s Cross on Sunday was fairly quiet, writes Wayne Swiffin. A couple opposite my wife and I were going to watch a village cricket cup final being played at Lord’s.

King’s Cross, with its flags at half mast, was busy, but not unusually so, and we walked the three miles to Green Park, zig-zagging through the quiet streets. People were sitting outside coffee shops chatting away in the sunshine that bathed Bloomsbury, tourists seemed to be queuing to get into the British Museum.

But as we walked along Shaftesbury Avenue, it got busier, with the wide pavement brimming with footsteps. You could see people with bunches of flowers – some with bouquets that cost quite a few quid.

Some people popped into an M&S to get flowers, as we did – £6, not too bad for that London.

Then across the road into Green Park.

Green Park is one of the parkland areas close to Buckingham Palace. It has lots of trees, and open space, and can be a tranquil spot in a busy city.

And it had been turned into a place where people could lay flowers.

One thing we do well in this country is organise things and queue. Areas of the park were sectioned off, and neat rows of flowers had been left. Thousands of people were there. As flowers were being placed, more would soon be placed over them. More sections of the park were being roped off as more space was needed. The smell of the flowers was everywhere.

Tributes from children, letters from elderly people. What looked like a headstone had been erected. Photos were on the ground. Drawings left.

After that, we walked over to The Mall, hoping to get towards Buckingham Palace itself, but that was not to be so we headed up The Mall, across it, and through another park towards Westminster Abbey.

People were herded through different, well-sign-posted areas. You couldn’t cross a road if police or cars with blacked-out windows were passing – or if little street cleaning vehicles went past, collecting manure left by horses.

We took in Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament, and Westminster Hall, where the Queen’s body lay in state. We saw the platforms erected for the world’s media.

We saw police officers from across the country. We saw the security cameras watching. We saw police on roofs. We saw people camping to get a good spot to watch the funeral procession.

As we continued on our walk – 20,000 steps and 13.12 kilometres – we went past Downing Street; we believe the PM left as we walked past, a short convoy of police vehicles with flashing blue lights and police outriders.

Up past The Strand and along to Covent Garden, where the street entertainers played, the market bustled, and the cafes sold their over-priced wine – £13 for a glass of wine the waiter didn’t know was a Pinot Grigio.Life goes on.