Strawberry Hill House & Locals App
So I discovered this new social app called Locals. Well, actually, it discovered me on Instagram - cheeky little algorithms.
Locals have recently launched in London and Los Angeles (sorry folks, hopefully, it will be coming to you soon). It's the bright yellow one if you are looking for it. It aims to connect people (strangers) in real life to enjoy time together and give back. Have Fun And Do Good. Suits me as I want to live my life doing both.
Anyone can create an experience on Locals, and everyone who participates in an activity has to donate to a chosen charity. The host also gets to decide whether to accept the donation and amount before they give you access to the group. It sounds very elite and exclusive, but it's not really. It's all about giving to charity and giving to yourself and others in the form of shared experiences. I have signed up to 4 so far.
There is something for everyone on Locals. Here are the first four events listed when I opened the app today and the charities they are raising funds for just to give you a flavour of what is on offer:
Philosophy Cafe for Help Refugees Charity, Cinema visit to watch the new Batman movie for Planet Patrol, Mindfulness and Art Therapy for the Special Olympics, Sex, Drinks & Rock & Roll live music event for The Royal Theatrical Fund.
My first activity was a visit to Strawberry Hill House and Gardens in Strawberry Hill. I didn't even know the cuteness of a place called Strawberry Hill even existed. It's in a very affluent area in Twickenham, and (fun or not-so-fun facts) it was the home of Horace Walpole, the son of a former Prime Minister. This was built as his summer home in the 1700s. Alright for some.
This would be my first Locals adventure, where I would get to meet some new people over a shared interest in art and architecture. Off I went on a cold, miserable, wet day to Twickenham to hopefully enjoy a couple of hours with a group of strangers. That we had a shared interest or that we were just getting out of the house would hopefully be enough to get the conversation to flow.
And it did, for the most part. It's always a little awkward at first meeting new people especially when you have to introduce yourself to a group and say a few words about yourself. The host was really good though. We all had our turn to introduce ourselves and why we wanted to join this particular event and after some casual conversation we all went into Strawberry Hill House.
It's not huge by castle standards, but I wouldn't complain if this was my house. Actually, maybe I would, as it would be a lot of maintenance.
I was surprised that some of the artworks were not originals and were the result of 3D printing. You would never know unless you are an expert, and I am not sure how I feel about faux artwork. It's great for a reimagination of what something once was, but with fake news, deep fakes the world it’s hard to know what and who are real or not.
They look real, although we are in an era where the lines between real and fake are so blurred that Strawberry Hill House is transparent about it is great so we actually knew what we were looking at.
It is a cute castle, and the small Versaille replica and gothic architecture definitely make it worth the visit. There are so many cute places in the UK to explore, and since I haven't been travelling as much, I’ve been exploring more and more things to do closer to home.
Locals is going to be something that fills some of the solo gaps that I am way too comfortable with in my life. I met a couple of new people and had great conversations. I travelled part of the way home with one of the group, and we made loose plans to hang out again soon. She tested positive for Covid the day after our Strawberry Hill visit and was kind enough to let me know so that I could get tested, too, so we have put that on hold for now.
My next Locals event is a silent walk on Hampstead Heath. Shhhh, and I will let you know how it goes.
Strawberry Hill House
268 Waldegrave Road
Twickenham
TW1 4ST
https://www.strawberryhillhouse.org.uk