Although the promised thunder storms did not arrive, there has been rain and this has lowered the temperature to more reasonable levels – around 20°C. We went out at 2:30 when the sun broke through briefly but for most of the walk the sky was cloudy and the air humid.

Cloudy skies

This photo will give you an idea of the conditions. Happily, it didn’t actually rain while we were out.

We called in at Jusaka (yes, they were open today) and left our cups pending our return and then crossed the road into Colebrooke Row. This is one of the oldest streets in the area, having been built in 1768. At the main road end it runs beside Duncan Terrace Gardens which was established over this section of the New River. The name comes from the Colebrooke family who owned the land in which the street was laid.

Vincent Terrace

We crossed the end of Vincent Terrace which also runs beside a waterway, this one still open and in use: the Regent’s Canal. With only trees and shrubs facing the houses, this looks like a pleasant place to live though I doubt whether I shall ever verify this from personal experience 🙂

Duncan Street

This view is along Duncan Street, which runs from Colebrooke Row to Upper Street. What caught my attention today, though, was that when we walked here in the early days of lockdown, these streets were virtually empty with just the occasional passer-by but look at it today: alive with people. In the minds of many, lockdown and social distancing are already a dead letter.

Duncan Terrace

We entered Duncan Terrace which is parallel to Colebrooke Row on the other side of the gardens and which leads back to the main road and, ultimately, our coffee. What claimed my attention here were all the leaves on the ground, making the scene reminiscent of autumn, rather than summer.

The streets with “Duncan” in their name were given this, you may recall, in honour of Adam Duncan, 1st Viscount Duncan of Camperdown (1731-1804), a British admiral who defeated the Dutch in the battle of Camperdown (1797).

Duncan Terrace is narrower than Colebrooke Row, lending it a more “cosy” feel, though whether that’s how the inhabitants view it, I couldn’t say.

Lantern in the fanlight

We have already “collected” a number of different designs of fanlights but today, in Duncan Terrace, we became aware of a variation on the theme. A number of houses had a lantern actually integrated into the structure of the fanlight. This no doubt sheds useful light both on the doorstep and in the entrance hall. These would presumably have originally been fuelled with oil and only latterly with electricity. In some houses, the lantern is missing, its emplacement filled with plain glass.

Old bell pull

This front door sports a lion-head doorknocker but, more interestingly, still has the old bell pull. Does this still work? Probably not. The mechanism has probaby broken down after all these years, along with those installed in the family rooms for calling the servants. I was tempted to try it but thought better of it as we already cause suspicion by the close attention we pay to people’s houses, not to mention all the photographs we take!

The J. Smith & Sons Clock

We crossed City Road and prepared to cross Goswell Road. Tigger innocently enquired whether I was going to photograph the clock. I wasn’t sure whether to or not but her challenge tipped me over the brink. So here, for your delectation (and more to the point, mine), here is another photo of the Smith & Sons clock. Unfortunately, as you can see, it is not working at present and I hope that will be remedied soon.

A few more steps took us to Jusaka and thence to home, to enjoy our coffee and sort our photos.

Here’s hoping that the cooler weather will endure for a while, making for more comfortable walking.