By the time we had finished lunch, it was 2:30 and as the deli closes at 3 pm on Sunday, we would have to hurry if we wanted coffee. We made it in time but too late to sit outside the deli and so we carried our coffee to Myddelton Square Gardens.

Feeding frenzy

We sat on a bench under the trees and Tigger produced food for the wildlife. She was hoping to feed the squirrels but they are rather elusive and seem nervous of the pigeons. We tried to keep the pigeons occupied on one side while attracting the squirrels on the other but we were unsuccessful in this.

“My friend” arrives
Photo by Tigger

The one-footed pigeon that I had fed before (see Feeding the birds) arrived in a flurry of wings. He, or rather, I think, she, must have recognised me and was confident enough to perch on my knee again.

Feeding the pigeon

The pigeon was happy to eat from my hand.

Portrait

This is a quick portrait of “my friend” 🙂 Yes, I know we’re not really friends and that the pigeon loves the food and not me but it is a relationship of a sort and valuable as such.

A view from the bench

The garden is a pleasant and peaceful place. Many people come here, some alone, some with friends or partners and some, if course, with dogs, but it remains peaceful.

Rear of St Mark’s Church

When the seed was used up but we had a few nuts left for the squirrels, we moved to a different bench near the rear of the church, hoping to be closer to the squirrels, but we were no more successful in attracting them.

Gardening tools

We noticed that there were a lot of gardening tools lying around and a couple of people doing gardening work. They were obviously not Council employees but members of the local community. It’s nice to think that the local people are helping to maintain this lovely asset.

Keeping an eye on us

As we left the garden, we noticed that the pigeons were keeping an eye on us and following from a distance, probably in case we had more food to share.

Electra passes

Walking through the square, we spied Electra performing her circuits, going round and round.

Pretty window box

My final photograph was of this pretty window box in Chadwell Street, no doubt a contender in the window box competition.

Though cloudy, the weather today is warm and (so far) dry, which in these islands, counts as a plus, I suppose.

Cloudy skies over White Lion Street

As is usual on a Sunday morning, we were heading towards the emporium of Sainsbury and company to perform our weekly shopping run.

The busker

In Chapel Market, a rather mournful-sounding busker was adding to the noise by singing to a guitar.

Interaction

As I stopped to take a (discreet) photo of the musician, there occurred a strange interaction between him and a passer-by. Is this music criticism in action?

Farmers’ Market

As I took this photo of the Farmers’ Market, the person in red trousers suddenly noticed me and did a quick dash away from the camera. This often happens, as if people are afraid of being caught on camera. Very occasionally, I have been challenged by people who have taken exception to being included in a shot. As it usually takes them a moment or two to realise I am taking photos, I have formulated the following rules for street photography:

1. Take the photo carefully but quickly
2. Do not make eye contact with anyone
3. Move quickly on

Outside tables, Millennium Cafe

Despite the cloudy weather, the Millennium Cafe had plenty of customers for its tables outside. They were keeping the waitress busy.

Sainsbury’s

Sainsbury’s was not very busy and we had only a few items to collect so had soon finished.

The market wasn’t very busy

The market, as I hurried through to pick up our coffees, was not very busy, either. What determines how busy shops and markets are and why is there so much variation in customer numbers? I suppose the answer is that random movements of people cause ebbs and flows in numbers without there being any specific reason governing the whole.

Coffee in hand, we returned home where we will have lunch and then decide what to do with the rest of the day.

We are going to Bromley today to meet friends, our first meeting with them since the onset of the pandemic.

Black Sheep Coffee

We started with coffee and croissants at Black Sheep near King’s Cross Station.

The twin stations

We then continued down the road to King’s Cross and St Pancras Stations. We set off from St Pancras, knowing we would have to change trains.

Platforms for the south

We descended to the lower level to catch our first train. The nearly empty platforms were a good sign and I hoped it would be as uncrowded everywhere.

On the escalator at London Bridge Station

Our first change is at London Bridge. Here we are on an escalator going down.

We change here at Peckham Rye to a train for Bromley South.

Aboard the train for Bromley South

We arrive at Bromley South

It’s raining in Bromley

We are waiting in Caffè Nero

We met our friends and walked along Bromley High Street. The rain had stopped, fortunately.

We entered the shopping centre which is called the Glades but is not anything like a glade and was too crowded for comfort.

Our friends had business at the Three Mobile shop.

This wall is painted in honour of Charles Darwin.

In front of Darwin is the old town pump.

We had lunch at the Japanese noodle bar.

Afterwards, we went for a walk, passing this fine old pub.

Do you think we are in Bromley North, by any chance?

We met the balloon seller. Just as well it’s not windy today.

There is a street market as well as shops.

Well, I had to photograph this, of course.

We walked along here, looking in some of the shops. I can’t say that Bromley impressed me either with its beauty or its interest, though I expect someone loves it.

We returned to Caffè Nero for coffee and cake. Then we bade our friends adieu.

We went to the station where we soon had a train.

Here we are, on the train. This one went to London Blackfriars where we changed to one that carried us to St Pancras.

From St Pancras, a 214 bus took us the rest of the way home. Thus ended our trip to Bromley.

Written “on the hoof” during our trip to, at and from Bromley.

Crafts Council Gallery

This is the Crafts Council Gallery in Pentonville Road. For quite a long time it has been closed while renovation work was in progress. Tigger noticed that it finally opened today and proposed that we pay a visit. The current exhibition is entitled Maker’s Eye: Stories of Craft.

As is usual these days, even though admission is free (and photography is permitted), you still need to reserve tickets, to prevent overcrowding. However, we were fortunate in arriving at a quiet time and were admitted almost immediately.

A tantalising glimpse

During our brief wait, we sat in the lobby from where we had a tantalising glimpse of the exhibition. Very soon we were able to pass through the door and view the exhibits.

I’ll be honest and say the crafts are not my bag and that I did not really pay close attention to the exhibits. The fact that not everything was labelled was also a discouragement to close attention. Most of the photos are therefore general views of the exhibition.

View including “St Sebastian”
Photo by Tigger

This view by Tigger includes a knitted one-piece suit that includes a non-detachable head covering. It was suspended from the ceiling and rotated slowly back and forth creating, to my mind, a rather sinister tableau, an effect increased by the fact that it was transpierced by a number of knitting needles, a clear reference to St Sebastian. I think this is an example of “crafts meet art”. You will find the creator’s explanation of the work here.

Oversized coffee mug

There was an oversized coffee mug (about 4 feet tall) and…

A giant glove

…a giant knitted glove, which I estimate to be about 3 feet long from the cuff to the end of the middle finger. These are obviously exhibition pieces to demonstrate the skill of the makers, not practical products.

Jointed wooden snake

As usual, my attention was caught by animal shapes. If I could have taken one object home, it would have been this one.

Chairs

Here is an easy chair and some stacking chairs, surrounded by a bewildering collection of objects in all kinds of materials.

A Whatnot

This large and somewhat strange object naturally produces the reaction “What’s that?!” The answer, according to the label, is that it is a “Megatron – Whatnot – Étagère”. I think that means that you can put things on it to keep them and/or display them. It was made in 1985 by Fred Baier.

I might add that much of the space on the walls was occupied by shelves continuing books in sufficient numbers, I think, to deserve the title “library”. Presumably, visitors can consult these books to learn about crafts.

Sunshine in Claremont Square

Tigger was hoping that the gallery boasted a cafe but in this she was disappointed. Instead, on leaving the gallery, we headed in a predictable direction, passing through this familiar square upon which the sun was now shining.

At Myddelton’s

We betook ourselves to Myddelton’s deli (as you no doubt guessed) and found a table outside.

Watching the pigeons

We watched the pigeons and…

Drinking our coffee
Photo by Tigger

…of course, drank our coffee.

St Mark’s Church

Then we returned home and my last photo was this one of St Mark’s Church lit with afternoon sunshine.

Today is once more cloudy with a promise of rain.

Cloudy skies

We went out for coffee followed by a local walk. Ever and anon we felt rain drops on our face or hands.

Looking across Amwell Street to River Street

We took our coffee at a table outside the deli. I took this photo and the two following ones, views from where I was sitting. Need I say again that I have come to love this neighbourhood and feel happy looking around me?

Amwell Street and the Lloyd & Son dairy

Amwell Street is intermittently busy with traffic using it to connect main roads. When it’s quiet, it gives the impression of a village high street, into which the old Lloyd & Son dairy (currently a hairdresse’s) fits perfectly.

Lloyd Baker Street

All three views are from our table outside the deli. This one shows Lloyd Baker Street and a row of smaller Georgian-style houses.

I had to use a walking stick

I had to use a walking stick today. This is because when I woke up this morning I found I was suffering severe back pain. I have suffered this before, though some time ago, and it is disappointing that it has occurred again.

Entering Cumberland Gardens

After our scoffee break we went for a local stroll. Here we are entering Cumberland Gardens.

I have mentioned that a window box competition has been arranged in the neighbourhood and below is a selection of boxes we saw today.

Some are more ambitious, and perhaps more “expert”, than others, but all are welcome as they brighten up the houses and the streets.

New growth for the tree stump

And so back to the title of this post, “Never give up”. I was saddened when this tree in Inglebert Street was cut down though I expect that there was a good reason for this. When we passed by it today, we saw that the stump has grown new branches with leaves, showing that there is life and determination in it yet. If one needed an illustration of fortitude in the face of adversity, this is surely it.