After the grey chilly weather of recent days, the sunshine came as a welcome surprise. We must make the most of it.

Sunny but hazy

It is sunny and warm but there is a noticeable haze in the air.

A mysterious realm, the reservoir

I photographed this corner of the reservoir in Claremont Square. Closed off from public access, it seems a mysterious and attractive realm but only wildlife and occasional workmen know the reality.

Myddelton Square Garden

We walked round Myddelton Square (no cats visible!) and even in the garden the haze was noticeable. (It lifted as the morning wore on.)

Squirrel

As we walked round by the road, we spotted a squirrel in the garden. Separated from us by railings, he knew he was safe and stopped to calmly nibble at whatever foodstuff he had found.

Coffee and brownies

On the way to the deli, Tigger proposed having croissants with our coffee and I was happy to agree. In the event, however, they had none left but we had Belgian chocolate brownies instead. Adaptable, that’s us!

Outside the deli

We enjoyed our coffee sitting outside the deli in Amwell Street, a place that we have come to appreciate, thanks to Covid.

A bus to the City

After coffee, we walked up to the main road and caught a 205 bus to Shoreditch High Street.

Shoreditch High Street

This is where we left the bus. Over my left shoulder, the High Street continues and becomes Bishopsgate. This area used to be familiar to me in the “old” (pre-Covid) days, when I would meet Tigger from work but this was my first visit after a long hiatus. It was interesting to renew my acquaintance with it and to see what changes there had been (very few, as it happens).

Street art by Osch

Tigger had a list of street art sites to see and I photographed just a few. There was very little that appealed to me and I have the feeling that what was once very lively area for street art has slid into the doldrums and artists have moved elsewhere.

Art by Apparan

Art by unknown artist(s)

Street scene

This is somewhere in the region of Brick Lane though it’s not Brick Lane itself.

A market called Upmarket

We passed this indoor market but didn’t go in.

Street art, artist unknown

Hanbury Street from Spellman Street

Fornier Street

Here we are looking down Fournier Street towards Christchurch. This area was once famous for the Huguenot silk weavers who lived and plied their trade here.

Efes Turkish Restaurant

During our ramble, we had been edging towards Whitechapel Road where we would find Efes, a Turkish restaurant that we have visited on previous occasions.

Inside Efes

There were tables to spare, happily, and we settled in for lunch.

Turkish tea and ayran

I of course ordered my favourite, Turkish tea, and Tigger her favourite, ayran (drinking yogurt). We had lentil soup and a pide, a “Turkish pizza”, composed of various fillings in a flatbread base.

Bishopsgate

After a little more wandering without seeing anything I thought worth photographing, we reached Bishopsgate, near Liverpool Street Station.

A canton between tall buildings

Bishopsgate is a strange street. It contains a mixture of offices, restaurants, pubs, a supermarket and, of course, the aforementioned mainline station. It is also an important hub for several bus routes. In recent years, developers have been allowed to build grotesquely tall buildings, transforming Bishopsgate into a windy canyon.

Aboard the 205

Interested as I was to see the place again, I was happy to board a 205 bus and be transported away from there.

The buses, incidentally, were crowded, just as they were before the pandemic hit. We are supposed to wear face masks on public transport and there are repeated public announcements to remind us but those who do so (including us) are in a shrinking minority. Lets hope this selfish carelessness is not punished by an upsurge of the disease.