We did not go anywhere in particular today and yet we went to lots of places, all without any fixed plan, just turning here and there as we felt like it.

Myddelton’s deli

We started with coffee at the deli, sitting in the sun at the table immediately to the left of the shop door.

Spa Fields

We walked past Spa Fields Park and even though it looked inviting, we didn’t go in.

What follows is a random selection of photos taken here and there with no sense of an itinerary.

No longer a shop

The “corner shop”, usually run by a family living on the premises, used to be found in every neighbourhood and was well used by the neighbours. But since the mid-20th century they have been closing down, often transformed with greater or lesser alterations into dwellings.

Boys’ entrance no longer

This complex site comprises an early 20th-century school and a collection of subsidiary buildings. This door bears the word “BOYS” but the letterbox shows that is no longer a school entrance but the door to a dwelling.

Sans Walk

This narrow street, Sans Walk, with a pavement wide enough for only one person was named in 1893 after a local family called Sans, but why they were so honoured I do not know.

Hugh Myddelton Schools

This handsome early 20th-century school, probably commissioned by the London School Board though the latter’s name does not appear in it, displays the name “Hugh Myddelton Schools”. The sign, however, calls it “Kingsway Place”, showing that it is now an apartment block.

St James’s Walk

Another narrow street, pleasantly quiet, this one is called St James’s Walk, not because St James ever strolled here but because…

Church of St James Clerkenwell

…beside it stands the Church of St James Clerkenwell. The present church was built in 1792 (restored 1882) but its history goes back to a 12th-century nunnery.

Hayward’s Place

This intriguing street – or passage – is called Hayward’s Place and was built, as a plaque informs us, in 1834. Two centuries before it was build, the Red Bull Theatre (1605-65) was sited hereabouts. The present name derives from James Hayward (1701-1851), an ironmonger who, I believe, owned some of the houses.

Decorated façade

We entered Brewhouse Yard where this building displays an unusual and slightly startling decorated façade.

The Old Brewery

Still present is the old brewery. I was pleased to see that the clock was showing the correct time.

Modern monstrosity

Why do modern architects build such monstrously ugly buildings and why do their customers let them do so?

Can we go out this way?

After several more turns, I was no longer sure where we were but Tigger of course knew. Finding ourselves in this passage, we wondered whether there was a way out. There was and, going through it, we found ourselves in…

Clerkenwell Road

…Clerkenwell Road and I now again knew where we were.

People’s Choice Cafe

We turned right into Goswell Road and saw the People’s Choice Cafe. As it was, or could be, lunchtime, we went and had lunch.

Entering the Barbican

When we emerged, it was spitting with rain which suggested we go in somewhere. Quite close was the Barbican Estate and within it, the Museum of London. (The museum is soon to move to a new site in Smithfield Market.) So thither we went.

The Barbican – a complex site

The Barbican is a complex site, with private and public areas and it is easy to become lost – unless, of course, you have a Tigger with you, in which case you will be led safely to your destination!

Varied views

As you follow the walkways, you see a series of varied views and it’s hard to form a picture of the whole. In fact, for me, this feeling of wandering through an ever-changing landscape, not sure where I am or where I’m going, is part of the pleasure.

Residents’ Gardens

There are also tantalising glimpses of gardens but these are for residents only and are not accessible to the public.

Ironmongers’ Hall

As we approach the museum, I always look out for Ironmongers’ Hall. The Company of Ironmongers is one of London’s anciently established livery companies. The Barbican seems to have grown around their pre-existing hall. Quite how this all fits together I do not know.

Museum shop

There were “events” going on around the museum and crowds of people but we went straight in and started by visiting the museum shop. There are a lot of interesting items there though we did not buy anything this time.

The Museum Cafe

We next visited the museum cafe. I grabbed a table, nicely sited in a corner, while Tigger went to the counter.

Tea, coffee and banana cake

We spent a pleasant while in our corner with the drinks and banana cake chosen by Tigger.

Sunken garden

In the way out from the museum we pass this little garden lying below the level of the walkway. It is not open to the public.

St Botolphe without Aldersgate

This unusual-looking church is known as St Botolphe without Aldersgate, meaning that it was built just outside the city gate. The present church is as it was rebuilt in 1788-91.

Towards St Paul’s Cathedral

We continued down the street towards St Paul’s where we intended to catch a bus home.

St Paul’s from Queen’s Head Passage

Walking along Queen’s Head Passage gives us this dramatic glimpse of St Paul’s Cathedral.

Aboard the 4

At a stop near the St Paul’s we caught a number 4 bus which carried us back to the Angel and home.

Tigger has a half-day at work today and will leave the office at 11:30. I am, of course, going there to meet her. The rest of the day is ours!

Aboard the 153

I started my journey on a 153 bus, leaving plenty of time in case of delays like last time (see Midweek tigers).

London Wall – no congestion

When I changed buses in London Wall today, the road was clear and there were no holdups.

Zephyr

On arriving, I went down to St Katharine Docks as I usually do. The familiar crowd of yachts graced the moorings and today I photographed Zephyr which, with its tall mast and long bowsprit, is the one that most looks like a sailing ship, though the spars are bare with no sign of actual sails. (As you probably know, “Zephyr” is a poetic word for a light breeze or, according to some, the west wind.)

Ivory House

Gatepost elephant

The gateway from the road is decorated with a pair of elephants. Pretty as they are, they have sinister connotations as indicated by the name of the old warehouse to which the gate gives access: Ivory House. How many hundreds of elephants were slaughtered solely to harvest their tusks?

Crossing Tower Bridge

We walked across Tower Bridge. It was very busy with a long queue for visits.

Looking along the Thames

The weather is not very nice, as you can see, though it’s not actually raining at the moment.

Tower Bridge Road

We walked down Tower Bridge Road, looking for lunch.

The Raven

We found lunch in a small pub called the Raven. There were a couple of vegetarian items on the menu.

Cactus garden

There was a small cactus garden on our table.

Carriage entrance

Afterwards, we continued walking here and there and passed through a housing estate. Unusually, it had a carriage entrance but this was blocked with bollards.

Railway bridge

Continuing on, we went under a railway bridge and found ourselves in Bermondsey.

Boys’ entrance

Many London schools date from the early 20th century when they were commissioned by the old London School Board whose logo they still carry. These schools had separate entrances for boys, girls and infants. The gates often still survive though they are no longer used to segregate pupils.

Cornerstone
Austin Emery

We passed Tanner Street Park where this rather strange sculpture resides. By Austin Emery it is entitled Cornerstone.

Fuckoffee

We stopped for coffee at this coffee bar with the, shall we say racy, name? It was quite busy but we found a deep, soft settee which proved hard to leave!

St Mary Magdalen

This is St Mary Magdalen, a tall church hard to photograph in a narrow street.

The Watch House

Next to the church is its burial ground and in a corner of this stands a small but solid building. Currently a coffee bar, its original purpose is indicated by its name: the Watch House. Such shelters were built in burial grounds for the watchmen. Their job was to make sure that body snatchers did not steal newly buried corpses to sell to medical researchers. Closure of London burial grounds in the 1850s removed the need for guardians. Just a few watch houses survive.

Bermondsey Market – closing

We came upon Bermondsey Market and had a quick look but it was now 1:57 and the market closes at 2 pm so there was not much to see.

Methodist Central Hall

We stopped to admire the striking façade of the Methodist Central Hall, designed by Charles Bell and opened in 1900.

Albert Edward McKenzie memorial

We paused at this modern-style (almost cartoonish) likeness of Albert Edward McKenzie, holder of the VC for his bravery in the face of danger and dubbed “local hero”. Strangely, the name of the artist is not credited.

Aboard the 63

If you had asked me how to return to the Angel from here, I wouldn’t have had a clue but Tigger knew, of course. We crossed a busy junction to a bus stop and there caught a number 63 bus going to King’s Cross.

When we left the bus and crossed in front of King’s Cross Station, Tigger said she could smell coal smoke. Coal smoke, in London? Surely, not! But Tigger was right.

The Flying Scotsman – hardly visible

It turned out the the coal-burning steam locomotive the Flying Scotsman was in the station. We tried to see it but of course, crowds had gathered and we couldn’t pass the barrier to approach it without a ticket. We had to gaze from afar.

The Flying Scotsman glimpsed
Photo by Tigger

Tigger’s phone camera is better than mine and she managed this glimpse of the soon-to-be centenarian locomotive.

Aboard the 73

When we left the station, we saw a 73 bus at the stop. Surely, it would depart before we reached it? The driver saw us hurrying towards the stop and waited for us. We often encounter this sort of kindness on the part of London bus drivers. Our favourite back seats were available and we sat in them as we were carried up in hill to the Angel and home.

Not only have we had a weekday afternoon together but, as I often say on a Friday, “the weekend starts here!”

We are entering that part of the year which I dislike. The temperature drops and, to quote a common expression, “the evenings are drawing in”. In other words, darkness falls earlier and earlier, increasing feelings of discomfort.

Tigger is on the early shift today and this provides me with an incentive to meet her from work and perhaps go for coffee together.

Aboard the 153

As I usually do, I caught a number 153 bus in St John Street, intending to change to a 100 at All Hallows Church.

UK Bus Checker

We both have this bus app on our phones to tell us when the bus we want will arrive at the stop. It’s not perfect (nothing is) and sometimes crashes but it’s right most of the time, assuming, that is, that the traffic is running normally. Guess what?

Congestion in London Wall

As the 153 neared All Hallows, it started to run slowly. Creeping along, we eventually turned the corner and reached the church where I change. There were road works (the usual thing: the road half blocked causing traffic chaos but nobody actually working. Need I say how frustrating this oft-repeated scenario is?) reducing the road to a single lane. The app told me my bus would arrive in 7 minutes but that, of course, was not true. I waited and waited as the traffic progressed past me at a snail’s pace. Fortunately, I had allowed plenty of time for my journey. (If you live in London, you do so by reflex.)

Aboard the 100

The bus arrived at last and, once past the obstacle, resumed its normal speed.

When Tigger joined me, we set off to look for coffee. Tigger had a place in mind and we hurried through the busy streets – to add to our pleasure, it had begun spitting with rain. Then, turning up a passageway, we encountered… tigers!

Walking tiger

There was a walking tiger and…

Running tiger

…a running tiger, both done in neon tubing. The fact that is was already becoming dark made the figures stand out boldly. In full daylight they wouldn’t be quite so striking. As it was, they made my day!

Black Sheep, Houndsditch

We reached Black Sheep Coffee in the poetically named Houndsditch.

Long and narrow

The seating area is long and narrow but there was a table with two comfy chairs available which I grabbed while Tigger negotiated for coffee.

Black Sheep, like increasingly many coffee bars, has an electronic ordering system. Instead of simply walking up to the counter and politely telling the assistant what you want, you have to enter your order on a touch-screen and pay at the terminal. Then you can go to the counter to collect your order. Efficient, no doubt, but also unfriendly. Very soon, I expect, the human staff will be dispensed with altogether and replaced by machines.

Aboard the 205

After our coffee break, we hurried to a nearby bus stop in time to catch a 205 bus.

The bus was crowded and we had to go upstairs. We had front seats, though, and could watch the varied scene as we travelled through the busy City, back to the Angel.

This morning, as usual for Sunday, we…

In Sainsbury’s

…went shopping at Sainsbury’s and…

Through the door at Mercer’s

…bought our takeaway coffees at Mercer’s.

St Mark’s in Myddelton Square

After lunch, we walked through Myddelton Square, where the church was beautifully sunlit, into Amwell Street where (of course!) we called at the deli.

Sitting outside the deli
Photo by Tigger

It is a fine sunny day and quite warm, so it was very pleasant sitting outside and dawdling over our coffee.

Autumn tree

We walked through Myddelton Square garden and admired this beautiful tree decked in fiery autumn colours.

Tigger had a destination in mind but didn’t tell me what it was. I was happy to follow along, ready to be surprised.

Owen’s Field

We walked through the small park called Owen’s Field (the artwork is by Paul Neagu and entitled Edgerunner) and…

Goswell Road

…entered Goswell Road.

City Road

From Goswell Road, we crossed into City Road. This famous thoroughfare carries traffic into London and is an ancient road. Nowadays, it is lined with buildings but in times past it ran through fields and travellers along it risked meeting thieves and highwaymen.

City Road Basin

City Road passes close to this branch of the Regent’s Canal. It is called City Basin and would once have been alive with barges loading and unloading their cargoes. Today it is so quiet that much of it is covered with a virtually continuous layer of duckweed.

The Eagle Tavern, Shepherdess Walk

We came to the street with the picturesque name of Shepherdess Walk. Here resides a pub called the Eagle. On the side of the pub is a board bearing a verse of the old rhyme one of whose verses runs thus:

Up and down the City Road,
In and out the Eagle,
That’s the way the money goes,
Pop! Goes the weasel.

Is this the actual tavern to which the rhyme refers, though? Pubs are notorious for changing their names, after all. The rhyme in the above version dates to the mid-19th century and there are records of this pub going back at least to the 18th century, so it is quite likely that this is indeed The Eagle of the rhyme.

Shepherdess Walk

The name Shepherdess Walk may have a bucolic ring to it but the reality is more prosaic. It is a fairly ordinary city street, not particularly pretty.

Neglected planters

Shoreditch Council has made an abortive attempt to improve the street’s attractiveness by installing four planters but they are neglected and the plants drying up.

Old pub?

We stopped to admire this building that seems to be an old pub now repurposed. It looks as if it needs – and deserves – a little TLC. Modern architects produce such ugly great lumps of buildings that we need to keep and care for as many of the beautiful old ones as we can.

The tunnel

For a while, Tigger had been scanning the houses that we passed. Then came the “Aha!” moment when she discovered this tunnel through the building.

Through the tunnel

We made our way down the steps and then along the tunnel, claustrophobia held at bay by the glow of daylight at the end.

Mosaics

The tunnel brought us into Shepherdess Walk Park. In a corner of this are to be found a remarkable collection of mosaics.

Mosaics continued

By Tessa Hunkin, aided by volunteers, the mosaics were created in time for the London-hosted Olympic Games in 2012.

Mosaics continued

There are vertical mosaics and horizontal mosaics which makes them a little difficult to render satisfactorily in photos. They need to be seen at first hand. For more information about the mosaics, see this website.

Holy Trinity Hoxton

We walked back along the Walk but stopped to photograph this church, Holy Trinity Hoxton, though it is largely hidden by its screen of trees.

Murray Grove

We turned up Murray Grove to the bus stop there.

Aboard the hopper

We caught a number 294 bus, known as the Hoxton Hopper, a single-door, single-deck bus that threads a complicated path through the backstreets. Passengers and drivers tend to know one another and greet one another amicably.

The Clock Tower

We left the bus at the Clock Tower, a short walk from home.

Sadly, our weekend is coming to an end and Tigger must return to work tomorrow. We will make the most of this evening.

Sunshine in Amwell Street

It’s a beautiful sunny day today, good for rambling around without a fixed destination.

Bookshop goose

I noticed that the window of what used to be the rare book seller’s (and might still be, for all I know) was bare except for a stuffed goose, caught in mis-stride towards some unremembered destination. A poet might make something of this but the Muses abandoned me long ago.

Lloyd Square

After our traditional coffee at the deli, we walked past Lloyd Square where I admired the beautiful trees. I mentioned that I felt a little sad to think that soon, the trees will lose their leaves and this beauty will be gone until next summer. Tigger reminded me that each season has its own store of beauty that we can enjoy.

First cat

If meeting cats on our rambles brings good luck, as we tend to think it does (only half-seriously, of course!), then we are quadruply lucky today, having met, not one, but four cats. The fourth was somewhat shy and we were unable to obtain a photo but we caught the other three. This one consented ti brief ear-tickle before moving on.

Fire damage in Granville Square
Photo by Tigger

We walked through Granville Square where we found these signs of fire damage. By chance we met an inhabitant of the house who told us that, thankfully, there had been no casualties and virtually no interior damage as the fire had been in the basement “area”. The house, however, remains without gas or electricity with no indication as to when these services may be restored. Our informant and his family are in the meantime living in a hotel.

Second cat

In Granville Square, too, we met our second cat. He acknowledged our presence and interest to the extent of wrinkling his nose in our direction but, apart from that, was too busy to give us closer attention.

King’s Cross Road

We continued down to King’s Cross Road. We did not stay on this busy thoroughfare but took to the backstreets. Tigger could probably tell you exactly where we went but for me, the route was a maze with the occasional identified place. I do know that we went into Bloomsbury where much of our time was spent.

Cubbit Street

For example, this pleasant- looking road is Cubbit Street, named after Thomas Cubbit, the famous master builder.

Old Telephone Exchange

We passed this old telephone exchange, now “repurposed” (in this era of mobile phones, are telephone exchanges doomed soon to disappear altogether?), and…

The Harrison

…a local pub, called the Harrison, sporting an impressive collection of mobile phone masts on its roof – not a place for radiophobes to feel comfortable in.

Third cat
Photo by Tigger

Nearby, we met our third cat. Like the others, he paid us distant attention but obviously had his mind on other things.

Solid street ar

This piece of street art caught my attention. It is not simply paint, as a quick glance might suggest, but…

Modelled in relief

…has been modelled in relief as you can perhaps see from this photo.

Patisserie Deux Amis
Photo by Tigger

We stopped for coffee at this charming little pattisserie.

Chocolat Révillon clock

Inside the small cafe (it has just six tables) I saw this antique-looking advertisement clock. Whether it really is antique or only pretending to be so, I do not know, but it was showing the right time and Révillon still exists as a manufacturer of chocolate.

Mary Ward Centre

It was what they call “a blast from the past” to find myself in front of this building. Half-a-century ago, I first came to London where I was to be an assistant lecturer at Birkbeck College (University of London). Birkbeck was short of space in those days and my little office and the lecture room were in this building. I worked here for two years before moving on to another post elsewhere.

Russell Square Gardens

We took a stroll in Russell Square Gardens.

Mahatma Gandhi statue
Fredda Brilliant

There are several memorials in the gardens, including this one of Mahatma Mohandas Gandhi by Fredda Brilliant.

Busy squirrel

There were pigeons and other animals in the garden, including squirrels who seemed unafraid of human visitors.

Leo’s
From Apple Maps by Tigger

For lunch we went here, a cafe called Leo’s. I forgot to take a photo so Tigger extracted this one from Apple Maps.

Lunch!
Photo by Tigger

We both chose vegetarian cheese omelette with chips and salad.

Art by Dan Kitchener

Back in early September, we had visited Dan Kitchener who was busy on a contracted painting for a hotel (see Art and about). Finding ourselves nearby, we went to take a look at the finished version.

Theobalds Road

Finding ourselves in Theobalds Road, where Holborn Public Library (run by Camden Council) resides, Tigger wanted to visit it to look up some of the buildings that we had seen during our outing.

Holbourn Library, ground floor

The library is quite pleasant, light and airy.

Holbourn Library, first floor

We went up to the first floor. Here is where the books on architecture are to be found. Tigger found a selection to study.

Upside-down human figures

The library is decorated curiously by upside-down human figures hanging from the ceiling.

Aboard the 38

Leaving the library, we walked a few paces to the nearest bus stop. Here we caught a number 38 bus back to the Angel and home where we will spend a pleasant relaxed evening.