Len's 53rd birthday: Baker Street to Borough Market... and beyond

Saturday September 7, 2013.

As has become customary, Len, Steve and myself headed off to London to celebrate Len’s birthday. Arriving at Baker Street, we took a slow walk along the Marylebone Road, turning in to Park Crescent and onto Portland Place. 

As we passed the BBC Broadcasting House, I pointed out the Dalek guarding the BBC Canteen. Seeing as both Steve and Len had never been inside, we headed in. The BBC Shop, which was due to open on September 1st still wasn’t open, so Steve settled for having his picture taken with the Dalek. We then continued our stroll by turning from Regent Street on to Margaret Street, so that we could grab a drink at the ‘Cock Tavern’ (1).

After our refreshment, we headed down Great Portland Street, crossed Oxford Street, headed along Argyll Street, crossed Great Marlborough Street and entered Carnaby Street, which is where we spotted the comedian, Sean Walsh. Still keeping a leisurely pace, we sauntered down Carnaby Street until we reached Beak Street. It was then that we noticed that many of the bars, that both Steve and I knew, were gone. Sacrilege! So, we turned on to Great Pulteney Street and headed for the ‘Vintage Magazine Shop’ on Brewer Street. 

After a damn good look around, I thought I would show Len and Steve my favourite Wine and Spirit shop. As we headed down Brewer Street to turn onto Rupert Street, we were passed by Simon ‘Scotty’ Pegg and his family. Unfortunately, due to the surprise of seeing him, I didn’t get a chance to say anything to him, so we continued on our way by turning on to Winnett Street and finally on to Old Compton Street, where ‘Gerry’s Wines & Spirits’ is situated. This was a place that my Dad had taken me to, many years ago, when he was looking for a special Vodka. Being a speciality shop, the prices on some items are truly astonishing, but it is still worth a visit.

Guinness' Trust Buildings

In Guinness We Trust.

Saturday September 7, 2013.

It was during one of my 'let's do a left, then a right, then a left', wanders around the Unfinished City, when I came across these buildings. 

These tenement blocks were the seventh such buildings to be built by the Guinness Trust, in London.

The Shard

Reflections on a Shard of Glass.

Saturday September 7, 2013.

It was while on another walk around Southwark and the surrounding area, that I found myself on St Thomas Street. As I walked eastward towards The Horseshoe Inn, I looked up and realised that I was directly below The shard.

Having only really seen it from the north bank, and from afar, I couldn't help but snap this shot from this odd angle, with the clouds reflected in the thousands of glass panels.

Gallery

Iron Maiden: Maiden England Tour, 2013

Highlights of Iron Maiden's Maiden England Tour, 2013, at the O2 Arena.

Saturday August 3, 2013.

Back in 1982, when I was 10, I bought my first 7-inch single; 'Run to the Hills' by Iron Maiden. Ever since I have been a huge fan, seeing them in various venues across the country.

However, it had been quite a while since I had seen them live, due to a growing family, work and the like.

Thankfully, an old work colleague, David, put on social media that he had a spare ticket to the concert and was looking for someone to go with. I jumped at the chance.

We arranged to meet in London, near Kings Cross, and make a day of it.

Considering that we hadn't seen each other in around 15 years, it was like we had never been apart. Meandering our way down to the River Thames, via a few pubs, we headed for the Thames Clipper and made our way to Greenwich Peninsula.

After a few drinks of Trooper inside the dome, we made our way in to the Arena proper.

We had deliberately missed the support act, but that was of no real concern as they were not who we, or any of the other Maiden fans, had paid to see.

Suffice to say, Iron Maiden were on top form and were absolutely amazing.

Roll on the next tour.

Up the IRONS!

Iron Maiden

Walking with family: Borough Market to St Paul's Cathedral... and beyond

Friday June 28, 2013

After dropping Erin at 'Busy Bees Nursery', Emma, Keilyn and I headed to London’s 'Borough Market', for lunch. Keilyn slept for pretty much the entire journey on the Metropolitan line, but woke as we changed to the Jubilee line. After a ‘toilet’ stop at London Bridge Station, we headed into Borough Market. 

The Market area, and Market itself, have gone through some major changes in the last few decades and finally the work is complete. The Market seems more spacious and appears to be a bit bigger. After a good look around, I settled on a ‘Boston’ double burger with red onion and rocket for lunch, while Emma had a hot Bap. 

With the crowds growing and the temperature rising, we decided to head over to the North side of the River Thames, which is something we rarely do as we prefer to stay on the South Bank, where it is a lot more pedestrian friendly.

Once we had crossed London Bridge, we headed along Cannon Street towards St. Paul’s Cathedral, popping in to the odd shop here-and-there. One of the best shops we went into was ‘Hardy’s Sweet Shop’, on Ludgate Hill. The shop has a myriad of jars full of ‘quarter’ sweets and lots of other hard-to-find sweets and candies. I bought some chewy nut caramels and Emma bought some Root Beer, amongst other things. 

We then continued on our merry way along Fleet Street and on to The Strand, heading for Trafalgar Square. The Square itself was surprisingly quiet, considering how nice the weather was and that this is where many of the tourists end up. So, after a brief stop, we decided to walk up Haymarket and then turned on to Regent Street.