Thursday, 14 December, 2017
Christmas is ever closer! It feels like I haven’t been out as much but in fact, looking back over the last week, I’ve seen and done a lot. I’ve just had my second cup of tea and am ready to share.
On Thursday, we had a great day quite locally. It’s days like this that help me understand why we are still here in the east end (for some, a no-go zone) and not moved on.
I had a list of things I’d like to do and, amazingly, we did them all. First we went back to Ambala in Whitechapel and bought samosas, pakora, and three kinds of sweets. From here we strolled over to Middlesex Street (Petticoat Lane) so that Krish could check out the runners’ shop. We were surprised to see that there are new buildings still rising out of what used to be a slum area. The fact they are going to be so tall made me a little sad. Slums are not a good thing, even cleaned up, but these higher buildings will definitely change the neighbourhood – the look, the feel, the real estate value, the lifestyle, the inahbitants, the visitors – immensely. Change is inevitable.
Sweets at Ambala, Whitechapel
We jumped on a bus to the Geffrye museum. The Geffrye Museum isn’t a well-known one. Most visitors to London wouldn’t have it on their radar, but it’s one of my very favourites. The museum explores ‘the home’ from 1600 onwards. It does this with ‘rooms’ displayed as it would have been at the time. The museum itself is housed in 18th-century almshouse buildings. At Christmas time, the rooms are decorated as they would have been in that era. I’ve been there every year that I’ve been in London since 2002 and, although I can skip through faster these days, I don’t tire of it.
That day there was a craft fair. We browsed but didn’t buy. Crafts are deservedly but prohibitively expensive these days. Then we did a high speed run through of all the rooms! Zoom!
Which is your favourite?
There’s something fantastic about free museums. It gives a more casual atmosphere to things and allows you to dip in and out of them over the year and not become bogged down in the experience. London is special for this.
From the museum, it’s an easy hop to Dalston Eastern Curve Garden at Dalston Junction. This is almost a hidden/secret garden, since once through the wooden door in a wall near the railway station, you are inside a very large garden space divided into a cafe area, two or three large seating areas, picnic tables in a sunken garden, and areas for planting, etc. We even have our own private Stik graffiti. Dalston is very densely populated and most don’t have any garden space so this is a lovely oasis for the community. I love to come here and sit sometimes and will be very sad if it disappears with all the gentrification around it.
This month they are having a Festival of Light. There are various lanterns and lights everywhere and, at night, it’s quite lovely to see.
After all that chilly activity, home to matzo ball soup!
