Janice

14th June 201816th June 2018

Old Street and Palatino – in pictures

Thursday, 14 June, 2018

Thursday, I went to the doctor to get another blood test. I was relieved to hear the phlebotomist I didn’t like the last time was away. The replacement nurse was great. Blood taken and off I went.

I was meeting my friend, Tom, at a restaurant I’ve been wanting to try for quite some time, Palatino in Clerkenwell.

Old Street is a nice Shoreditch street with a lot of interesting things to look at and some good cafés. There’s also some cool architecture and street art (which I’ll photograph when I’m not rushing off to a meeting. However, the station and the roundabout aren’t very nice.

Along the way to Palatino, which was a longer walk than expected, there was a lovely little garden.

Palatino has a great Instagram feed. All their food looks great. Every time I see something like that, I’m curious to see if they can live up to the photography. The space is on the ground floor of a new block of flats. As you walk inside, there’s a desk for residents and the co-working space on your right and the restaurant is on the left. It’s a bright and modern place so it’s easy to sit and relax and wait for Tom, who has to come from South East London.

The food was very nice, not spectacular. I started with the Anchovy, stracciatella, toast followed by a tender Pappardelle with a pork and beef ragu – half size. Finally, we splashed out on dessert. Mine was an Apricot, Hazelnut and Rosemary tart. Tom thought there was too much rosemary but I quite enjoyed the combination. His panna cotta with strawberry was also delicious. The service was friendly and efficient. It’s a good place for lunch with friends.

On the way back in the bus, I came across this shopfront. I was tired and actually fell asleep for a stop or two. The next bus was packed to the door and I was happy to get home.

7th June 201811th June 2018

Mare Street for plants, Bump Buddies event, and Pasta!

Thursday 7 June, 2018

We want to put plants on the windowsill now that we are opening the windows up. It feels like a lengthy process. So far all that’s happened is talking about it. Such is life with a perfectionist. Let’s make this so!

Plan: herbs on the kitchen windowsill – parsley, basil, rosemary…so far. I think also thyme, oregano, and sage, perhaps coriander – not sure. In the living room a mix of green plants and wildish flowers plus lavender. Instead of a box, we will have pots grouped together.

There are some nice plant shops on Stoke Newington Church Street and I can go there today or tomorrow and pick some things up. But I’ve also noticed from the bus a place called Hackney Flower Warehouse so I decided to pop along there in a quiet time to see what they had to offer.

The shops are at Victoria Park Road right by the Regent’s Canal. It’s old school Hackney in this neighbourhood.

**The flowery plant here really makes a difference to the old building front along Mare Street**

Regent’s Canal stretches from the Grand Union Canal at Paddington in the West to the Limehouse Basin and the Thames in the east It’s 13.8km (8.6 miles) long. It also runs parallel (just a dozen metres away) to the house I grew up in so it’s an old friend. While the Grand Union Canal can be wide and surprising with its greenery and wildlife and majestic views, Regent’s Canal is like an everyday Londoner. There are factories, derelict stretches, ordinary homes – modern and old, and walkers, runners and bicyclists along the way. Building began in 1812 and the first stretch was open in 1816. The part that runs through Hackney opened in 1820 so almost 200 years ago.

On the Regent's Canal Bridge at Andrews Road — **On the Regent’s Canal Bridge at Andrews Road**

It can be very picturesque along the canal, with its greenery and barges but not everywhere. Going through Hackney Wick it can be a real mess with the expected graffiti everywhere. This section is a mixed bag.

There’s a fair bit of construction on the east side. I wonder what they’re planning.

I see there’s a plant warehouse on my side of the street so I wandered around that a bit. Some really nice big plants and containers, a bit on the pricey side. I headed over to the flower warehouse and look around. It’s a nice feeling that everywhere in the world, when you step into a florist, the warm damp smells are the same. It’s quite heady.

Nothing blew me away here. I walked around a few times, seeing the options and making mental notes of what might be nice. The prices here are pretty good. In fact, they are about on par with Columbia Road Flower Market – three or four small plants for £10 – and it’s a lot less crowded! Noted! I’ll see what I can get along Stoke Newington Church Street and perhaps return to fill in some gaps.

Enough flags? Along Mare Street — **Enough flags? Football frenzy along Mare Street**

6th June 20188th June 2018

Hackney Downs Park, Upper Clapton

Wednesday, 6 June, 2018

I’ve been making two dolls in sarees for Shahanaz. It was a real challenge but I now know how to wrap a saree, not that I’d like that headache too often! And to be really honest, after making so many cute dolls, I didn’t like them very much at all by the time I’d finished. So I asked Shahanaz to meet me so that we could rip out a few stitches and re-sew until they were right.

We were meeting on Hackney Downs since it’s halfway between us. I don’t go there so often these days.

**Tennis courts at the Bodney Street entrance**

**Mosaic, a mental health social enterprise inside the park**

Luckily, Shahanaz didn’t want too much to change. We changed the position of the shoulder areas and pleated the back a little and then we took a photo of them on the bench with their optional head scarves. Usually, we go for coffee – She’s discovering coffee! – but it’s Ramadan so I hope our next visit together is a bit more delicious.

**The finished dolls ready for delivery, and my feet!**

Krish has had a bad back ache for about a week. This is from an old injury that every now and again flares up. The usual announcement is a loud yell from the bed when he can’t move or get up from lying down. He’s reluctant to talk to doctors about anything and it might take a while to book an appointment, attend it, and get attention. So I suggested he try the Osteopaths at Core Clapton, where I went last year for a nagging shoulder pain. You can book online and there are often same-day appointments. I booked one for him for Wednesday, when I could go with him.

It’s a ten-minute bus ride away in Upper Clapton on Northwold Road so we headed up there and went inside.

**Somewhat minimal but flexible space at Core Clapton**

Several squinty minutes with the registration form later, he was in there while I waited and wandered around a little. Core Clapton is designed for accessibility. They have a range of pay what you can services and the atmosphere is casual but definitely not amateur. The fact that a smiling Krish emerged 45 minutes later and booked another visit was a huge relief! And it was a lovely day so we walked home.

**The Crooked Billet Pub, Upper Clapton Road**

**Clapton Station, one stop away from my nearest station**

Slice of a building - looks flat from the front! — **Slice of a building – looks flat from the front!**

Clapton Pond - not sure why it's called a pond! — **Clapton Pond – not sure why it’s called a pond!**

Along Upper Clapton Road is The Round Chapel. The impressive building as we know it today opened in 1871 but it began in 1804 when it was a nonconformist, congregationalist church in 1804 at the nearby Old Gravel Pit Chapel. The Gravel Pit Chapel was in turn a breakaway group from the Ram’s Chapel in Homerton.

Hackney has had a lot of groupings and regroupings since the 17th century, since it was always a nonconformist area. These churches didn’t conform to the rules of the Church of England. Abney Park and Bunhill cemeteries, for example, were nonconformist burial grounds – both within Hackney. There were also three nonconformist academies – Homerton, Newington Green and Hoxton – which produced nonconformist figures like Daniel Defoe, and hymn writer Isaac Watts.

By 1868 the population had more than tripled and the much bigger Clapton Park (“Round”) Chapel was built. The population of the area grew massively and more houses sprang up.Then at the turn of the century, the congregation dwindled as people moved away to the outer suburbs.

The Chapel is a Grade II building, in the top 4% of protected buildings in the UK. This is in part due to its architecture – the unique round shape and its cast iron columns, controversial since they were typically used only in music halls and railway stations. Today the Hackney Building Trust has taken over the main auditorium and some rooms, while the adjoining Old School Rooms are kept by the church. The building was refurbished and is used as an event and workshop venue.

4th June 20188th June 2018

Chatsworth Road Market

Sunday, 3 June, 2018

It’s been a while since I’ve been to Chatsworth Road Market. It’s not one I go to very often since it’s a bit out of the way, is quite small, and is increasingly becoming one of those “food court markets.” Still, it’s a nice road and, besides, I had run out of peanut butter.

A few years ago, when visiting the One Change shopping area, I found a stall selling peanut butter from New Zealand. I wasn’t keen to try the sample I was offered but, after being promised there was no sugar, I did try it. It’s amazingly good. The flavour is perfect, the level of roast works really well, and there’s no sugar or palm oil or anything other than peanuts (and salt in some versions). I sound like an ad but there’s no going back now. Anyway, it’s Pic’s – I sound like an ad!

Chatsworth Road Market is in Homerton (originally Humberton) east of Upper Clapton. Homerton used to be a very rundown area and it’s probably still one of the least desirable parts of Hackney. I’ve seen photos of Homerton High Street at the beginning of the 1900s and it was a bustling shopping area then. Now there’s not much going on at all.

I took the bus to Homerton Hospital. This is our local hospital and serves a large community. I was shocked some years ago to hear that there are 5,000 births there every year – this is as many as my big city hospital, Women’s College, in Toronto. More about the hospital another day, when I have to visit, but for now – it’s a sprawling low-rise hospital across several buildings and annexes. I’ve been treated very well there.

**A small glimpse of Homerton University Hospital across its car park**

At the end of the road before I head up to the peanut butter and the market, is Brooksby’s Walk. I can’t find out who Brooksby was so the search continues. Right at the junction is Chat’s Palace, which has been an arts centre and music venue for thirty years. It’s housed in the impressive former Homerton Library.

The peanut butter is in a Spar supermarket. Spar is a huge chain in Europe but here in the UK it’s pretty minor. It’s a high-end market with lots of independent branded groups. Here in Hackney it tends to bring in a lot of local businesses too – bakeries, florists, and food that’s ready to go.

The Castle Cinema is a recent (yet old) addition to Brooksby’s Walk. It was originally the Castle Electric Theatre, built in 1913 opened on 8th September 1913 as an independent single-screen cinema., seating less than 700. It became a bingo hall, then a warehouse, then a snooker hall. And it got pretty run down in there. Then a few years ago Spar was opened and it seemed a shame to ignore the upstairs cinema. The cinema was actually restored and opened after a very successful Kickstarter project. Over 650 people raised 120% of the target! I’ve never been inside but I hear it’s gorgeous, including a very lovely original bar, with velvet, beads and some gorgeous bar lamps. I hear you can even eat dinner here. I’ll have to go to one of its movies one day to check it all out.

Meanwhile, the Spar isn’t too shabby either. You just have to get past some of the prices in here!

Continue reading “Chatsworth Road Market”

31st May 20188th June 2018

Hackney Town Hall

Thursday, 31 May, 2018

31st May is London History Day. This custom started last year. It coincides with the school holidays. More than 70 museums, galleries and cultural spaces were open and one that I noticed was a tour of the Hackney Town Hall and vaults so I booked a spot for 1pm.

Krish woke up with a terrible back ache and couldn’t move much for some time so it was hit and miss that I’d even go. Then things got better all around.

So on that warm, muggy day I raced over to the town hall and sat in the lobby with over a dozen other visitors, waiting for our guide. She turned up, armed with a stack of paper and wearing these shoes…

Who wears shoes like this to climb stairs, stand about, and walk around for an hour? So funny! Is it OK to criticise a tour guide? Then, I will. We learned later that this was her first time but I can’t help wondering why Hackney Council chose her for this job and do hope she gets better! Ninety per cent of the spiel was read from a paper, without expression and – guess what – reading into a paper script means your voice doesn’t travel. I honestly didn’t hear much of what was said so I’m going online to find out the history that we were surely told! Hope this guide gets better.

One thing I do remember is that the newest Portland stone Town Hall is 81 years old and that it is the third incarnation – the first being over at St Augustine’s Tower, and is small and now converted to Coral, a betting shop, the second was right on Mare Street taking up the space that the Town Hall square now occupies. Today’s borough was formed in 1965 when the smaller boroughs of Stoke Newington and Shoreditch were merged into the original borough of Hackney. It now forms the largest borough in London.

The Town Hall cost £99,870 to build in its promised ‘conventional but not showy’ style. It took three years to get there – from 1934-37.

Hackney’s shield shows St. Augustine’s Tower at the top. An eight-pointed Maltese Cross, for Hackney, which derives from the symbols of the Orders of the Knights Templar and Knights of St. John, both of whom held the Manor of Hackney. Three bells representing Shoreditch, these are the bells in the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons. Oaks for Stoke Newington, representing its origins in the Forest of Middlesex.

The motto is Justitia turris nostra – Being fair is what makes us strong! Or “Justice is our Tower” (reference to St Augustine’s)

Despite its limited budget, the architects managed to incorporate the art deco style of the times and, although spare, there’s enough evidence of this.

**The lobby with its art deco trimmings (and those shoes!)**

**On the first floor, lovely marble and a pretty cool Art Deco lamp at each staircase**

**Council chambers, modelled after the House of Commons**

On our tour with us, Carol Potter, the current Speaker — **On our tour with us, Clare Potter, the current Speaker**

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