slightly weird, always sweet, and definitely imperfect. my life as an urban explorer
Monday, 15 January, 2018
Today I woke up to a very cold, windy and wet day. The skies are dark and I’m glad I have nowhere special to go. I’ve decided to document my neighbourhood a bit by taking a walk in different directions and doing a pictorial essay.
I’m planning several so if this is not your thing, move along!
My first walk was to the Tesco supermarket yesterday and nothing could be more routine than that. Explanations in the captions under each photo.
Sunday, 14 January, 2018
Here I sit on yet another cold, grey morning after a couple of frivolous Netflix half hours. It seems to me that this is the greyest January I can remember in London. Krish says it’s always like this. Maybe I have the February blahs a little early.
Then there are culinary distractions!
The first was Shikumen and our third visit to this Aldgate location. We don’t usually go to expensive restaurants, preferring hole in the wall discoveries, hidden gems where only locals visit. Then we saw that a new Aldgate location of the small chain, Shikumen, was opening in the Dorsett Hotel near the tube station. For the first month they were offering 50% off all food if you reserved a table. Great opportunity! We seized it.
We visited Shikumen twice that month. The food was expertly cooked, the space was clean and modern, and the service was attentive and friendly. It was a no-brainer. However, the prices are high and we’re used to a cosy plate in Toronto’s Chinatown, so the discount is a must.
Just before Christmas Shikumen offered 50% off gift certificates so we ordered two and waited for the new year.
Our first visit was for dinner last week. I completely surprised myself by walking the 5.5km all the way along Mare Street, Cambridge Heath Road and Whitechapel Road to Aldgate. I was very happy to see the Dorsett in view at the end of the route.
Continue reading “Culinary Distractions – Shikumen and Mercato Metropolitano”
Thursday, 21 December, 2017
Today was the Winter Solstice, shortest day of the year. They are indeed short days now, the sun rising around 8 and setting before 4pm
Every Solstice and Equinox for many years I’ve taken part in a Flickr photo group called Day in the Life of. It’s now called Another Day in the Life of. At any rate, I rarely miss it even if my photos of the day are all taken inside my flat. Trivia: The tag we have to use – DILO – is the source of amusement to my friends. Dilo, guys – there is no extra D in there.
I thought I’d share the photos of the time I spent in Newington Green, meeting my friend, Juliet. Let’s make it a photo essay but read to the end where I’ll put a little bit about the fascinating history of the area, first mentioned in the Doomsday book of 1086.
Continue reading “Winter Solstice at Newington Green”
Thursday 7 December, 2017
The cheek of London restaurants. Even Hackney, one of the most deprived areas – it’s gentrifying. New builds are springing up, the hipsters are moving in. They call it Hip Hackney. This is probably news to many of its original residents but these days shops are slowly moving in to cater to the hip. Restaurants open – if only one of them would produce food that I wanted to eat regularly… There are a few coffee bars that I like to go to but they too are succumbing to the crazy pricing and predictable snacks. At Raw Duck I struggled with the menu to find something small and not ridiculously priced when I went there with Lisa. What I had was delicious and the service attentive.
For £6.50 I chose two small homemade crumpets topped with a few slivers of cheese and a good deal of lime pickle. I meant to ask if the pickle was made in house. It tasted the same as from the jar. All appreciated but I wonder at the price. Lisa paid the same for her charred bread (read burned toast) and housemade orange marmalade. Removing the ricotta to make it vegan didn’t reduce the price. The coffee was pleasant enough.
Whatever you say, when you’re in zone 2 you don’t expect to pay zone 1 prices but you will. Every time.
It’s good to see Lisa. I feel for her that, after weeks now, she is still living in a hotel room even if it is a quite nice one. The best thing, though, is how close she is now. When she moves, it won’t be so easy.
On Saturday we went to Netil Market and to Broadway Market. The market is somehow smaller. Have I remembered it properly? We wandered about. It’s still mostly food. Most of it is easy to resist, no matter how lovely. The prices are high for street food but that’s the trend. It’s lovely to be out. I ate some falafel with salad and pickles and thought, yes I’m back.
Continue reading “Hip Hackney and the beautiful West End Christmas”
Tuesday, 14 November (Day Fifty-eight)
A strange feeling waking up today and knowing this was it. There was nothing on the must-do list other than packing and last-minute chocolate purchases.
And today the view of the Alps was spectacular – clearer than I’ve ever seen
After packing for what seemed like an eternity, off to the market to get that chocolate. Also on the list some marrons glaces, and some lemon pasta. Done and dusted.
We picked up some octopus salad and pizza to eat today and then some fritto misto as a last minute whim. We were already dreaming of a curry in London!
