A little dive into the archive this week and a bit of a mixed bag. We start off at Postman’s Park. Here a whole array of plaques can be found to the people who saved others. The park can be found close to the Museum of London (though that’s on the move), near London Wall, but it is easily missed. I’d probably walked past it many times without knowing it was there.
Next is Guildhall. It sits on a square within the City Mile, the very centre of London. Do look at this great website with video explaining the square. There are lots of background/historical facts here where you can learn more than my flash visit gives!. The art gallery is wonderful and holds a number of Pre-Raphaelite paintings. This gallery has the wow factor!
Below the gallery are the remains of a Roman Amphitheatre and a must to visit.
Not far away is Barbican. Some call this a concrete jungle. The architecture is known as Brutalism. It’s something you either love or hate! I rather like it. In Barbican, it is softened with gardens and water, and many of the apartments have window boxes. On Sundays you can visit the conservatory, which is normally only open to residents (I’ve not yet been inside). Here you are also close to Roman remains. Part of the old city walls run through here. Once when I was visiting with my brother, we met a man who lived on the estate. He had keys to places the general public aren’t allowed to walk through, and he gave us a short tour! It’s definitely worth reading the articles on the estate of Barbican and Brutalism highlighted here with links.
Now to a place that looks like it isn’t in London, but is! The Barnes Wetland Centre is an oasis of calm. Here you can come and look at wildlife, especially birds. It changes throughout the year depending on the season as birds migrate. There are wonderful walks, hides to get up close to the wildfowl, and for the kids there is pond dipping. On site is a cafe/restaurant and indoor displays. Check out their website. Their webpage photo is stunning.
I’m ending this post in Brixton. This is a colourful and vibrant part of London with wonderful markets that reflect the Caribbean community. It has two stations (Northern Line Tube and mainline network rail).
Electric Avenue was one of the first streets in London to be illuminated with electric light, hence its name. It was the place for shopping. Later, in the early 1980’s riots broke out after years of hostility between the community and the police. The song by The Special (Ghost Town) was a background to these events, but the song I remember most is the one written by Eddy Grant (Electric Avenue). I was a bit of an Eddy Grant fan back then (Reggae in general), so his song is the one I identify with.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this quick diverse tour of parts of London. The links will give you far more information, so do enjoy reading in more depth about these fascinating places.
My London+ 