As summer slowly fades away, the tress begin to turn gold and brown and decorate the sidewalks with their blanket of leaves. Autumn is just around the corner. My sister and I decided to spend Sunday wandering around London to take advantage of the weather while the sun is still warming and one can still comfortably spend time outside without the burden of a heavy winter coat.
We grabbed coffee at Spitalfields before heading off into the crowds at Brick Lane – the aromas of exotic spices and sounds of sizzling and bubbling from cuisines from all over the world wafting around us at the food market – Argentinian empanadas, vegan brownies, delicious sushi, Mexican street food, burgers, sausages, spicy noodles, curries… everything your heart could ever desire food-wise!
We explored vintage shops and market stalls, admired and contemplated art, poured over vinyl records at Rough Trade and perused the delectable varieties of Ghanaian cocoa at Dark Sugars.
After the sensory overload of Brick Lane we went in search of something a little more meditative. We wandered aimlessly through the empty streets of London’s financial district which during the week is hectic, lively and strenuous. On weekends however, apart from the odd group of tourists, is eerily bereft of its usual busy crowds.
We went to St Dunstan in the East Church Garden, one of London’s loveliest hidden gardens. An old church originally built around 1100, severely damaged in the 1666 Great Fire of London and again during the Blitz of 1941. In the late 60’s it was turned into a public garden – a beautiful and calming oasis of greenery set in between the juxtaposition of old and new that so wonderfully characterizes the Square Mile.
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