Stoic Londoners
Last night, I had to go to the bus stop to pick up a friend, who was coming to dinner.
At the moment, the Balls Pond Road, is more like the Balls Pond Roadworks and as buses through Dalston appeared to be being diverted, buses were stacked up to get to the stop, where my friend was to alight.
But was it all fraught, with shouting and waving?
No! Everybody just got on with their travel, perhaps walked a bit if necessary and got off buses in the middle of the road, if that was all they could do.
Hopefully, it’ll all be better in a week or two, when the works finish.
You do sometimes think that stupidity makes it worse. Yesterday, as I walked back from Dalston Junction, the road was narrowed by the road works, so what did some idiot decorators do? Block the pavement with ladders, so they could paint a building. This meant mothers with buggies had to use the road and weave between buses, trucks and other vehicles. Hopefully, there wasn’t an accident.
A Dickensian Tavern
As I passed through Clerkenwell, I walked up Britton Street to the north of the famous meat market and had a drink in the Jerusalem Tavern. The tavern is owned by St. Peter’s Brewery and serves their gluten-free ale.
If you’ve seen any period dramas, based on the stories of authors like Charles Dickens, you’ll recognise the style of the pub. But of course it doesn’t have footpads and low-life of the period and is probably a lot more hygienic.
So any coeliac who likes their beer and visits London, should put this unique drinking establishment on their list of places to visit.
Anyone for a Cold Bath?
I’ve not had a bath in some months, as these days I have a shower, when I smell like I need one. But this curious sign was on the wall of a building in Clerkenwell.
Coldbath Square
It must be surely one of the strangest road names in the UK, let alone London. You can read about the area here.
For many years there was a grim prison on the site and this is taken from the article.
The prison, built on a plan of the benevolent Howard’s, soon became a scene of great abuses. Men, women, and boys were herded together in this chief county prison, and smoking and drinking were permitted. The governor of the day strove vigorously to reform the hydra abuses, and especially the tyranny and greediness of the turnkeys. Five years later he introduced stern silence into his domain. “On the 29th of December, 1834, a population of 914 prisoners were suddenly apprised that all intercommunication, by word, gesture, or sign, was prohibited.” “This is what is called the Silent Associated System. The treadmill had been introduced at Coldbath Fields several years before. This apparatus, the invention of Mr. Cubitt, an engineer at Lowestoft, was first set up,” says Mr. Pinks, “at Brixton Prison, in 1817. At first, the allowance was 12,000 feet of ascent, but was soon reduced to 1,200.”
I think it is true to say that our justice system is much more enlightened these days.
Suffolk Rules, KO or My First Pint in Ten Years
I said that the Draft House had something better and this is it.
St. Peter's G-Free Beer
And guess what, it’s brewed by St. Peter’s in Suffolk. Will the county of my conception ever leave me alone? But to drink a real pint, even if it was from a bottle, in ten years is something special.
I was even able to have some superb mackerel pate with home-made oatcakes.
Mackerel Pate and Oatcakes
The pub even has free wi-fi and an extensive menu, so if you are looking for somewhere to escape the hustle of London Bridge, whilst waiting for a partner or friend, the Draft House might fit the bill. Some would argue the walk from London Bridge is too far, but then you have to pay for a drink, with a small amount of exercise.
In Search of Daura
According to the Internet there is a Spanish gluten-free beer called Estrella Damm Daura, but finding it has proved somewhat difficult, as the site is a bit dodgy and the contact form doesn’t work. So as the Internet also said that it was available at a pub called The Draft House by Tower Bridge, I decided that today I’d go and search.
So I took the reliable 141 bus to London Bridge and walked along the river.
HMS Belfast and Tower Bridge
Finally I found the pub on the approach to Tower Bridge.
The Draft House, Tower Bridge Road
They do stock the Daura, but I found something more to my taste.
Station Transfers at Kings Cross
I asked at the infornation desk how you get to Marylebone. I got a very unprofessional answer. Surely, when the new Kings Cross is finished, there should be information on how to get to the various other stations in London. I know all the links across London, and especially some that are not obvious, like Waterloo to Liverpool Street. It’s a 26 bus by the way.
I also hope when the new station is complete, that they sort out the buses as well. I use a 30 or 73 to get home from Kings Cross and there is a rather windy, unprotected stop in front of the station. Marylebone is also a station best got to from Kings Cross by a 205 bus. some of the buses are also good for getting to Euston, which has a rather terrible Underground station.
Perhaps though, Euston needs a properly designed pedestrian route from Kings Cross/St. Pancras, lined with cafes and shops and perhaps some form of light public transport, like bicycle rickshaws or small electric vehicles.
I’d possibly ban cars and trucks from Euston Road and run a low-floor bendy bus or tram from Paddington to Kings Cross and possibly all the way to Liverpool Street.
Network Rail Do the PR at Kings Cross
Kings Cross station is very much a building site at the moment, as the station is remodelled in time for the 2012 Olympics. The access to the five Underground lines that meet at the station and its more illustrious sister, St. Pancras, is now more or less complete, although some of the underground walks are a bit longer than they used to be. But access is better on the whole, especially for those with heavy luggage or short on mobility. As an example, when I met my friend from the Edinburgh train, we were able to use the lift to get to the subway to St. Pancras and then another lift up to Carluccio’s for a coffee. As she was going to Marylebone, we then descended back into the crypt at St. Pancras by lift and walked to the west side of the station to get a black cab for the trip up Euston Road.
Network Rail, East Coast and First Capital Connect had set up a model of the new station in the forecourt of Kings Cross.
A Model of the New Kings Cross Station
Note how the awful 1960s extension at the front has gone and there is a new public square in front of the station. You can also just see the new western extension to the station, which will contain customer services, shops and cafes. There will also be covered links to the Great Northern Hotel and St. Pancras. Effectively, the two stations will almost become one. In fact, there has been talk about numbering the platforms together.
I spent ten mintes talking to one of the Thameslink project managers and was impressed at the whole PR exercise. Developers, and especially those where large sums of public money are involved, should always explain what they are doing to those who use the area. Both sides might actually learn something to their future advantage. I visited London Bridge on Saturday and the whole station was a shambles because of the rebuilding, with little information to be found.
Give Peas a Chance
And coeliacs too, it would appear, judging by the menu.
The Manager at Hummus Bros
I came across the Southampton Row branch of Hummus Bros as I walked towards Euston from Holborn.
Hummus Bros, Southampton Row
I had a good coffee for just 50p, as it was their price for after 2:00 pm and it is certainly somewhere, I’ll try again.
Sicilian Avenue
This used to be one of those places that pre-Internet, computer programmers used to go to get their books at an excellent computer book-store.
Sicilian Avenue, Holborn
The Sicilian Avenue was built about a hundred years ago as a pavement cafe area and as the photograph shows it is currently being refurbished. It would make a very appropriate location for a Carluccio‘s, but I suspect that the premises will be too small for them.
The Castle Climbing Centre
Ever since I started driving in London in the 1960s, i’ve been past this building on Green Lane.
The Castle Climbing Centre
Yesterday, I walked past the building, which was originally a Victorian pumping station and found that it is now an indoor climbing centre. What a good use for a magnificent building!
The Anonymous Widower 