London, The South Bank 2014

 

 

You are in for a treat...this is a guest post from my husband.  Take it away, Richard!   

 

                              

 ( Well, I don't know if "treat" is the right word. But I hope you might enjoy our walk beside the river and that you might even learn something new! If I have any of the facts wrong please feel free to correct me. Cheers! Richard )

 

 

 

As you gentle readers of this blog already know, while in London Kay and I visited and like everyone else who has seen it were deeply affected by the "Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red " installation at the Tower.      

After that, our plan was to  walk across Tower Bridge - crossing the Thames for the third time that  morning - and explore the South Bank.   

When I worked in London in the 80's, my commute  from Croydon ended at London Bridge railway station and then I would either cross London Bridge itself and walk through the City or walk along the South Bank which back then was mostly just disused  warehouses and wharves plus the odd pub here and here and a beautiful,  almost forgotten  cathedral. But now, thirty years later....

                                        

 

 

 

A couple of photos of Tower Bridge from the South Bank. Sorry we don't know the story behind the giant "Alien" egg but it makes for a good shot!   And fortunately nothing hatched from it while we were there!

 

 

Hay's Galleria. In its heyday as an actual wharf, tea clippers and other merchant sailing ships used to unload here where the people are walking and sitting or drinking and eating. I have read that this was the first building to be

 restored as part of the "Regeneration" of the South Bank. It is beautiful Victorian structure. I think the roof was added as part of the restoration but that also is beautiful.

 

 London's "other" cathedral, Southwark Cathedral. ( pronounced sutherk. ) Back in the 80's, this was a rather grimy treasure that hardly anyone knew about as it was stuck between a train station and a load of near derelict warehouses. (When I worked in London, I sometimes spent my lunch break here...it was a haven of tranquility.)  Like nearly everything else here - it has been beautifully and lovingly restored and the new riverside walk has put it firmly back on the map both as a spiritual and social destination.

          
 

Here is one photo of the interior of this wonderful church. I think there may well be more at a future date!

The Cathedral with the Shard in the background.

 

 

By the time we arrived at the Cathedral we had been walking for about four hours. Fortunately, the Refectory ( Restaurant / Café ) at Southwark Cathedral is a most interesting and welcoming location to eat. They serve a variety of meals but we chose the wonderful jacket potatoes. As you can see they are drenched in butter and smothered in Cheddar cheese - a most delicious meal in itself!
The Refectory is part of a recent addition to the Cathedral  but the architectural style blends very well with the ancient Cathedral itself.

                                                                                                               
                                                    I liked the idea of this little character just taking it all in. You see that the tide is high on the river!


Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.

 

 

The Anchor

Just a few hundred yards from the Cathedral and you come upon "The Anchor" - a pub I have a lot of affection for - and the rebuilt Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. 

Then to end our time on the South Bank, here is something else that wasn't there all those years ago - the Millenium Bridge  (and our fourth bridge over the Thames! ) 

I hope you enjoyed walking with us in London on the South Bank.