Q-Trip part I

When I heard that my friend D hadn’t been to Kew Gardens in 21 years I booked us in for a day there pronto. I mean, that’s just not right. I’ve never experienced it as quiet as the day we went, and we all know why that is. The weather that day was all over the place too, one minute blazing sun and then heavy rain the next, which didn’t deter us as the plan was always to duck indoors when needed.

D saw a group of people carrying in a bench under this tree, which I missed, but we could hear their music playing loudly. We later saw them somewhere else and they looked like they were in a band or something. One of the guys wore a headdress, and there was definitely an otherworldly vibe about them (either that or they were just very stoned). It’s so ironic that I have no pictures of them. Were they just a dream?

Can’t remember what this tree is, but it has obviously evolved a way of defending itself. Ouch.

This greenhouse had lots of plants from Australia in it, which D recognised as she’s been there a couple of times.

Looooove cow parsley aka queen Anne’s lace. The scent reminds me so much of my childhood and how it back then meant that summer and the school holidays were just around the corner.

There’s something about concentric circles that really appeal to me at the moment and I can’t tell you why.

As we were standing on the Sackler bridge (boo hiss) we heard this gal/guy making an awful racket (can geese fly silently? In all my times of swimming in the Ladies Pond and having them fly overhead, they’ve always been honking like mad). Was s/he saying ‘Hey ladies, check this out - I’m gonna blow your miiiiinds!’

Because that’s what s/he did. I’ve never seen a goose up a tree before - have you? We stood and watched for a while wondering what would happen next, but gave up after a few minutes.

Something so strange and very funny kept happening the whole time we were in the gardens. I’d suggest the next place to walk to, look at the map and then get us lost. What the hell was going on? I’ve been to Kew like, I don’t know, at least 15 times and I know it pretty well, but for some reason I just couldn’t get my bearings this time. I guess it might have had something to do with us never sticking to the paths?!

I eventually took D to see my favourite tree, which she immediately recognised as a maritime pine.

Here she is looking at the label just to be doubly sure.

‘Cheers!’ We were surprised to see these in the café where we had lunch and had to try them out. Tunnock’s Caramel Wafers (BEST BEST BEST) and Tea Cakes are the like the best comfort treats there are, but the Caramel Log was not as good. Great packaging though, don’t you think?

Part II coming up!

Closer up

Can you guess where these are from (don’t look at the tags!)? I’m sure you can. The last picture definitely gives it away… Yes, you guessed it. Good ol’ Kew Gardens. Went there a couple of weeks ago and took too many pictures as usual, so I’ll probably have to split them into three posts. This is the more arty textural one. More to come!

If anyone can, Barbi-can

You know me, I can’t be at the Barbican and not take pictures of the actual Barbican. It’s too photogenic and it’s nigh on impossible to take bad photos there. So on my way out from the Jean Dubuffet exhibition I of course took some snaps.

I MUST do one of the architectural tours here when they start again. I want to know everything.

Stood and watched the fountain drops in the fountain basin for a little while. Like you do.

I also marvelled at the typical mishmash of London architecture. I mean…

Love these balconies so much.

And I also love how you can see the Barbican Towers from most vantage points in London. They don’t look anything else in the city. Apparently they weren’t supposed to look like this originally (they were to be regular square towers, but as they were to be made of concrete and not metal framed, they had to be designed like this with the structural supports beams on the exterior. I for a millisecond just now thought that maybe it would be cool to move into a flat when we downsize as old diddies, but then I saw how much the flats go for! As if.

Hello lady in red.

It started raining at this point. I wonder if I can get down to this garden or if it’s for residents only. I’ll investigate next time I go, and report back.

Highbury Fields Forever

My exploration of architectural London continues. On Monday I brought D with me to Highbury to have a look at the buildings around Highbury Fields. My other friend H brought me here in the summer as I’d never been before, so I thought I’d pay it forward. But before getting to the Georgian houses (again! I know! I like them! a lot!) this caught my eye. I couldn’t really translate what I saw in this into a picture, and sometimes that’s just how it goes (oh the many times I wished my eyes could take pictures where I’ve not had a camera). Shrug.

Birthday remnants I reckon. 81 on the outside, 18 on the inside.

You guys know what Georgian houses look like right? They have a brick facade with a bricked arch above the fanlight window on top of the front door. They do not look like this. Well someone decided to change the front in the late 1800’s in a Queen Anne style. Altering the front on a Georgian house would never be allowed today, but in a way I’m glad this one is different as it really stands out and makes you wonder. And then when you blog the picture, you remember to Google the house and you find out why it looks like it does. In a way I preferred not knowing. Mysteries are so much more fun than facts.

It’s been raining a lot this month and it’s been great for our urban nature - everything is so lush and intensely green at the moment.

Speaking of which, this is what all of May has been like, sunny one minute then heavy rain/hail the next. It feels like the longest winter ever.

Tucked behind Highbury Terrace is Highbury Terrace Mews, where there is a row of much more modern houses in different styles, but as it was raining at this point I couldn’t really take the pics I wanted. The Mews is gravelled which gives it a totally different feel, like a bit of the countryside in the city - which I think is the perfect combo. I’m all for country life in the city.

Wisteria season is upon us, and white wisteria is always so beautiful.

Regular ol’ wisteria ain’t half bad either.

A classic fanlight window - so nice aren’t they?

Wooden window frames are my favourite (I know, I keep going on about them), and they suit a Georgian house so well. We got proper drenched in the many rain showers that fell in the two hours we were walking around - well, the parts of us that weren’t shielded by our brollies.

Noice noice noice.

We continued on to Aberdeen Park, a street around the corner from Highbury Fields, where this amazing church built in 1866 stands. The last time I was here it was open, and inside are artist’s studios, and there was cool little exhibition on. Sadly I didn't have my camera with me, and this time it was closed. The interior is absolutely amazing, with the decorative brick work you can see on the exterior being just a small indication of what the inside looks like. I found some pictures of it online here. I implore you to have a look!

The rain stopped and we continued walking around the street (it’s in a loop) where there is a mixture of architectural styles; Victorian, Edwardian and post war. I haven’t really documented it that well here. I’m already annoying enough as a friend who’ll stop mid conversation to take a picture, but luckily lots of D’s friends are photographers, so she’s used to it. Still, walking and talking is better than walking and talking and stopping and clicking.

And finally, walking through Highbury Fields to head home, the sun shining as if the rain never happened. How very very London.