How to get around London Borough of Southwark

At completion of my isolation period for Covid19, totally bored and beat staying in a single room for this long, honestly, it has been quite an experience for me. If I look at the bright side, it could’ve been a blissful time to prepare myself to adhere re-focusing, to imagine useful ideas for future, to re-organize my personality traits, but all I did was to watch a lot of movies, one of them being ‘Vivarium’, and it surely blew my mind.

The movie revolved around a young couple who find themselves drawn into and trapped inside a 21^st century suburban nightmare; a neighborhood populated by an endless sprawl of homes of the exact same sizes and shapes, isolated from the world and crushed by the vicious monotony of their surroundings. The message of the movie was that there are still some liminal spaces in this world where humans simply aren’t meant to set foot.

Laugh out loud! …the movie reminded me of my time in London on my third day. In what way? Well, I was waking up every morning in hope of finding a job. I kept running around neighborhoods, every door I knocked to drop my resume, a face came out who would welcome me, collect my papers and ask me to wait for their call, which I never received, so all my efforts went in vain. It seemed like I wasn’t meant to be in the city for this purpose.

So this is how I could relate my situation with the movie’s message but then, of course, in reality it was not like it. For me it had only been three days in the city and I should have mustered up my courage with a little patience, which would have helped me think about the city in a different way. 

But this is how it went, my third day in the city, an excerpt from my diary:

“I managed to get up early today and having a hefty breakfast was all I could think of before getting ready to leave for my venture in the city. After having it, I came back to my dormitory, got myself ready and suddenly got hit by a reality check; everything seems so difficult when you are on your own, especially when you have to make your bed, living with so many other people that you don’t know. You have to present yourself as the neatest person on the planet.

It’s easier to commute in London, if you have the post codes of the places you wish to visit and I didn’t have them. As today was another day for me to drop my resumes to the offices personally. I had not done my homework the previous night; I had not jotted the addresses down in my diary. Therefore I had to spent a lot of time using the internet, in finding them, how to get there and not to forget the routes that would take me there. I even had to make calls to confirm the addresses, but finally I left the hostel. I walked towards the nearest cycle stand, paid the fee to hire a cycle and off I went to get to my first destination.

While cycling, I happened to pass by the famous Borough Market in Southwark. This appeared to me as a very strange piece of encroachment. It was beneath the train lines. I could find all types of food here, from Guajarati to Thai, German to English. It seemed like office were having their  lunch breaks as the place was full of people from all circles of life but mostly well-dressed working class. Probably they had come out to grab a good bite.”

A little history and facts: The market was established in 1885, and is renowned for artisan prepared food, and fresh organic produce. This market is very near to the Shard, a marvel created by the Architect Renzo Piano, to dominate the skyline of the city on River Thames. The best time to visit is between Wednesday and Saturday, when the full complement of traders comes to flaunt their wares. You’ll still get the Borough Market experience on Monday and Tuesday, but it’s a more limited affair – just make sure to avoid Sundays, as the market takes a day off. The Borough markets are one of the best places to visit in London if you have an exceptional appetite for food, you would also find wonderful restaurants, cafes and pubs here. Also there are plenty of snack bars on the periphery, especially along the Winchester Walk. Most of the vendors sell for cash only so make sure to have some extra monies in your wallet, however, you would find adequate availability of ATM’s around the market. There are enough stalls that you could spend an entire day there if you tried to hit at each one. 

“Exhilarated by the whole experience, I decided to walk. There were passageways that lead me to the ruins of Winchester Palace’s, the wall that is left of now. It was a 12^th century palace located in the south bank of River Thames on what is now the Clink Street near Southwark Cathedral. Grade II listed remains of the demolished palace survive in the site today, designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument, under the care of English Heritage. Clink Prison Museum is also located on Clink Street, near to the original site at Bankside, Southwark. The museum tries to recreate the condition of the original prison and trust me the experience is quiet ghostly, narrating you the prisoner's conditions, who were kept back in the 12-century till the day its last days of operation.

Video: the Globe

Moving my way towards the Southwark Bridge I came across Bankside, an area where the Shakespeare’sGlobe is located.”

Historical facts:

Who built the Globe? In 1576 James Burbage built the theatre just outside London. The theater was among the first playhouses in England since Roman times. In the later days the Burbages lost their lease on the Theatre site and began construction of a new, larger playhouse, The Globe, just south of Thames that was also partly owned by Shakespeare himself.

The Globe, which opened in 1599, became the playhouse where audiences first saw some of Shakespeare’s best known plays. In 1613, it burned to the ground. A new, second Globe was quickly built on the same site, opening in 1614.

What was the Globe built like? It was a multi-sided structure with a central, uncovered yard surrounded by three tiers of covered seating and a bare, raised stage at one end of the yard. Spectators could pay for seating at multiple price levels; those with the cheapest tickets stood for the length of the play.

 “Anyway I had to scoot, traveling over Thames, passing by Cannon Street, then Monument to the Great Fire ofLondon, I reached to a point with a grand courtyard that was part of the ‘Guildhall’ in the area of Moorgate. It is a listed building – Grade I, built in 1440."

What is the purpose of the Guildhall in London? The day-to-day administration of the City of London Corporation is now conducted from modern buildings immediately to the north of Guildhall, but Guildhall itself and the adjacent historic interiors are still used for official functions, and it is open to the public during the annual London Open House weekend. There is also an Art gallery in the basement of this building.

“Most part of the building was getting refurbished so it wasn’t accessible, but still was full of people, mostly tourists, the sun was surely shining bright today. I carry forwarded myself without losing time, passing through comparatively narrow alleyways, ending up in Shoreditch. The roars of the city life had become subtle now. The office building I was looking for was on the Banner Street, facing some straight forward apartment buildings. It seemed as if I was in the wrong place at the wrong time, so a confirmation was important that I did by asking a couple walking by who were considerate enough to cooperate.

Now imagine, I was standing right in front of the office and instead of walking in, I decided to give them a call. And the biggest surprise was when I got shut off by the attendant telling me of the vacancies which were closed however I could drop my portfolio at their door if I wanted. Indeed, I was astonished because to this day I thought that getting a job in the office wouldn't be a problem. A representative from Eric Perry Architects had come to deliver a lecture in one of the seminars back in Liverpool. He made us all assured that the office had vacancies and we were welcome to join any time of the year. I guess he was trying to sell us the ticket to his burlesque fantasy show for promoting his practice.

Dismayed by the fact, I hit the road back to the hostel. But then somewhere deep down I also knew that life brings in more opportunities only if I count on it. So I did what a vagabond should when he is on the road all on his own. Seeing the road side café that offered sandwiches, the Shepherd's Café, I decided to over joy by buying myself this marvelously looking sandwich being prepared by a woman in the café. This woman made it sure to welcome me with her loud and firm voice. While I sat and ordered chicken & bagel sandwich that cost me 4.20 pounds, it got served in a shape of a big burger and inclusive of a cup of tea for 90 pence; it proved to be quite a delight to eat.

Thinking what to do next, after finishing I grabbed a bike from the nearby docking station and headed to Haggerston Park. Shocked by the look of it, this was the park where I had come on my second visit to London for creating a photographic documentation of buildings for my dissertation.

The sun was setting already, and as I was reaching river Thames I decided to find a corner where I could spend that time. It was dark  and time to get in my den finally. Again, I rode the cycle through Hackney road, and over the London Tower Bridge  meeting with a swarm of people on the way, the Shard was shining bright and it didn’t take me long to reach my hostel since it was right next to it.
Lastly it was time for me to have a shut eye. After all, it had been a long day of walking and cycling.

Video: River Thames

Conclusion: Keep making ways towards achieving your goal. Tough times never last, but tough people will always do. The belief should always be that there are a thousand of beautiful things waiting for you. Your thoughts will become monotonous at times but always remember that time shall pass too, moving you towards a brighter future.

  

Travel Story / Day 2 / London

Into the sixth day, I must say, I am doing pretty well in quarantine. Slight fever, still no taste and smell, but then not much to worry about and hoping that it continues like this till I am fully recovered. So now I am going to share an excerpt from my time in London. Almost ages ago, but an interesting one that I had penned down on 2nd September 2014 while sitting in the cinema room of the hostel where I was staying in the London Borough of Southwark.

My journey starts with a late wake up call. I was so tired last night that I just didn't want to wake up early to have the free breakfast at the hostel. To be honest the hostel is great. Having a bunk bed in a room of fourteen people, staying with strangers is quite an experience. I was not very comfortable at first time when I stayed in Russell Square in London in 2013 but then I guess as far as I do not talk to anyone and nobody bothers me I’ll be alright. I am supposed to be on a job hunt but then we are talking about London here, it is not as easy as it sounds.

So the day starts and I leave the hostel at around half past twelve in the afternoon, thinking to make up to RIBA headquarters and sort out my accreditation process, which should be enough for the day.

Since I had messed up last day in losing fifty pounds in some stupid electronics place in the Oxford Street area so now I needed to save money, hence instead of taking a ride, I decided to walk to 66 Portland Street, the office of the big guns in architecture who acquired the key to my registration I must say.

I started my journey from Borough High Street, walked towards the London Bridge. The first glimpse of Thames made me think of all the big names in the world who came to this city, struggled and then stood up achieve their goals. This is the greatness of this city, as said by everyone who knows London well. But the thing is that there are so many people here and every one seeking for an opportunity, that one chance that can make their lives, however not all are lucky. We all know that, it is just one of the norms of nature.

I have come here as an opportunist too, but somehow I am getting this feeling that I will not be one of those fortunate people. Yes, all these people are 'lucky' who came here, settled and living their lives, I believe. Somehow they are rulers of the world. For instance, the architectural offices are swarmed by architects, big or small, all throwing their ideas all over the world. They have everything in their hands, no matter how much they complain.

Anyway as I was approaching London Bridge, I saw policemen and cars rushing towards a point. That point had a focus. The focus was a woman in burqa (Chinese), seemed as if she was facing difficulties in jumping off the bridge… a suicidal attempt, as was put by the authorities when inquired. Everyone gathered around her but nobody seemed to help her in not doing so. Very dramatic, huh! Since I didn’t realize the whole situation, I stood their taking my own selfie with the phone. I have developed this new habit of taking my own photos. Showing places behind wherever I go. This habit developed because I have never had photos of myself in the places that I visited in London during all this time.

Anyway avoiding the scene I passed the bridge and happened to end up in Cannon Street. As soon as I entered the place, it hit me with a memory from the past. I had been here, with my wife and our mutual friend on our first visit to London. I still remember that trip. We came for the New Year’s Eve, from Liverpool with very less money in our pockets. *sigh* … but, good old memories.

Anyway, I was tired already, probably not in a mood of rambling anymore and turned to my electronic map, noticing it would take almost fifty-six minutes to reach my destination if I continue walking. So I decided to find the bicycle stand from where I could hire. And in no time I was standing in front of Starbucks outlet in one of the buildings designed by SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill - one of the largest and most influential architecture, interior design, engineering, and urban planning firms in the world). I developed my interest in this architectural type during my post-graduate course. Exposed metal enforcements with glazing. The building had a strong character, for sure.

Well, after having a cup of hot chocolate that I bought for 2.5 pounds, I continued my journey. Memories from the trips to this city kept thrashing my concentration all along, as I had visited for documentation of some buildings for the research of my dissertation for my first year of the degree.
I saw a name written on a wall... the NEW LUTYANS and that reminded me of the building that my tutor from university had asked me to find and document through photographs for my paper (Color dichotomy inArchitecture). I still remembered the day, 3rd March 2013, when I came in search of this building, couldn’t find anywhere at that time. But now I could see the tinted glazing and yellow painted beams and columns of the complex. It didn’t look that impressive to be honest, at first, but then no one knows what it would be like after it gets completed.

I had reached my destination and it was time to let go the borrowed bicycle in one of the nearby stands that cost me two pounds, with some exceptions of course. I surely had not read the rules to ride these bikes and might have broken rules while cycling, but then do you think I would care as I was getting late to reach my endpoint. The best thing was that I was in SohoGarden Square. What I know about this place is that it was dwelling with artists from all groups. The streets were narrow, filled with trivial restaurants that were tempting, and some eye-catching bistros and takeaways. The environment seemed very native till I reached the Oxford Street. The premiere shopping street in the whole of London, that’s how it was mentioned to me by my dorm mate. I have been here before, I was there again, I am afraid I do not like it. After almost twenty minutes of walking I reached the last station, RIBA head office. As always I had problems in understanding the confusion regarding my qualification for Part III. I wonder what the fuss was about but then after dealing with my work I continued my journey towards the Regent's park, sat there for some time and rethinking about my future. After all London is famous for its parks too. It was almost 6 pm and I wanted to leave for the hostel now. I hired the bike (Barclays) through the Langham place, the same place where the BBC office is located, passing through the Oxford street again and ending up into a very crowded area. This was the Piccadilly Circus. Time to let go the bike again and continue on foot and as I did, the place reminded me of the stories that my mother had told me of the time when they were in the city during her prime days.

As I passed by the National Gallery, to my utmost surprise there was a huge purple cock standing as a piece of art on one of the strands in front of the arcade. This was the same strand that was a part of Antony Gormley’s project once. I saw the documentary last year. I sat on the stairs. The place was full of people from all the races. I stayed there for some time and then continued my journey towards the hostel. Not forgetting that I had to eat food, I needed something to survive and I was so hungry now that I started shivering, deciding to stop at McDonald’s at the Leicester Square, ready to take away during my trip. I reached the hostel at around 7pm. It was drizzling, and the Shard looked amazing, surrounded by clouds at the top.

After coming to the dorm I met this guy COSTAS from Greece. After a little chat I came to know that Costas was not very happy with work schedules in the city but he just had to do it to survive. He had been in UK for almost 4 years now. Mostly in Bristol, and Glasgow but now he was in London. He was the guy who holds lights and microphones during shoots. A short shabby guy, all tired up and willing to sleep.

So this was the story behind the whole day as I am writing from the cinema room in the hostel.

Conclusion: at times you need to make a run for your goals but end up in not achieving them. This doesn’t mean that you won’t, they will be accomplished but through a different approach.