Geffrye Museum and
Tower Bridge
A bit of a cheat really as this didn't
start out as a walk - more of a what shall we do today
thing. So we decided to check out the Geffrye Museum
which is like this "English domestic interior design
through the ages" museum. Not the sort of thing
I'd normally go for but it was really cool. A real hidden
treasure. From the outside you wouldn't have a clue
that there was all this good interesting stuff inside
- and it was free too.
After wandering through rooms from Elizabethan
(circa 1580) to Modern we'd worked up enough of an appetite
to go and get a curry in nearby Brick Lane - aka Bangla
Town. Really spoilt for choice as there's a whole load
of great restaurants to choose from.
On bellies full of delicious and reasonably
priced nosh our only choice was to walk some of it off.
Luckily, Brick Lane is not too far from the river so
we headed off towards St Catherine's docks. Oh to be
rich enough to moor my own yacht within view of my apartment!
Pretty exclusive stuff. A short walk past a variety
of sailing-type things brought us to Tower Bridge -
my favourite of London's bridges.
I've driven over Tower Bridge loads of
times but never actually stepped out to take a proper
look. Well, it was a real treat. Across the water, London's
new(ish) County Hall glistened in the sun - the first
time I'd seen it - kind of a weird looking building
but I really like it. Then of course there's the Tower
of London itself and Tower Bridge museum (which will
have to wait for another day).
While we were on a roll we decided to
keep on truckin' along Sugar Quay Walk and Thames Path.
Great views across the river all along the route. Eventually
we got to the good old Millennium Bridge - better known
as the wobbly bridge as it was closed for repair almost
as soon as it opened in 2000 due to severe swaying when
people crossed it. Anyway the whole thing got sorted
and reopened after about a year and a bit. What a lovely
bridge it is too! Cross over from the north bank of
the river and you hit the Tate Modern art gallery which
is also fab both inside and out.
All in all, what started out as a pretty
shapeless day turned into a thoroughly enjoyable experience
- I could really get into this tourist thing...
