This past Sunday I returned from a brief visit to London. It had been nine years since my last visit…NINE YEARS! I wasn’t sure what to expect in the way of changes to one of my favorite cities.
Turns out, there were a lot of changes, but quite a bit was as I remembered. Certainly the city scape has grown. There is an increase in the number of skyscrapers. Crowds were higher than I’ve ever seen during previous visits; however, it was the week following Easter Sunday. Schools were on holiday, and families were traveling. I was in the Borough Market one morning and found myself caught up in a crowd where I literally could not move unless and until the crowd moved. I felt claustrophobic and briefly panicked when I realized that at that moment I had no control over where and when I would move. I’ve never felt that before. Thankfully, the crowd shifted enough that I was able to find a narrow opening and slip out. I immediately headed to lunch at one of my favorites: Wright Brothers Oyster and Porterhouse, where I managed to calm myself with a glass of bubbly and a sea bream carpaccio, paired with a side of one of the most delicious soda breads I’ve tasted. I made some tasting notes so I can try to replicate the soda bread one of these days.
Before the “sardine incident” occurred, I was able to make my way through most of the market and even managed to purchase some spices from Spice Mountain. I’ve brought back various spices and flavored salts from them in the past, and I was happy to see they were still in business.
The Borough Market itself has evolved with the times. It is even more touristy now than it was last time I visited. And there are a lot of new restaurants and shops that have popped up around that area. I worried it had changed too much, or that the changes would be so drastic they would alter the whole experience. For many that might be the case, but I felt the essence of the market remained, despite the changes. I do hope it isn’t normally so overrun with crowds. That would certainly be a game-changer for me.
Below are some of the images I captured during my wanderings:
