Tired Of London Tired Of Life... (well the commute anyway)
If your idea of London is crammed trains, rude people and gridlocked roads you like me must be a commuter! London seems to conspire against us, slows us down, sometimes stops us on our tracks. It’s so unfair to judge a place by its ability to move millions of people into and out of its business districts twice a day. During the 2012 Olympics there was a concerted campaign to get people walking to venues and a number of people I spoke to where amazed at how quickly they could get to the places they had been travelling to by tube for years. Well let me share a secret with you some of the most breathtaking walks can be had in less than 25 minutes. One of my regular strolls is from Waterloo to St Paul’s as an alternative to the dreaded ‘drain’ which at rush hour might as well be Wembley after the FA cup final! Coming out of Waterloo onto Waterloo road and crossing into Sandell Street you go past the Union Jack Club then bear left under the railway lines onto Cornwall Road and take Roupell Street on your right. The first place for pastries and coffee called Konditor & Cook, well worth stocking up for elevensies. Walking along Roupell street is like a trip back in time for me as a child when my weekends were spent visiting my Nan in Balham, Roupell Street has the same old London feel about it. It’s only a few yards before you pass The Kings Arms always popular on the way home, right to the end of Roupell Street across into Meymott Street a quick dog-leg right then left into Colombo Street and you are out onto Blackfriars Road. Ignoring the beaten track cross Blackfriars into Burrell Street and bear left onto Southwark Street.
Time willing there are some fantastic newly developed restaurants and coffee shops in the Bankside area my current favourite is called Albion, staff always seem happier than your average London cafe. Once you have had your fill the main event awaits you find your way around the Tate Modern onto Jubilee Walkway, dependent on time of day and time of year you will either see the street artists setting up, playing or talking through the plan for the day. My favourite time is early morning on a clear day the view across to St Paul’s is the best in London and half way across the Millennium Bridge look down river to Tower Bridge in the morning or the sunset looking up-river towards Westminster a breathtaking view on a good day. Once you are over the bridge you have many choices around St Paul’s a favourite for me is the Apostrophe cafe opposite the front steps of St Paul’s which always seems to be a place where you can relax with your coffee and morning yogurt. If you have room for a final treat find your way round the front steps of St Paul’s along to the churchyard garden and you will find a lovely coffee house I forget it’s name - maybe you should discover it for yourself - happy commuting!
Word’s by Neil Harding