{"id":11907,"date":"2022-10-04T01:04:02","date_gmt":"2022-10-03T22:04:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/?p=11907"},"modified":"2023-02-12T01:29:01","modified_gmt":"2023-02-12T06:29:01","slug":"london-town","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aleta.life\/index.php\/2022\/10\/04\/london-town\/","title":{"rendered":"London Town"},"content":{"rendered":"
Position: 51\u00b031’0″N 0\u00b002’32″W<\/a><\/h6>\n

\"\"<\/a>Back in the early 1980s, when I lived in London, each neighbourhood still had the distinctive feel of villages. There were greens surrounded by shops and a church. Local pubs were full of locals who had lived there all their lives. If you walked into one, everyone would size you up, and down, just in case you meant trouble. Whole sections of the city were run by gangs and therefore broadly off limits to outsiders. \u201cIf yer don’t understand the bleedin’ rules o’ the manse guv, don’t go there, roight?\u201d, <\/em>was s<\/em>ound advice back then. Property in many places was still affordable. Walking along the Thames you could find faint traces of Britannia\u2019s rule in fading warehouse signage.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s all changed now. The empire is gone. (Hell, the Kingdom is barely United. \u2013 ed.)<\/em> London\u2019s wild ride as Europe\u2019s centre for legitimate financial services is faltering under Brexit. The city\u2019s role as a hub for money laundering (a lot through real estate transactions) is also stumbling thanks to the triple whammy of Brexit, Covid, and Russian war sanctions. Dark money helped finance a property boom that made London the most expensive city<\/a> in the world in 2014. Vast areas became gentrified, seemingly overnight. The East End gained new transport links, thousands of yuppies with bicycles, and hundreds of new coffee shops. Yet, despite higher mortgage interest rates, housing prices are still climbing.<\/p>\n

On the plus side, London is the most cosmopolitan city in Europe. The sheer diversity of cultures translates into some of the best dining in the world, at all price levels. And thanks to this year\u2019s slide in the value of the pound, everything is more affordable, providing you\u2019re starting in US dollars.<\/p>\n

Oranges and Lemons<\/h6>\n

For our first few nights we stayed in Whitechapel<\/a>, about a mile from the bells of St. Dunstan\u2019s and All Saints<\/a> church. The bells are better known as the bells of Stepney in the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons<\/a>. The rhyme mentions most of the important churches in and near the City of London<\/a>. It went something like this:<\/p>\n

Oranges and lemons, Say the bells of St. Clement’s<\/em>
\nTwo sticks and an apple, Say the bells at Whitechapel<\/em>
\nOld Father Baldpate, Say the slow bells at Aldgate<\/em>
\nMaids in white aprons, Say the bells at St Catherine’s<\/em>
\nPokers and tongs, Say the bells of St. John’s<\/em>
\nKettles and pans, Say the bells of St. Anne’s<\/em>
\nYou owe me five farthings, Say the bells of St. Martin’s<\/em>
\nWhen will you pay me?, Say the bells at Old Bailey<\/em>
\nWhen I grow rich, Say the bells at Shoreditch<\/em>
\nPray, when will that be?, Say the bells of Stepney<\/em>
\nI do not know, Says the great bell at Bow.<\/em><\/p>\n

I stopped for a coffee at the Stepney City Farmer\u2019s Market<\/a> directly opposite St. Dunstan’s and tried mapping out an \u2018Oranges and Lemons\u2019 walking tour. All the churches remain active and lie within about three miles of St. Dunstan\u2019s. Many sit within earshot of each other. Then I thought the better of it. Such a tour deserves at least a couple of days, and a decent camera. Perhaps next time.<\/p>\n

Traditions<\/h6>\n

Walking back to our hotel along Whitechapel High Street took me past a street market and a large mosque. After our Turkish travels, it was interesting to see many more women in burkas and men in robes or shalwar kameez in London. It\u2019s not terribly surprising. My own experience as an expat was the (minority) English abroad clung more closely to traditions than those living in the UK.<\/p>\n

The next day Carol and I wandered around Tower Bridge and St. Katharine\u2019s docks<\/a>. The Thames River there is tidal, so a lock gate maintains the water level in the docks when the tide goes out. A few years ago we met cruisers that had over-wintered in St. Katherines. Sadly, under the marina\u2019s current ownership moorage is no longer the bargain it was. Unless you\u2019re comparing it to renting a two bedroomed apartment in the same neighborhood, of course.<\/p>\n

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