A Long Midday Wander

Rose & Crown pub, Southwark

Yesterday morning was pretty quiet. I watered the houseplants and the orchids, did some puttering in the garden (why is the garden the only place where anyone ever "putters"?) and then some reading. By lunchtime I was feeling restless, so after having a meatloaf sandwich out on the garden bench, I decided to take a walk.

I grabbed my big camera and took the tube down to Southwark, near the Tate Modern. I hadn't been on a photo walk in a while and I felt a little rusty, and I'm supposed to help lead a group of Middle Schoolers on a "Street Photography" outing on Thursday. (More on that to come!) So I thought I'd flex my own photography muscles a bit.
 

I specifically wanted to walk across the Millennium Bridge, so I did. That view never gets tiring, does it?

While standing on the bridge, I saw this woman coming toward me, rollerblading in a long red-velvet dress. She was coming so fast that I only had time for one shot, and fortunately it worked out pretty well. I wish I'd seen her at street level, but oh well!

I wandered around St. Paul's Cathedral and then came westward along Fleet Street and The Strand. This statue of Hodge, Samuel Johnson's cat, stands in Gough Square. The streets in that area are a warren of little squares and alleys, with treasures like this at every turn.

I could have sworn that I've photographed this statue before, but if I have, my methods of archiving are failing me because I can't find the shot anywhere.

Samuel Johnson's house is also on the square, and it's a museum now. I've filed that away for a possible future visit.

More interesting sartorial choices.

I thought my Australian readers might appreciate seeing Australia House on The Strand, the home of the Australian High Commission. It's both the oldest Australian diplomatic mission in the world and the longest-occupied foreign mission in London, according to its web page. The sculpted figures in front were created by Harold Parker from 1915-18. The woman at top right looks particularly rapturous.

Finally, I made my way to Trafalgar Square, where I stumbled onto these young women making a dance video to the song "Armageddon" by the K-Pop group Aespa. (I didn't recognize the song as such; I Shazammed it.)

At first I thought maybe they were Aespa, but they'd surely be thronged by fans if that were the case. I guess they're doing a tribute. The way that camera operator is swooping around, their video looks like it might be a bit nauseating to watch, but that's me talking like the 59-year-old man I am.

From there I navigated my way through Soho and along a very crowded Oxford Street to the tube and back home, my wanderlust satisfied!