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Thursday October 5, 2006
Clink Street
I went to London today, arriving as usual at London Bridge station, and
walking along the south bank of the river (as usual) towards the Globe
(next to the Tate Modern, where I had been not 2 weeks ago). No doubt
I took a slightly different route to the river, but I am now left thinking
that I must have previously been walking around with my eyes shut - or
that London offers too many wonders to be fully appreciated by a lady
from Surrey.
First of all I noticed a number of grand ecclesiastical buildings, which
turned out to be (of course) Southwark cathedral no less - more like cathedrals
abroad, being stuck right up against many other buildings so you can't
step away and appreciate its architecture.
Next I happened upon a replica of the Golden
Hind - thinking "this looks like an old ship" in a rather
dull early-morning sort of way - so I stopped to read the notices.
Finally I passed the ruin of the Winchester Palace, which is at the junction of Clink street and Stoney Street. Only one wall survives, really, but it is very open to view from the street, as there have been archealogical excavations there in the past revealing Roman remains on the same site. I was going to add a photo but Mr Monkey describes his experience so much better.
Educational History: Winchester Palace, completed in the 1140s, was the London residence of the Bishop of Winchester for over 500 years. Many important visitors were entertained here – King James I held his wedding banquet att the Palace. It was used as a prison from 1649 to 1660 and was then leased for housing. Destroyed by fire in 1814, now only the west wall with its 14th century Rose Window survives.
Posted by Christina at 6:14 PM. Category: Days Out
Comments
We walked past the Golden Hind with the boys when I came up to town to see Eileen. At the time there were people dressed in period costume who the boys took to be pirates (not too far from the truth I think). They were completely thrilled to find a pirate ship in what to them was a completely tedious walk.
That path along the thames south bank is terrific - I think a lot of it is new, (in the context that Ive been here for 10 years now), because when I worked with National Grid at what was then the Bankside Power Station there was no scenic route to walk from Waterloo.
Posted by: Alison on October 5, 2006 7:43 PM
