It was the magnolia's that did it. I haven't seen these trees before, and when I saw these amazing flowers in St Olave's churchyard, I just had to wander in. Its a lovely churchyard too, although it has three skulls at the entrance to the courtyard!
Samuel Pepys and Mother Goose (!) are buried here according to Wikipedia.
Anyway so I decided to keep going and the following are some snapshots of my walk home from work through Tower Hill and Wapping.
Tower Gateway. And the daffodils are out...
Here's a busy intersection leading onto Tower bridge. Tower of London is on the right. Wapping is to the left of the bridge.
Just to the left of Tower Bridge is St Katherine's Dock. The old docks area is now filled with shops and restaurants and you can see the Charles Dickens pub here on the left.
Yachts in St Katherine Docks
This could be a Turner painting, but I actually took this on my camera-phone... Its about 7pm by now and the sun is setting over Tower Bridge.
Now, heading into Wapping. There are some new developments along the river, these all have amazing views of Tower Bridge.
Further along, here are my favourite apartments in Wapping - Pier Head Wharf. These would be over a million pounds each so the closest ever get to them is taking some photos through the fence unfortunately! There are some beautiful sketches and info on the history of this place here. Apparently there are a couple of celebrities living here now (I won't say who!).
Close by, you have the Town of Ramsgate pub, one of the oldest riverside pubs in London and located near where captured pirates were hanged then left in the river to let three tides pass over them!
A little further along Wapping High St is Olivers Wharf. I like this one too as apparently this was one of the first warehouses to be converted into units by a group of artists.
Across the road, and just in one of the side streets is an old school. Maybe a boys school on the right, and a girls on the left?
A park on the left of Wapping High St. The daffodils were recently out but have just died off. Some council homes in the background.
And a little further along Wapping High St. This is just before you reach the Tube station. I love this part too. It is so narrow, and tall. Walking along here at night can be quite spooky, especially if there is alot of fog. You can also feel like you are walking along in a movie set for some reason!
And then not too much further and I am home. At a good pace it takes me about 45 mins to walk home. Cheaper and better than the Tube and some lovely scenery too!
