Over the past few weeks of July and August I made a few recordings of my wanderings around London. I spent some time in Shoreditch, East London in the place called Arnold Circus which has been my favourite reading spot for the last ten years. I also visited Eastern Curve Garden in Dalston, East London which is a lovely community space where you can have a cup of coffee and read a book surrounded by a lot of greenery – it’s an oasis of peace and calmness. I also walked along Regent Canal Path and glanced at narrow boats which have become increasingly popular in London as a place to live.
One weekend I went to a beautiful cosy cinema called The Garden Cinema in Covent Garden and watched a Georgian – Turkish film called Crossing by Levan Akin set in Istanbul. I have a special love for the Turkish capital and the film was a beautiful nuanced and melancholic depiction of the city.
I also visited China Town and Gordon Square Garden in Bloomsbury during my lunch break. It’s a beautiful and quiet communal space to relax and find moment of peace.
Choosing the river boat to travel across the Thames is something I have not done for years so it was nice to have an opportunity to experience it. I walked around Embankment Station, Spitalfields, the Strand, Cecil Court, Liverpool Street Station, Wanstead and Southbank. While in Southbank I went to watch another Turkish film at the British Film Institute (BFI) called About Dry Grasses by Nuri Bilge Ceylan which is a quiet exploration of fate, identity, friendship, complex relationships and simply an ode to an ordinary life. Ceylan’s other films include Winter Sleep and Once Upon a Time in Anatolia which I highly recommend. BFI holds a special place in my heart as it’s featured in one of my favourite books called Brian by James Cooper.
I hope you will enjoy these few snapshots of London during summer months