To the temple

Ten days ago, the first visit to the Temple Church for a while, where a while turns out, on a quick inspection at least, to be around four years, since before the plague. An expedition which involved pulling no less than three Bullingdons.

A bright cool morning after the rain and I set off to find that the stream which used to run down from the site of the frame house after rain, which had been fixed, had returned, albeit in a small way. Frame house left, behind the hedge, in the snap above.

Roof off the former bungalow with a lorry carrying structural steel in attendance.

Down to Station Approach in time to capture the trolley noticed at reference 2.

Across the rails from the town platform, some wood pigeons were grazing on the swelling buds of what I took to be the ash tree there. Rather clearer in the flesh than on the screen, but in any event, the first time I have seen such a thing.

The 10:49 was busy with families with children, it being holiday time. While opposite me there was a chap in full-on country clothing who appeared to be a builder or something of that sort, made good, and was now into property deals. Higher grade cheese-cutter on top. From his telephone conversation very into cycling, golf clubs and conviviality generally. To the point of arranging late afternoon drinks in the very All Bar One that we use in Regent Street. Never anything of that sort to be seen on Sunday mornings. A chap who was, it seemed, quite happy for business and pleasure to be thoroughly mixed up.

At Waterloo, pulled the first Bullingdon of the day and pedalled across to London Bridge. To learn that the Borough Market branch of Neal's Yard Dairy do no do the Pitchfork selected from their Covent Garden branch a week or so previously, and which had turned out well, if not keeping particularly well. Some counter hand's flannel about how this shop allow though them some discretion about what exactly they do carry. See reference 3. So settled for some Montgomery on this occasion.

Pulled the second Bullingdon and turned right onto Blackfriars Bridge and then left into Fleet Street - where there were lots of closed up premises. Right into Chancery Lane where the first stand was full, but the next one had a space. Opposite, as it turned out, the Knights Templar which I had failed to visit a couple of weeks or so previously, as noticed at reference 4. Not as grand as I was expecting and the builders were in full possession, and reckoned to finish their makeover in time for Berkeley's to resume operations in a couple of weeks' time, that is to say round about now. I was not allowed to snap the interior without the permission of the site manager and it did not seem fair to summon him for such trivia. 

We shall see whether Berkeley, who appear to be a newish operator in the high end public house scene from up north, can prosper where Wetherspoon pulls out. On their website at reference 5 they are talking about opening in early May, so perhaps the builder I spoke to was a bit optimistic about when he was going to be done. Or perhaps there is a fair bit to do after the builders pull out.

I was a little early, so I took refreshment at the 'Old Bank of England', more or less opposite the entrance to Middle Temple Lane in Fleet Street. Another elaborately restored bank building, this one by McMullen's and is to be found at reference 6. According to Wikipedia: '... The building was occupied by the Law Courts branch of the Bank of England from 1888 to 1975 before it was refurbished and put to its current use in 1994...'. And I didn't even know that the Bank of England did branches.

A handsome refurbishment, with lots of gold paint and lots of large light fittings, but for my money the heritage hand rail to the grand stairs was far too fat to be helpful; far too fat to actually get a grip on.

The sort of time of day when you had a sprinkling of support staff, pensioners and tourists. The legal eagles were busy elsewhere.

And so down into the legal precincts, to be reminded once again of how like an Oxbridge college they are, complete with staircases with grand or well-known names on them. Also the fake noticed at reference 7.

The draw was a performance of Beethoven's Op.130 Quartet, complete with Große Fuge, performed by a scratch team, more or less put together for the occasion. I thought they did rather well, playing without pomp, ceremony or fanfare - but actually achieving what it fairly rare for me, differentiation and integration at the same time - something which, as it happens, Messrs Tononi & Koch are keen on in their elaboration of the integrated information theory of consciousness. See, for example, reference 9.

Before the off, I was able to admire the church, which had been nicely restored after damage during the war. On this occasion, I was particularly taken with the glass of the east windows, rich with glowing blues, which the snap above, taken from reference 8, does not do justice to. But it does remind me that there were three lights, when I would have guessed five. Executed by Carl Edwards in 1954.

A stray bit of stone in the Aldwych.

At that point, the idea was to go to the Northcote at Clapham Junction for one of their fine bacon and egg baps. So pulled the third and last Bullingdon of the day and set off across Waterloo Bridge, managing to miss the nearly blocked entrance to the cycle lane and was then stuck in the motor lane. Which earned me a honk - but once you are in it you can't get out - which I think the honker worked out and so desisted. Don't see why they could not have left the odd gap to escape through.

Attaining pole position at the top of the ramp for once in a while.

Off at Clapham Junction, and headed down St. John's Road to pass the branch of Casa Manola there. And having missed out at Seven Dials on a previous outing, thought I would give it a go, taking two of their ham rolls and two glasses of quite a decent white wine. 

The first three words agree, so perhaps a relative of the one snapped above. And the bottle I remember was on the same lines - but not quite the same, as I was not paying the sort of price you would pay for something that was 35 euros on the Internet. Rolls pretty good too, despite their having probably been thawed out in the microwave, which can leave them a bit sticky inside. In fact, a high class snack, if a little dear for a snack. And they sold some interesting looking stuff hot, things like cheek of pig and tail of ox. Trotters and tripe. Not the sort of thing that they did in the Northcote at all. Although the one-time landlord of TB back in Epsom, once told me of munching his way through trotters after a day in the saddle, back in the Emerald Isle. Proper hunting, not the red coated nonsense you get over here.

Presumably all boil-in-the-bag, but it would be interesting to give it a try.

The view from the street.

Back to the Junction, where I was able to score a couple of two's and sundry one's. Some of them appeared to be turning right towards Heathrow between Vauxhall and Clapham Junction, so perhaps the railway was their air mark.

There was also a vicious looking hook at the end of a four foot pole, the whole being used to prop open the door of the cabin towards the town end of the country platform. No idea what its originally intended use might have been. A primitive litter picker?

And thus this teetotal, vegetarian Wednesday drew to a close. My first lapse since the custom was inaugurated, I think some months ago now. Thursday had to do instead on this occasion. 

PS 1: the letter snapped above arrived a few days ago. Wonderful things these index linked, final salary pensions - but then, that was what I signed up for. Decent but not extravagant pay and good conditions to go with it. Although I have to say, I always thought I was paid pretty well for what I did. And while there was both hard work and stress, it was not like things seem to be now in the world outside.

PS 2: on the way out of Casa Manolo, I picked up a piece of their acorn-fed salami. We got around to opening it this evening and very good it was too, strong enough to be taken with brown bread. I shall get some more when opportunity offers.

References

Reference 1: https://psmv4.blogspot.com/2019/05/czech-songs.html.

Reference 2: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2023/04/trolley-560.html.

Reference 3: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2023/03/pitchfork.html.

Reference 4: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2023/03/knights-templar.html.

Reference 5: https://berkeleyinns.com/.

Reference 6: https://www.oldbankofengland.com/.

Reference 7: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2023/04/fake-156.html.

Reference 8: https://www.visitstainedglass.uk/location/temple-church-london-ec4.

Reference 9: Consciousness: here, there and everywhere - Tononi & Koch - 2015.

Reference 10: https://www.casa-manolo.co.uk/.