I was a little surprised to discover that St. Patrick's Day isn't that big of a deal in London; generally, it's treated the same way as it is in most U.S. cities: as an excuse to get drunk. But the city's Irish did make themselves known on March 17. Actually, many pulled their culture card a few days early at the
St. Patrick's Day Parade. A sunny Sunday was a good enough excuse for me to bike downtown and get a sneak peek of the floats lined up on Picadilly Avenue along
Green Park (top). I was not disappointed because I got to see both bagpipers (bottom left) and stepdancers (bottom right) warming up for the procession.
After seeing the sideshows, I decided to skip the sidewalks of the parade route, which were packed. So I turned my bike away from the crowds to head home. On the way, I detoured through
Brompton Cemetery, the only remaining Crown-owned resting place. There are more dogs than royals running around the place (top left), but it does have some famous immobile residents, including suffragist
Emmeline Pankhurst and boxer
John Jackson. From "Gentleman" Jackson's grave, you can glimpse the hallowed grounds next door:
Stamford Bridge, home of the
Chelsea Football Club (top right). Normally, the cemetery is atmospherically spooky, prompting it to be used in movies such as the Bond film
GoldenEye and the Bond spoof
Johnny English. But this day, it was abloom in daffodils, making it seem more appropriate for a picnic lunch than a spy thriller (bottom).
A couple weeks later, it was the Brits' turn to celebrate their own excuse to drink: the
UK Boat Race. Thousands flock to the rowing clubs along the Putney Embankment to watch two top universities square off on the River Thames (top). Fans from the
Imperial College Boat Club discarded decorum for prime viewing spots at the starting line (bottom left), but I found that just a short walk farther down the
Thames Path were plenty of dignified sideline seats (bottom right).
Lots of imbibing spectators cluster around the
Duke's Head, the pub right in front of the starting line (top left). But in truth, tables selling tipples and vittles can be found all along the race route to the finish line at
The Ship in Mortlake. I picked up a brownie from some Boy Scouts and a beer from the
Barn Elms Boathouse before settling in to watch the race. It is a short contest, but it makes a lot of waves; spectators sitting on the ramp in front of the boathouse had to clear out when all the trailing vessels churned up a high wake (top right). When the rowers passed me, it seemed like Oxford (in dark blue) was ahead, but
Cambridge (in light blue) won (bottom).
In between the weekends of British Isles fun, I made a foray into EU terroritory by heading to a few street markets. The
Scandinavian Spring Market included booths along Albion Street, starting from the
St. Olav Norwegian Church and Seamen's Mission (left). But the bulk of the treats were inside the
Finnish Church down the road (right), which has its own
public sauna.
I was planning to run to the second stop on my street-market tour, with the first leg through the under-the-Thames
Rotherhithe Tunnel. But unfortunately, the tunnel gate right beside the Finnish church was locked (top left). I thought the entire tunnel was shut down for construction, but after I got to the other end, I discovered it was closed only to pedestrian traffic (top right). Despite my disappointment, I managed to press on, following the
Regent's Canal up to the end of
Mile End Park (bottom).
There, I got off the towpath and took the sidewalk to
Roman Road Market (left). About the only trace of Italian culture to be found in its "fashion" stalls were knock-off Versace bags and Gucci sunglasses, but at least there was a pizza food truck at the adjacent
Roman Road Yard Market (right). Judging from the languages I heard, the markets' vendors and shoppers were from all over the European Union and beyond.
I was abruptly brought back to English culture with the display of
flat seafish at
George's Plaice (left). Another marine animal common in U.K. cuisine was on offer at
G. Kelly; you could opt for your eels in
stew,
jelly, or
pie form (right). For my own snack, I stuck with a slice of Turkish
borek because I just didn't have the guts -- literally, the stomach -- to try the local specialties on sale in
Bow.
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