Most people are familiar with images of London’s ‘chocolate box’: Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, the London Eye. While all of these sights should be on your ‘to see’ list, you’ll be missing out on the heart and soul of the world’s greatest city if you just take a photo in front of the ‘tourist icons’. Tea London’s hidden gems The series is aimed at those of you who want to dig a little deeper when visiting London. First stop: Southwark.
Southwark is (as the name implies) the part of London on the south bank of the River Thames. For a long time it was the only “official” part of London proper to be situated on the South Bank. In ancient times it was famous for its bear pits, tanneries and as the starting point for the pilgrimage to Canterbury (made famous in Chaucer’s canterbury tales). It was also a “theater district” and the Bard himself was a regular sight on the streets of Southwark.
Some echoes of Southwark’s colorful past can still be heard and seen. Some suggestions on how to spend a day there:
- Walk across one of the most famous bridges of all time: London Bridge. The current bridge is relatively new (1971) as the previous one was sold to Lake Havasu City in Arizona.
- ‘Step on the floor’ by visiting a reconstruction of Shakespeare’s Globe. Better yet, if you visit in the summer, be sure to catch a performance of one of Bard’s plays on the stage for which it was written.
- Visit one of the most famous medieval prisons, The Clink, and be very grateful that you can leave it whenever you want…
- Have a drink at The George next to the site of the ancient Tabard Inn. The Tabard Inn was famous as one of the traditional starting points for the pilgrimage to Canterbury to visit the shrine of Sir Thomas Beckett. Take a copy of the canterbury tales and see if you can identify some of the characters while ‘people watching’.
- A weekend visit to Southwark will confirm that London’s reputation as a place where it is very difficult to eat well is firmly in the past. Borough Market is a sanctuary for foodies of all kinds and a place where you can get the best takeaways in all of London. Take your food and have a picnic in the garden of Southwark Cathedral.
- Good food should always be accompanied by good wine. Without fear! Southwark is also home to London’s ‘wine city’, Vinopolis. Tour, taste and sing an ode to Bacchus!
