Today's market walk was a return to somewhere we really loved when we did our river walks in the spring - Bermondsey and Southwark. We went inland a short way this time, to Bermondsey Antiques Market (sometimes also called Bermondsey Square Market).
The walk from London Bridge station to the market is full of visual treats - beautifully restored Victorian architecture, pretty cafes, a glass blowing factory, parks, pubs and shops. Bermondsey Street even has its own festival this weekend.
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| South Eastern Railway Offices at London Bridge |
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| Sign for a WWII exhibition at London Bridge |
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| A florist's in Bermondsey |
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| A restored warehouse in Morocco Street in Bermondsey |
The market looks very small, but there is plenty to see. Somehow Gill and I managed to spend two hours there. The stalls are packed densely into the market square, and each stall has thousands of treasures that must be inspected, discussed and admired.
We saw
- silver soup ladles
- miniature penknives with mother-of-pearl handles
- beautiful Victorian thimbles
- enamel earrings in the shape of sea shells
- daguerrotypes
- ostrich feather fans
- hat pins
- box brownie cameras
- charms
- tiny, weeny silver mustard spoons
- embroidery on velvet
- brooches
- medals
- police whistles
- silver coffee pots
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| Bermondsey Antiques Market - small but full of treasure |
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| Baskets and baskets of old silver and silver plate cutlery, mostly from Sheffield |
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| Box brownies |
After the market we headed for a local cafe in search of a cup of tea. Al's Cafe looked just the thing, and we had proper mugs of strong, milky tea and buttered toast to revive us.
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| Lots of menu options at Al's Cafe - Bermondsey Street |
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| Delicious tea and toast at Al's Cafe |
Walking back through Bermondsey to London Bridge, we suddenly caught sight of The Shard down one of the side streets - flashing bright reflected sunshine at everyone who walked past. You can see some photos of The Shard from when we last walked in Bermondsey, back in May - they've made good progress since then. I can't wait to see it finished; it will look spectacular in bright, autumn sunshine like today's.
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| The Shard - dazzling with reflected sunshine |
I've never heard of this market but it looks really interesting. Did you buy anything apart from the tea and toast?!
ReplyDeleteI love reading about your walks, even if they're just up the road from me :) Shockingly I've never made it to the Antiques market but I'll have to one day.
ReplyDeleteI love the Shard. I am almost alone among my friends, but I think it's folly is also its grandeur.