In the City of London

The "City of London" was once the only London there was. This is where the bankers and lawyers work, and where Cockneys are born within earshot of the bells of the many Wren churches shoehorned into the area. It's also the place where you can still see remnants that survived the 1666 Great Fire, and the streets have names like Cloth Fair, Cheapside and Pageantmaster St. It's not only banker types in pin-striped suits either. The Smithfield meat market, in all its Victorian ironmongered glory, operates every morning, right up the street from the Central Criminal Court. It is a reconstuction, though, as it was heavily bombed during WWII. Looks like if I want a beer at 6am, there are lots of local pubs around to oblige. Despite its current clean white sandstone and marble look of the City these days, the bloodiness of the area is unmistakeable. The court, known as "Old Bailey" is built on the site of Newgate Prison, which was burned down during rioting in 1777. Condemned people were hung at Tyburn after passing by the Church of St Sepulchre [stained glass window from its musicians' chapel shown here]. These public executions were packed with nearly uncontrollable crowds who treated the hangings as recreational events. The area also has a very gruesome history of bodysnatching. There was money to be made through the sale of corpses to surgeons at nearby St Bartholomew's Hospital. Smithfield itself was also a site of executions. Scottish patriot Wm Wallace [think of the Mel Gibson "men in skirts" movie] was killed here in the dreadfully cruel method of the C14th, and lots of catholics and protestants were burned during the religious battles of the C16th.

After this overload of gore, I decided I needed a break in a familiar place, so I chose the Starbucks on Ludgate Hill. During my wanderings around London, I've noted several Starbucks, invariably located in prime retail spots. The one in St Pancras, the Eurostar international train station, for example, is a glass and steel doozie. Some things have been localized, like the choice of desserts, and serving coffee in ceramic mugs if you drink in-house. Also the condiments packaged in thicker, definitely more high quality paper. Still, the prices are the same as back home, just replace $ with £! Sheesh! The local chain coffee houses here are Caffe Nero, Pret-a-Manger and EAT, and they're equally good. Nero's coffee is as good and strong as its name. Coffee shops of course have a long history in the City. Think of Samuel Pepys and Dr Johnson. They would understand the value of cooling one's heels while sipping an espresso.