For whom the bells toll

Walk of the month this month in the Tower Hamlets community newspaper was Aldgate East to Whitechapel.  (I'll be honest and say I have no idea if there are always walks as I've never read the paper before.)

We decided to hoof it about in East London Town whilst our roast chicken a la Jamie (minus lemon) was cooking.  There was lots to see that I have been past dozens of times and not paid any attention to before, a few of the more interesting sights were duly captured by moi.

St Boniface's German church.  Apparently there is still a German congregation here in what used to be called 'Little Germany', home to sugar bakers and cigar makers.

Whitechapel Bell Foundry.  Britain's oldest manufacturing company (est 1570) and the place where Big Ben was cast.

How on earth Sam was planning on directing us round the walk with his hands over his eyes I have no idea.... He soon got back with the programme though and on we went.

We managed to miss a 22m high minaret on the East London Mosque...not really sure how in retrospect but we did spot the innocuous entrance to the Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue, which now I look at the info was apparently right next door to said mosque so we must really have been slack on the ol'attention front.

Lovely flats on Fieldgate Street near the wonderful Tayyabs restaurant.  A bastion of Indian cuisine well worth visiting...frequently.

There was quite a bit of stuff about other places along the way and my favourite building for sheer Poirot-esque fabulousness was Gwynne House.  Can't you just imagine the little grey cells working away in one of those flats?  With help from Captain Hastings and Inspector Japp obvs.

At this point we realised that our roast chicken a la Jamie was nearing readiness and we'd better get a move on to Tesco and get some accompanying gravy granuals when we happened to pass the childhood home of Jack Cohen, founder of Tesco.  It says here in the paper that while selling tea by TE Stockwell at London Markets he decided to combine his name with this brand to make Tesco.

There are now 5 Tesco branches within 10-15 minutes of my flat so clearly, whilst I think this smacks like a lack of imagination on the naming front it hasn't impeded his company taking over the world, one shopping unit at a time, despite the best efforts of Sir Hugh Fearnly of Whittingstall and his campaigning, of which I am much in favour.