Brick Lane Market

After having spent a couple of hours at Columbia Road, I moved a few streets over to Brick Lane market.  Ranging over the length of Brick Lane and the neighbouring streets, this is a much bigger Sunday market.  It is also far more eclectic.  No floral focus here.  Instead it ranged from vintage clothing, globe spanning street food and designer cupcakes at one end (both geographically and socially); through traditional general market sundries; and down to forlorn characters trying to sell any old rubbish off sheets laid out on the pavement.  Here the desperately trending rub shoulders with the just desperate.

So, plenty of photo opportunities.  But, like Columbia Road, the crowds made it tricky to get a decent shot.  Plus there was more of an 'edge' here.  I was warned off taking a photo a couple of times.  If I come again, I may well use a more discreet camera and see what that gets me.

This guy was taking on all-comers at chess, playing two opponents simultaneously.

Columbia Road Flower Market

On Sunday, there was a brief pause to the seemingly unremitting conveyor belt of low pressure systems that is summer 2012.  Grabbing the opportunity that a single day of half decent weather offered, I headed into London to visit a couple of the East End Sunday markets.  First stop was Columbia Road Flower Market.  In one tightly packed street, dozens of stalls offered a rainbow assortment of plants and cut flowers, in a variety of lots, all seemingly priced at £5.  'Twenty roses a fiver', '2 bunches of lilies a fiver', 'a tray of bedding plants'...well you get the drift.  Flanking these were an array of chichi little shops, selling all manner of things you might want but not actually need.  There is clearly money in some parts of the East End these days.

The market offered a lot of photo opportunities, particularly for candid people shots, which was clear from the number of other photographers there.  Despite the fact that area appears to be a honey-pot for 'togs, the traders seemed quite forgiving of photographs.  More so than they are at Borough market these days.  The trouble was that it was difficult to pick out an image without someone else getting in the way.  It took a certain amount of patience and perseverance and more than a  little luck.  After that it was a matter of 'spray and pray'. 

 

Olympic Torch Relay - St Ives

Sunday was Day 51 of the Olympic Torch Relay.  From a starting point in Cambridge, the relay passed through St Ives, Huntingdon, Bedford and Stevenage, before finishing in Luton.   Looking at the possible options, I decided Cambridge was too early a start and Bedford would be too busy.  There is never a good reason to suffer the Huntingdon ring road.  So St Ives it was! The weather on Sunday was typical of this summer.  Rain.  Lots of rain.  Despite this, a large crowd turned out to see the runner pass.  Hawkers, selling flags and other assorted Olympic themed tat, did good business (as did Greggs) and a man on unicycled kept us entertained until the convoy arrived.