Borough Market on a Sunday morning.

I was quite shaken by the recent attacks at Borough Market. It's a market that's so familiar and so close to home. A simple place run by innocent honest people.

All the makings of a happy space with plenty to eat and drink, titbits and tasters of various fresh produce... persistent traders handing out samples of their homemade chutneys, jams, cheeses and all in a background of live music, sunshine and gelatos.

I have had a blast on all my visits, and always come back home with a bounty from the market and a happy tummy, once I discovered the tiny hole in a the wall shop for presumably the best grilled cheese sandwich in London.

Recipe for the perfect raclette. Worth ever second of the wait in queue.

Rounds of golden molten cheese.

Blooming flowers, herbs and planters... sometimes I miss having a little garden. London is the perfect city for it. There is something to grow in every season.

It's interesting to know the provenance of the produce. A small family run farm, and a new 'shire' to discover.

One a penny two a penny hot cross buns!

One thing I have noticed in London is that places are peppered with these seemingly random things.... like this barbershop inside the veggie market. Blending it with the greens.

My walk ends with Turkish delights and a sweet melody to go with it.

#boroughmarket #photowalkboroughmarket

A walk through the Art District of Ostiense, Rome

It's not the Vatican or the Trevi. It's not where tourists flock for selfies or drop coins in fountains. Quite the opposite of a postcard side of Rome, it's barren, gritty and real.

The art district of Ostiense.

Originally an industrial area, and a neglected working class neighbourhood, Ostiense has seen a sort of a 'revival' in recent years. It reminded me a lot of Hackney in London. This neighbourhood has become a mecca for artists and hipsters... and boasts of some of the most talked about street art in Rome.

Artists are using the shabby barren walls of abandoned buildings, industrial warehouses and estates, the underside of flyovers as their own personal canvases, to create spectacular murals.

On a hot summer afternoon, we went street art hopping in Ostiense.

This former Ostiense Air Force building, occupied by families with housing problems hosts on it's facade a mural by Blu. Completed in 2013, this has become a landmark of the district. The multicoloured sailing ship carrying an urban building site, this dystopian apocalyptic image is the first striking piece as we began our exploration.

And it kept getting better as we walked down and the building came in full view, the enormity of it. The colour coded alien faces with broken windows as eyes is creepy at the same time cute. Amidst a housing crisis, this old and deprived structure has become a symbol of the community.

Further down, hidden in one of the alleyways, is this 'Wall of Fame' by JB Rock. A long wall from one end of the street to the other, filled with portraits of famous people- real and fictional.

Just across this orange wall is a blue wall with another set of portraits by Sten Lex. This, in contrast is a bunch of anonymous people. Common people in black and white.

'Paint Over The Cracks'

Giant Gasometers, nicknamed the 'Steel Colosseum' form a backdrop for this piece by Kid Acne. The message representing the desire to repair the cracks in our present world.

This abandoned building became a canvas once again for street artist Blu. I began reading about him. Blu is well known and had always shown great interest in social and political problems in the city. This building owned by an energy company now stands disused, occupied by students in search of housing.

A whirlwind of yellow cars, chained together- a symbol of slavery.

Graffiti Gothic Letters by Brus adorn the facade of this building. In between are a series of famous quotes by Goethe, Niel Liefer, Milan Kundera and Ansel Adams.

This one's a cute mural by Agostino Lacurci. Odd little characters feature on the long wall smoking pipes and cigarettes wearing nerdy glasses.

'Fuga de capitales' or capital flight, referring to the global economic crisis and numerous scandals. This dark silhouette piece on the Via Ostiense underpass is by Argentinian duo Gaucholadri.

The underpass is like an art gallery of sorts! Illustrated by Senza Titolo and crew. Together they regenerated this area with a series of illustrations. Here's another striking piece.

Ostiense has far too many art walls to cover in a single trip, but we quite enjoyed this 'taster', a chance to see a different side of Rome.

#Ostiense #Rome #streetartRome #GraffitiRome #OstienseArtDistrictRome #VisitOstiense

Summer Artists of London

The shirts are off! As the city gets ready to devour the heat. Presenting the Summer Artists of '17

They don't call Brixton trendy for no reason. Rock n' roll vibes as you step out of the station.

Hard to miss this guys on the high street, belting out sweet Caribbean beats.

A sun kissed duo spotted outside the United Colours of Benetton at Oxford Street.

It might look like summer, but the winds can get chilly. Nostalgia in the form of Guns & Roses, at Holborn.

A hot sweaty afternoon in the underground tunnels. This guy's hat cheered me up.

Sunday morning at the bustling Borough Market.

11 pm on a weeknight, at Oxford Circus.

From London to the the Piazza de Commune, Assisi. This guy was bringing back tunes of the Shire. I felt like doing a little hobbit dance!

Taken back to my band practice and march past days.

Not all of them looking too happy doing the drill.

Last but not the least. An artist with the pen, doing what he loves best- doodling!

#buskers #buskerslondon #streetmusiclondon #streetmusic #Londonstreets #photoblog