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Exploring Earl’s Court, London

One of the reasons I love to travel is because everything I see in those moments is completely new to me. I pay attention to every little detail, trying to absorb all of it, trying not to miss anything. A simple walk through a city I’ve never explored before becomes an exciting adventure.

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

In London, I walk a lot as well, some 40 minutes to work every day and the same amount home. The daily grind. Passing through the same place day after day after day – usually in a rush and caught up in thoughts of what I need to accomplish that day – I barely notice my surroundings most of the time (unless it’s annoyance over being caught behind a group of slow walkers who spread across the entire pavement). And so the magic in the ordinary goes un-noticed.

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

A colleague and I took a short walk around Earl’s Court near our offices on a sunny lunch break one day, exploring this odd area of the city like the tourists we aren’t. It is a strange area of the city, a mixture of cheap and scruffy (pawnbrowers, budget grocery shops, homeless beggars), the usual high street residents (Prets and Barclays banks), lovely family-run fruit stalls and Russell’s Family Flowers stand, high volume traffic streets and tiny winding car-free back streets, cheap and dirty hostels and The Boltons where mansions are on the market for upwards of £20 million.

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist(Print in the etsy shop!)

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

There’s history here. As we walked, a perfect ball of light gleamed above the station entrance. There was the historical Grade II listed building that was designed by Harry Ford in 1906.

Earl’s Court has The Troubadour with its quirky interiors where the likes of Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Paul Simon and Elvis Costello jammed and the first place where Bob Dylan performed in London.

There’s a pub now called The Pembroke which used to be the Coleherne. Between the 1970s-90s, it was a stalking ground for three separate serial killers: Dennis Nilsen, Michael Lupo and Colin Ireland.

Earl’s Court was the centre of gay nightlife before Soho took over and was also known as Kangaroo Court for all of the transient expats from New Zealand and Oz who moved in.

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little ObservationistEarl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

There’s the lovely Brompton Cemetery, which I’ve blogged about before, beautiful (though private) garden squares with traditional cast iron railings, and rows of pastel houses that would sit nicely in Notting Hill.

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

I love walking the side streets just across from the Earl’s Court Road station entrance. It’s a hub for London’s Filipino community and there’s restaurants and small grocery shops with Asian fruits and veggies in boxes outside, grubby old gum ball machines attached to the wall and plenty of pubs in the vicinity that seem to compete for the most amusing blackboard outside. Beyond that, the colourful homes and Instagram-worthy doors.

Here’s to remembering to seek out the extraordinary in everyday life.

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

Earl's Court, London by Stephanie Sadler, Little Observationist

I made a dandelion wish, but there’s one left for you. What’s it going to be? ^^

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4 Comments

  • Reply
    Fiona Maclean
    May 31, 2016 at 10:10 am

    I used to live in West Brompton – it’s an area with a lot of change and I wonder if the scruffier shops and cafes will be there in 5 years when the new development is finished. I LOVE the troubadour though – and the Atlas pub which is just round the corner

    • Reply
      littleobservationist
      May 31, 2016 at 10:33 am

      Oh, I haven’t been to Atlas pub! I’ll have to check it out. Thanks for the suggestion 🙂

  • Reply
    lottielamour
    May 31, 2016 at 10:25 am

    What a great idea to go exploring around London and take a bunch of photos! Earls Court is a bit far on the other side of London to where I live, so it’s nice to see a place up close that I wouldn’t necessarily visit. Loved your shots too!

    Lottie xx
    http://lottielamour.co.uk

    • Reply
      littleobservationist
      May 31, 2016 at 10:34 am

      Thanks Lottie! I love exploring London, and try to make it east once in a while too… Thanks for stopping by! xx

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