Wednesday, May 18, 2011

hopping the pond

. . . for a bit of Georgian architecture. A snippet from my visit this past February to Dr. Johnson's House in London.

Inspired by Emily's trip in January, I decided to seek out this little gem of a house. Finding it is no easy task, tucked away in the heart of Fleet Street (in fact, had EEE not mentioned the nearby McDonald's, I think I would have thrown my hands up in despair). That the house has survived history is extraordinary. . . literally being blitzed during WWII, and now hemmed in by modernity. As Emily wrote, the house is sparsely furnished, leaving one to conjure up the past without the clutter of objects. After all, it is the stories of the personalities that inhabited the place that really matter. From an architectural perspective, however, it is fascinating to see a Georgian townhouse so intact.

Also not to be missed:

* Danson House
* Fenton House
* and a place in Wales

And I must say ~ I am so impressed by this site: London. . . shh. What a brilliant idea!

2 comments:

Craig said...

By all means, Dr Johnson's House is wonderful, and the initial challenge of finding it just adds to the charm of the place. A stop afterward at Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese isn't a bad idea either.
http://www.pubs.com/main_site/pub_details.php?pub_id=154
Lovely posting!
-Craig

Janet said...

Craig ~ so true! I felt like I was discovering a well-kept secret. And I did spy the Cheese, but even for me, 11:00am was a bit to early for a pint.