Brick Lane Colors and Tacos, London

After the long holiday weekend, most Londoners returned to business. However, I had Tuesday off of work (three days in London is never enough!) and so I decided to roam the streets of East London with my camera, doing some vintage shopping and eating copious amounts of street food along the way.

Brick Lane got its name in the 15th century, when brick and tile were manufactured from local deposits. Today, Brick Lane is populated with a large Bangladeshi community and is THE place to go to in London for a mind blowing curry. The area is also world-famous for its graffiti. It’s clear to see that from the local shops, markets, and colors that Brick Lane is an art and fashion hotspot in London. 
With little on the day’s agenda (aside from catch a plane at 6.30pm) and bright blue skies, I decided to roam the streets. On Sunday, Madelien and I had ventured out around Brick Lane – the roads were flooded with people and the shops were bustling and cramped. Tuesday offered a quieter glimpse of Brick Lane, with many stores closed, an absence of street vendors, and no Sunday markets.
That said, I was able to photograph artwork without pausing for other tourists to walk by, I was able to wander into a Bangladeshi super market and take my merry sweet time, and I had first dibs on all of the changing rooms in the vintage shops.The thing I love the most about Brick Lane are the colors. Typically, the UK is dark and dreary. When the sun is out, it’s a treat. And when you’re walking down a street, surrounded by art and neon murals, there’s an added sense of sunshine regardless of the weather. After wandering for an hour or so, I popped into DF Mexico for a breakfast treat. I was super thirsty, and noticed that DF Mexico had an unlimited juice option on the menu. They also had slow cooked pork burritos, tacos, and tortillas, but really, I was mostly excited for the juice!For €2.30 you can sample their hibiscus, horchata, and lime & chia juices again and again. I tried one glass of each, and then started blending!Luckily, my burrito arrived before I could finish all of the juice in the shop. The burrito was slightly underwhelming . . . the American in me was screaming ‘it should be bigger!’ ‘it should come with chips!’ but that’s just because I went to university in Burlington, Vermont, and therefore ate at Moe’s more times than my cholesterol levels would have liked ;) However, what the burrito lacked in size it made up for in luster, and it tasted simply delicious! After five glasses of juice and a spicy chicken burrito, I hit the streets again to soak up a bit more sunshine. I ended my street art tour back on Madelien’s road, which in my opinion, rivals Brick Lane in color and artwork. I want to apologize in advance, as I’m getting somewhat out-of-order with my London posts. I think I still have one or two more to go, but I was so excited about the street art on Brick Lane (and maybe a tad hungry looking at burrito photos) and therefore jumped ahead a bit :) So expect an England beach day and an Easter walk through Regent’s park still to come!

Until then. xo

Ali