Hidden London: Cheshire Street

Graffiti on a door in Cheshire Street, East London.

It's been awhile since I've posted about my beloved adopted city, so I figured to get back on track I would post about Cheshire Street - just off of Brick Lane - in East London. I'm not sure how 'hidden' it is, given the amount of market stalls and shops, but I'm guessing most tourists don't even know it's there.

It's easy to get caught up in the hubbub that is Brick Lane on a Sunday afternoon. But if you take a dive away from the curry houses, you are rewarded with stalls flogging everything from cheap underwear to £5 plimsolls. Fresh fruit is sold alongside tatty leather jackets and vintage shops line the street. It's a totally different vibe than West London - in fact, you feel like you're in a different country. The infamous Kray Twins once owned a pub there and Reggie Kray's funeral procession even went down the street.

You could easily spend the whole afternoon on that one grubby stretch. But curry fumes were calling, and eventually we succumbed...

Tip: Check out vintage shops I Dream of Wires and Beyond Retro.