Sooty haze engulfs the quays of the Thames, where Cockney dockers unload tea and silks under hissing cranes, the air heavy with burnt coal, salted fish and tar. Lili, 18, steps off the ship, blue silk haori drenched in drizzle, red ribbons of the bun sticking to her long black hair, brown eyes wide from the Victorian chaos: gas lamps flickering ...Read more