Flashback to July 2012, London.
It is Friday afternoon, and I have a three-day weekend off from “work” which was assisting a THEATRE PROGRAM IN LONDON FOR A MONTH. Pinch me. That happened? I am standing outside the Camden Town tube stop, tucked under the tiny brick ledge to shield myself from the English drizzle, waiting for my cousin Natalie who is stopping by London (via Spain, lucky girl) to visit me for a weekend before flying home from her semester abroad.
Her must-sees: Abbey Road, Damien Hirst exhibit at the Tate Modern, and Westminster Abbey. I decided how we would tackle the city: Friday we would hang out in the Camden area, Saturday we would start in WEST London and work our way south, while on Sunday we would start in EAST London and work our way south. In one weekend, she will have gotten a comprehensive look at the fringes of London, cutting out the heavily trafficked (albeit cool) central part of the city. She can see that another time.
FRIDAY///CAMDEN TOWN
Kicked things off in Camden Town. A little Mexican food and a lot of market shopping. Camden has the best best best best market. It’s like you’re in the Matrix of markets. It is a maze of little tunnels full of weird shops.
From there we hit up “the beach” at the Camden Roundhouse. The Roundhouse is a concert venue, but this summer they hauled on tons of sand and created a beach on their outdoor terrace.
Complete with a tiki bar.
With Pimm’s and palm trees.
Not normally a tiki bar kind of gal, but this was so unusual it was a really fun spot. And we scored beach chairs! We stayed there for a while….
SATURDAY///WEST LONDON
Up early early to hit up Portobello Market.
We found Hummingbird cupcakes, vanilla and red velvet.
I had Natalie on a walking route – the best way to see the city – so from Portobello Market we walked over to the Kensington area because she had to see what I call the prettiest pub in London, The Churchill Arms. It is covered in flowers and such a magnificent sight.
Then we hopped over to Hyde Park. Natalie became a squirrel whisperer. This might have been her favorite part?
A quick shopping trips in Harrods, followed by yakisoba at Wagamama (just down the street, near Harvey Nichols on Brompton Road).
Then over to Buckingham Palace!
I was getting a little tired, but Natalie was adamant about checking out Abbey Road. We took a bus from the palace to Abbey Road. We got a little lost – and never did find this famous graffiti sign of Abbey Road Natalie was looking for – but we did cross the famous Beatles crosswalk.
We came back and I put on this ridiculous t-shirt with puppies on it that I bought at Camden Town and we popped in this gothic pub that was below our flat just because everyone on the entire trip was curious what it was like inside.
H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S. Immediately, I got asked what music I liked by a tall, burly man in an Iron Maiden shirt and sheepishly said Fleetwood Mac. I did not fit it….and we did not stay long.
SUNDAY///EAST LONDON
Up early again for another market day! Markets are hands-down my favorite things to do in the city and there are so many good ones. Sunday we hit up Columbia Road Flower Market to tour East London, working our way down to the Tate Modern for the Damien Hirst exhibit.
It is, as you can see, so much more than just a flower market. Tucked away in a tiny courtyard off the main flower market road is a street vendor that makes the best egg rolls it in the city. You will see a sign simply and clearly marked: breakfast.
From the flower market, we made our way down Brick Lane and over to Spitalfields Market, which is covered market full of clothes and art and food.
We left Spitalfields and walked by St. Paul’s Cathedral and across the Millennium Bridge.
We immediately got in the queue for the Damien Hirst exhibit. No photos inside but it was THE MOST memorable art exhibit that I have ever seen. The butterfly room was, like, whoa. He had live butterflies hatching from the walls. It was crazy. And of course we checked out the other floors at the Tate. Some people aren’t a fan, but I like how the Tate Modern is broken down by concept instead of time period/geographic area.
The weather was incredible with nary a cloud in the sky, so we left the museum and walked along the South Bank, stopping for a bite to eat at CANTEEN, a delicious British restaurant.
From CANTEEN, we walked across the Westminster Bridge to check out Big Ben, Parliament, and Westminster Abbey.
Back to Camden Town to pop in a little pub in our neighborhood for one last Pimm’s.
And the next morning my jet-setting cousin was State-bound. Leaving me thinking, what-the-what, that went way too fast. Sad!
You can see why this is the weekend I would long for when I first moved to Japan and spent weekends sick in bed, confused, jetlagged, overworked, and sweaty from the 100 degree heat. I would think….no, did I really spend a Saturday looking at Damien Hirst’s butterflies just a few short weeks ago? Did I really hang out on Friday night with my toes in the sand in Camden Town? It just didn’t seem real. Unless you are fortunate to LIVE in London, these kinds of weekends don’t come round very often. Maybe I should change my online dating profile to London…??
