To Market

I have visited the markets at Camden Town a few times, and my favourite part is definitely "The Stables Market".  Originally a stables (funnily enough) and horse hospital for horses injured while pulling barges along the canals, now it is an exciting and eclectic mix of stalls and shops. The array of merchandise on sale is staggering, and it's not surprising that it pulls in around 100,000 visitors each weekend!

I have been three times now, and I still don't think I've seen everything! From goth to cyberpunk to rockabilly and vintage, there are clothing styles to suit every taste.  From cheap to expensive it is easy to get lost for hours among the clothing, food stalls, antique and bric-a-brac shops and cafes that are housed in the old tunnels and horse stalls.  I especially love all the statues and information that showcase the history of the place, and are often used as part of the displays.

I have been quite strong and the only thing I've bought from here is food and a new pair of five-pound sunglasses, but if you had the money you could go crazy! So many awesome gift ideas as well as amazing clothing.  One shop that isn't my taste but is incredible just to visit is Cyberdog.  It sells lots of clothing for raves and clubbing, with neon colours and pictures that glow under neon lights, as well as a vast array of sci-fi looking gadgets and gizmos.  The shop itself is incredible, although I only managed to sneak one photo of the inside before being informed that photos are not permitted. It's a shame, just the robot mannequins on the walls warranted dozens of shots. But if you're ever in London, the Camden Markets complex is a must-see, it's no wonder it's the fourth most-popular tourist attraction in London!

Dirty Dogs

After a busy morning of visiting tourist attractions and watching the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, my friend and I were desperately hungry but still on a tight schedule to see all the sights which we had booked to try and cram into in two days! We needed a quick fix for lunch and luckily I had previously stumbled upon "Jamie Oliver's Doghouse" in Piccadilly a few days before.

I liked the dino/diner theme, and the 'graffiti' board. His 'actual' "Jamie Oliver's Diner" is upstairs, I'll be sure to review that soon! Incidentally, the school I was working at last term had a farm program (which is rare for a London city school) where the kids kept chickens and grew vegetables which were then used by the canteen to create healthy school meals. The initiative was such a success that both Jamie Oliver and the Prince of Wales had visited the school to see it! Pity it was before I worked there, but oh well.

As you can see, lots of clever names for the dogs. Both Robyn and I got the "Dirty Dog" with an organic soft drink and all up it cost 10 pounds. That's pretty good for London. From the recent lessons I had taught (using internet resources sponsored by Jamie himself about the welfare of the British pork industry) I knew the pork we would be getting would be coming from some of the happiest pigs around, AND supporting the British pork industry (rather than the cheaper and often far crueller industries from the rest of Europe) as well as being delicious and they didn't disappoint!

A hot dog with pulled pork and crackling, and a side 'slaw'.  The hot dog was delicious! Some more crackling would have been amazing but when is that not true? The slaw wasn't really to my taste, had some kind of lemony vinaigrette rather than mayonnaise, but it was probably healthier and Robyn enjoyed it.  All in all, definitely a must-do if you're in London!

http://www.jamieoliversdiner.com/

Living in London

The day I moved into my new home was typically British: grey. It was cold and overcast, but luckily not raining!  My new street looks like this:

Of course I was excited, it looked just how I always imagined London, after all the books I'd read and television and movies I'd seen. On a side note, every time I hear a police siren (and I hear them a lot through my bedroom window as they rush down the main street) they sound exactly like on "The Bill". 

London is a place that a wealth of others have depicted in different media, but so far the stereotypes did not disappoint!  As for the inside, again, a typical British residence, with a break-your-neck staircase the first thing you see!

On a side note, I have fallen from the top of these stairs to the bottom in the middle of the night. Didn't break my neck but was a bit worried I might have broken my foot! Not fun. Now I always hold onto the railing for dear life.

The house is small, as an Australian used to lots of space I find it funny how over here they always need to build UP. But it's cozily warm in winter, and cool in Summer (unless there's a 'heatwave' - England is not equipped to deal with hot weather, no aircon!), with a tiny backyard that is often visited by neighbourhood cats, sometimes foxes and occasionally squirrels.

I live a two minute walk away from the nearest tube, on the Northern line which is very convenient, and can get into the centre of the city (Leicester Square/Piccadilly) in half an hour! There's a big Sainsbury's supermarket basically across the road, along with lots of ducks and often ducklings along the banks of the River Wandle. So far, I'm pretty happy with my new home :)

First Post

I've been living in London for six months when it occurred to me that perhaps I should start a blog to keep family and friends updated on what it's like here!

So far I have experienced walking to work in the dark and snow, as well as sweating it out in a London summer 'heatwave'.  I've done one big ''Euro Trip" to parts of the continent as well as a tour around Scotland (including the Edinburgh Festival and Military Tattoo) and a birthday weekend in Paris!

Next up, I plan to visit the Netherlands and Amsterdam (and visit my boyfriend!) and try to switch careers from high school English teacher to freelance writer!

It's all a little bit different from where I started, the little green island of Tasmania! Come along and join me on my ride.