While the usual signs of British summer are here — chilly weather, drizzle, deep supermarket discounts on Pimms — this year I’m taking full advantage and doing 2 traditional British summer activities: attending Wimbledon and going to the Henley Regatta. These two activities incorporate so many things the English hold dear: dressing up, drinking, attendingContinue reading “Visiting Wimbledon the British way”
Category Archives: London & South East
What Americans coming to the UK need to know
My brother and his family are arriving from Texas, which has got me thinking about all the helpful advice I like to dole out to Americans who visit — tips that go beyond “don’t do the Dick Van Dyke accent from Mary Poppins”. I also enlisted a couple of knowlegable and qualified friends on theirContinue reading “What Americans coming to the UK need to know”
Finding music on the Tube
This evening, in a foul mood, having just stepped out of a shivery drizzle and into the Tube, I heard something of a rarity: live violin music. I love the musicians who perform in the official spaces in the official busking spaces of Underground stations. But here was a man on a train, travelling alongContinue reading “Finding music on the Tube”
The best holiday ice skating in London
Over the past several years my family and I have criss-crossed the city trying out different ice skating rinks. I’ve loved it since childhood, when I would force my mother to drive from 2 1/2 hours to the nearest ice rink so I could pretend I was an ice princess. (I have a great pictureContinue reading “The best holiday ice skating in London”
Jumping on the giant inflatable Stonehenge
I thought the coolest thing that Jeremy Deller has done was his documentary about Depeche Mode fanatics, “Our Hobby Is Depeche Mode“. That was until we visited Sacrilege, his inflatable Stonehenge. This is surely the only giant bouncy prehistoric World Heritage site in the world. It’s travelling around England and, looking for something more inspiringContinue reading “Jumping on the giant inflatable Stonehenge”
Day out: Crazy golf on the roof of Selfridges
It turns out you can have your cake and golf it too. The clever chaps behind Bompas & Parr have teamed up with Selfridges to create an installation on the roof of the department store – a cake-based crazy golf course. These were the guys who last year flooded the roof to make an emeraldContinue reading “Day out: Crazy golf on the roof of Selfridges”
Brixton Village Market for families
Our quest for the best burger took us today to Brixton Village Market, to try Honest Burgers. It’s drawn raves from The Observer’s Jay Raynor, Metro and TimeOut, among many others. In the olden days, before children, this is the kind of place I would have strategised to visit with my friend R. beforeContinue reading “Brixton Village Market for families”
Video: Spitalfields Life
I love this video of Spitalfields, which I found on The Women’s Room blog. I took a walking tour of Spitalfields with the kids about a year ago, so can play a bit of “where’s wallace” with all the locations. If you’re interested in the area, check out my latest post about Box Park andContinue reading “Video: Spitalfields Life”
Photo Friday: Bukowski Grill, Box Park
I’m taking part this week for the first time in Photo Friday, hosted by DeliciousBaby.com. I took this photo on my iPhone at Bukowski, one of the eateries at Box Park. Box Park opened a couple of months ago near Shoreditch House in East London. It’s a pop-up shopping “mall”, an installation of shipper containersContinue reading “Photo Friday: Bukowski Grill, Box Park”