Alternative London Highlights

A list of the most interesting or unusual to contrast with the earlier list:

Restaurant: Mosob in Notting Hill. An Eritraean restaurant where everything is eaten from a springy flatbread used as cutlery too.

Museum: Sutton House in Hackney. A lovely building in a beautiful historic area in an Untouristy area of London.

Tour: a psychogeography walk in Kensington Gardens, including sensory activities, barefoot walking and poetry reading.

Religious site: The Buddhist Stupa in Battersea Park. Giant golden buddhas by the river.

Journey: a nontourist journey to Piccadilly Circus on the 94 bus. A great way to see the city.

Bar: Little Nan's in Deptford, a parlour style bar full of weird nicknacks with cocktails served from teapots.

Historic site: The abandoned tube station of The Strand.

Famous person spotted: Helena Bonham Carter in Hampstead.

Shopping: the occult bookshops of London, list available online. Some cheery with crystals and comfy sofas, some creepy with paintings of Alastair Crowley and weird noises from the basement. 

Lost London

Sometimes you come across a remnant of something from earlier London. It could be the Roman walls in Aldgate or the amphitheatre under the Guildhall. This is the York House Watergate by the Strand.

The watergate would have been a grand entrance, by boat, to the river Thames. It was built in 1626 for George Villiers the Duke of Buckingham. Sadly both his grand home and the water are now long gone and the watergate stands in Embankment Gardens, a reminder of when the River, not the road, was the centre of the city.

Ravenscourt Park Tree

I really wanted to draw an autumn tree today. I got in a bit if an inking frenzy with this and somehow instead of peaceful autumn I got slightly apocalyptic autumn. I think it's the yellow.

I like Ravenscourt Park for walking, there is also a peaceful walled garden with a sundial, and today, a white cat. We came back through Bedford Park which is a beautiful area of red brick arts and crafts houses and plane trees.

Bonus London Favourites Post

Thinking back over the last year today; a year since we moved to Chiswick and slightly longer since we moved to London. Some of my favourite things this year:

Best exhibitions:

Perfume at Somerset House; weird yet fun exhibition in which you go round a series of themed rooms, sniffing perfumed bags in random places and noting down what they smell of. Bizarre but magical experience.

Honourable mention: Matisse at Royal Academy; I love Matisse and his paintings were displayed with his actual possessions which inspired him, great to see how an artist actually worked.

Best Art Gallery:

Courtauld Gallery; small but perfectly formed and every picture is a star. All killer no filler as they say.

Best Restaurant: 

Cinnamon Club; a beautiful, sophisticated Indian restaurant in an old library in Westminster. The food is heaven, so good I bought the cookbook.

Honourable mention: La Trompette, Chiswick; a very elegant Michelin star restaurant on our road. Amazing game dishes and beautiful desserts.

 

Best Museum:

Always the V&A; Still not seen it all after umpteen visits. Full of beautiful things and a lovely courtyard and cafe. They even have a Leonardo da Vinci notebook.

Best Church:

St Bartholomew the Greater; An ancient church, full of atmosphere, tucked away behind a medieval gateway and an enclosed churchyard. 

Honourable mention: St Magnus the Martyr with the gigantic London Bridge model; crammed with tiny figures it is fascinating and delightful.

Best Walk/Explore:

Spitalfields; from posh shops in a historic market to c18th neighbourhood with Hawksmoor church and  African fabric shops on Dickensian streets, all life is here.

Honourable mention to Southwark Cathedral and Borough Market, a fascinating area, full of history and foodies.

St Pancras

As part of my Victorian stations series I bring you the biggest and best; St Pancras. Saved from demolition in the 1960s and then miraculously restored and brought back to life. Featuring in many films etc including a Spice Girls video, The Secret Garden and I believe, Harry Potter. Can anyone think of others?

This drawing took me three sessions of work and I had to cut and stick the paper four times as the drawing kept expanding over the edge. Note, buy bigger paper. Annoyingly the clock tower would not quite fit on. I am very pleased with it though.

I am now pondering other difficult buildings to draw, the obvious one being the Houses of Parliament. Suggestions welcome!

Autumn View

Autumn is a great time to paint, everything is full of gorgeous golden colours. It is also my favourite time of year with crispy leaves everywhere, cold blue skies and hearty food.

This is another in the back of houses series. If you lean out of my bedroom window and look left you can see this. The red vine is gradually taking over the neighbourhood. The house fronts onto Chiswick High Road and is a chiropractors and exercise studio.

On a more general note, I have completed my target of visiting fifty museums and galleries while in London and hope to squeeze in a few historic houses too.

Inspired by the themed dinners with me and Leen, And having more time now, I am also starting on two new cooking projects: Slow Cooker Sunday (Eastern European food) and Indian dinner where I am trying to master curries.

I must start sewing again too, I have some grey jersey material for a tasteful winter dress.