Globetrotter Postcards: Southbank

08 May 2014

There is always something going on at Southbank

If there happens to be a day when I'm not sure what to do, when I don't have any concrete plans or when I just want to see something or do something different without expending any real effort in researching, I go to London's Southbank. There is always something on. If it's not a festival, there is a concert, exhibition, book market, place to eat out, daily markets, seasonal markets like the Christmas Markets, or people watching. It also doesn't hurt that it has a view of the London Eye and the Houses of Parliament. There is always something to see or do at Southbank.

Last weekend, the Streets of Spain festival was on. Londoners and tourists flocked to the stalls showcasing delicious foodie delights from Barcelona. The line for the Paella was so long that a whole pan of paella would finish before you reached the front.

The line for Churros doubled up on itself to fit, and there had to be 2 Sangria stalls to cope with the demand. People were everywhere. It was so packed it was occasionally hard to move! My friend and I waited in line chatting away, and working up an appetite before grabbing our plates and finding a spot away from the crowds to chow down.

If you missed the Streets of Spain festival, don't worry, there are loads more festivals coming up and if you happen to be the planning sort, check out the Southbank Centres "Whats on" page. Even if you don't want to go to a particular festival, just go for a wander, there are places to eat, chill out and if your lucky, you might spot a dance crew practising their routine. I confess have spent a lot of time doing this, I'm fascinated by how much energy these dancers have and the patience to repeat a tiny part of the routine over and over again to get the moves, timing and coordination just right. It does tend to make me feel super unco though. hehe.

By the way, did I mention there was a rooftop garden cafe there too? Its a secret London location. OK well yes, its mentioned on the Southbank Centres website, but not many people actually know its there, not even the London locals!

And, in case you haven't been on the London Loo tour, the Southbank Centre has free loos ;) haha.

Whats your favourite part of Southbank?

10 July 2011

London Deja Vu

Hearing: Westminster Abbey and the Big Ben chimes, traffic going past on Broad Sanctuary/Victoria Street

London in the summer has this smell. Nothing unpleasant, its quite nice actually but i cant describe it properly. It smells like summer, fresh, floral, sweet, but something more...

National Gallery and St Martin-in-the-Fields

After landing into Heathrow yesterday and hopping on the tube it hit me like a forgotten memory. It was bright and sunny and a great welcome for the start of my holiday. the only "downers"were that there was trackwork on the the Piccadilly line so it was hop-off, bus it, and hop back on. And when i checked into my accommodation i found that it was a lower ground room that looked out on to a cement wall a metre away. The trackwork thing couldn't be helped, the room however has put a dint into my expectations. Unfortunately the place is full and i was advised to speak with the office on Monday to see if there is anything they can do. I'm not one to usuallymake a f uss but there is one thing i loathe to put up with, its a room with no natural light, anything else, small bed/room/ensuite/no ensuite etc i don't care. But i digress, the place overall is pretty good not to mention the fantastic location.

My view during lunch

2012 Olympics Countdown Clock

After dumping my stuff i headed out for a wander and in search of a grocery store. Lots of people were out and about. I found a Waitrose, picked up some stuff and headed back to my room. I would like to say that i toughed it out and stayed up to fight jet lag but i couldn't. Over 30 hours of travel was just too much and i was sound asleep by 8pm. It did bite me in the butt though. I woke up around 5.30am for a moment not realising where i was & was not able to go back to bed. I bummed around the room, ate strawberries id picked up yesterday, did my usual internet stuff (the place has free internet!) and then headed for breakfast.

Don't know if this is a new installment in Trafalgar Square but I've never noticed it before

Soon enough i was out and about, not walking, but bounding down the street on my way to Piccadilly Circus. I did intend to take Tottenhamcourt Road but ended up on Oxford St which was fine by me. All the stores had sales and i couldn't help popping into a few. I was good though and managed to walk away without spending anything. I think the trick is that i was hungry so food took a priority. I bought myself a sandwich from Pret-A-Manger and polished it off fairly quickly once i got to Trafalgar Square.

Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament

Crowds near the London Eye

London is BUSY! There are tourist groups everywhere. Ive never seen so many. Maybe its because its the weekend or maybe its just because its summer. I'll find out soon enough. There was a countdown clock placed in Trafalgar Square counting down the 326 days, hours, minutes and seconds to the 2012 Olympics in front of which people were taking photos.

Two London icons, the London Eye and Big Ben

Did i mention i got asked for directions? i LOVE it when that happens. It makes me feel like i really belong in a place, that i don't stick out like a tourist.

So after finally snapping Nelson properly thanks to the fab zoom on my new camera i headed down to Westminster Abbey where i have been people watching this past hour and trying to make myself realise I'm not in a dream even though my eyes are insisting that i am. Its an eerie feeling i can tell you. I look about here and i get this sense of Deja Vu, and yes i know i have been here before but i don't have a better way of explaining it. I guess the jet lag and overcast weather doesn't help.