Notting Hill
I can’t believe it took me this long to finally visit Notting Hill. It’s no secret I love a good pastel colored house, which Notting Hill is full of, so luckily I finally visited Notting Hill around Christmas time. Notting Hill was not as Christmassy decorated as the city center, but the decorations were small and tasteful and added much ambiance to the already beautiful houses. Notting Hill is a good destination year-round, during spring time you will find the area scattered with cherry blossoms and wisteria. Each season has something special to offer in contrast with the pink houses. Because the houses are maintained really well, they make for the perfect backdrop for your pictures.
We took the metro to Notting Hill Gate and navigated to Portobello Road, which takes you right through Notting Hill. You will shortly pass the super cute café “Farm Girl”. At the beginning of Portobello Road you will find the famous colorful houses and if you continue you will walk into the thrift/antique store part. I loved browsing through the porcelain at Alice’s, which is somewhat of an institution.
When you walk Portobello Road to the point where you can see the All Saints store, you can turn to your right and you will see the cutest flower store: Wild at Heart. Wild at Hart is located in the main shopping hub of Notting Hill. In this street you will find all sorts of upscale stores such as Sézane, Jigsaw, Maje and the Kooples. There is also a small annexation of the amazing, organic “Daylesford” farm, where you could stop for drinks at the café or browse through their farmshop offerings. If you do this walk you should have some sort of idea of Notting Hill, but I could honestly wander around here for days 😉
Shoreditch
Another great district in London is the Shoreditch area. Shoreditch is a rougher area in London and is known for its streetart and good nightlife. If you want to have a party weekend, this is where you have to stay the night. Shoreditch also hosts the Bricklane market, which is open on Saturday and Sunday from 11AM-17PM. We visited Shoreditch on a Sunday, which was perfect as I love the bustle that a market brings to a neighborhood. The Bricklane market is perfect for antique and thrift shopping, it is really big so it will take a few hours to check out everything. One of my favorite British traditions is the Sunday roast, Shoreditch has lots of traditional pubs so you are not short of supply here. A visit to Bricklane market and a Sunday roast is pretty much my ideal afternoon.
