London Markets

One of London's best experiences is definitely visiting a few of the cities famous markets. I suggest you visit at least a few from the list bellow.


This is a London market shortlist with opening hours (a much larger market list is available at Wikipedia):

• Borough market - Fruit wholesale (04:00-08:00 Mon - Fri), Farmers' Market (12:00-17:00 Friday, 10:00-16:00 Saturday).


• Camden market - Weekends from about 09:30 to 17:00.


• Columbia Road flower market - Sunday: 09:00-12:00.


• Covent Garden market - Great atmosphere, but not for shopping. Open every day 10:00-18:00, atmosphere: all the time.


• Greenwich market - A series of small weekend markets selling antiques, arts & crafts, clothing and books. Open on weekends.


• Portobello market - Loads of antiques and various unusual items. Saturdays from about 06:00 to about 16:30.


• Spitalfields - Fruit and vegetables (Sunday: 10:00-16:30).

To sum it up - the best time for a visit is during a weekend when they really burst into life. You should however expect most of them to be pretty crowded.

Unfortunately I didn't have enough time to visit all of the mentioned markets. Besides many bargains waiting for you, there are also food stalls to be found in some of the mentioned markets or nearby (e.g. Camden Town). Food is usually fresh, tasty and quite affordable.


If you do not have time to visit them all and can't decide for one of the mentioned markets, I suggest you go to Camden Town, where there is a little bit of everything on offer. Camden Market is just one part of it.

Read more...

Wordless Wednesday: Big Ben in the distance

Read more...

How to pack a travel bag?

Everyone who has done his part of travelling knows a thing or two about packing. If nothing else - almost everyone hates it.
After some time, packing becomes a routine and is at least not as stressful anymore as the first couple of times.
I usually use travel checklists (there are a few useful examples on the link) for different types of trips. This saves me lots of time and lots of nerves.

Even with a checklist my travel bag or suitcase always seems to be just a bit too small.
This has become even more critical since all the low cost airlines started charging for every piece of luggage besides one piece of hand-luggage.

Sounds familiar? Are you also annoyed with this? Bear with me, there might be a way to make your life just a bit easier...

I found this guy on YouTube the other day and he really knows how to do his packing. Just lean back and enjoy the show!
I think we can all learn a thing or two from him.

There are a few universal pointers about packing, everyone should follow when boarding a plane:

• pack your luggage more efficiently (see the above video for practical demonstration),


• wear some clothes through the boarding gate ("onion philosophy"),


• use the WC after the security check to fill an empty bottle with drinkable water (where this is possible).

If you have some additional tips or thoughts on the subject, feel free to comment. We can all learn from each other.

Read more...