My London – around Covent Garden

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I tend to avoid Piccadilly Circus, Shaftesbury Avenue and Leicester Square because this West End district is a little bit tacky and jammed with cars and people.  If you can get to Covent Garden without passing through these areas, the better off you’ll be. Covent Garden is fun, albeit touristy too.  Once you’re done there, I suggest a more interesting area which is only a few blocks north-west and includes Monmouth, Earlham and Shelton Streets.

LONDON August 2014 199LONDON August 2014 191Here’s a favourite clothing store of mine – the cult Swedish designer, Gudrun Sjödén, located at 65-67 Monmouth Street.  Her eco-conscious, fanciful designs have been called Pippi Longstocking meets Issey Miyake.  She also has a boutique in Soho, NYC at 50 Greene Street.LONDON August 2014 198Further along at 31 Monmouth is the fabulous Orla Kiely shop, the Irish fashion and textile designer based in London.  Pop in to see her handbags, kitchenware and other wares.  She also has a shop in NYC at 5 Mercer Street.LONDON August 2014 162

Here’s Neal’s Yard, a fun hodge-podge of shops and eating places accessed via a lane from Monmouth Street.  You must visit Neal’s Yard Remedies, Britain’s favourite natural health and beauty products store.  Their products come in iconic blue glass bottles which, once finished, can be returned to the store for recycling.  They do a fantastic moisturizing cream enhanced with frankincense and myrrh, as well as wild rose beauty balm, gorgeous bath oils, foot and hand care, massage oils, etc.

LONDON August 2014 168Three English blokes passing by the Monmouth Coffee Company.  Great filtered coffee.LONDON August 2014 192ALL SAINTS is geared for the younger crowd, but I like their clothes.  FOPP has a massive stock of DVDs, all genres, at cheap prices.  I buy a lot of DVDs there that I wouldn’t find anywhere else.  Both of these stores are on Earlham Street.LONDON August 2014 157LONDON August 2014 155Love these old brick walls. You don’t see brick in Paris.LONDON August 2014 174LONDON August 2014 183LONDON August 2014 161LONDON August 2014 175LONDON August 2014 159

Here’s me (above) loaded down as usual with backpack, camera, handbag and a shopping bag or two.  And last but not least – FOYLES famous independent bookstore. Visit their beautiful new flagship store at 107 Charing Cross Road, it’s huge and beautiful.  A great place to wander and have a coffee or tea on the top floor.  London is a booklover’s paradise.

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Coming up: Bloomsbury.

7 thoughts on “My London – around Covent Garden

  1. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your blog!! Thank you so much for giving me this entirely different perspective on a fabulous city; made even more interesting with your recommendations and observations! Next time I go to London, I’ll visit these places….I look forward to reading your posts.

  2. Love, love, love London, you are right…it is one of the best cities around politically, socially and clean too (for the most part when compared to NYC). Thanks for sharing your photos!

    • Hey, thanks, Kerry. I’m looking forward to visiting NYC again sometime in 2015. Haven’t been there for 12 years! It’ll be interesting to see how it compares to London. Same energy, I’ll bet.

  3. So fun! Now I have way too many places to see and only two free days left… I love Allsaints (they are in NYC as well) but they are very expensive for what they offer. Loving the sweater of theirs I got on sale at Bloomingdale’s though.

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