Conquering every place listed in Time Out London's 1000 Things To Do in London and writing about them.
Even (and especially!) if you’re not interested in the typical war museum, the Churchill War Rooms are worth your time and your dosh. Illuminating the daily terror of living through World War II, this museum follows in the footsteps of Britain’s beloved prime minister during some of this country’s darkest days. Hindsight is 20/20, and it’s easy for us to forget (and impossible for a lot of us to know) …
I do a lot more things in London (and further afield!) than I write about on this blog, but I never get around to writing about them. Often it’s because I completely psych myself out when it comes to writing (that damn blinking cursor…) and mostly it’s because it’s hard to stretch every experience into the Google-recommended 300-word blog post. So I’m introducing this new section called ‘best bits’, which …
From a (supposed) Druid sacrifice chamber to a fully functional air raid shelter city and later a gig venue for Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones, the Chislehurst Caves have played a role in nearly every chapter of English history. The air stank of kerosene as we walked down the long white-washed tunnel to the entrance of the Chislehurst Caves. Our guide handed out lanterns, our only kit for the mile-long …
The tables, chairs and cutlery are set up exactly the same at Dans Le Noir, but there’s one big (and slightly scary) difference: you can’t see them. At all. Welcome to the restaurant where you eat a full meal in the pitch black. London Thing 837 of 1000: Dine in the dark at Dans Le Noir. Have you ever experienced complete darkness? I’m not talking about camping with a new …
Highgate Cemetery, part 1800s burial ground and part nature reserve, is London’s most striking example of the Victorian symbology of death, best explored by flickering candlelight on All Saints’ evening. London Thing 622 of 1000: Wander through Highgate Cemetery. London in the 1800s must have been an insanely grim place. Within 50 years, the population of the city more than doubled, and small church burial grounds were quickly becoming overcrowded, …
Mail Rail, an underground train network used to deliver London’s post, has been shuttered since 2003 but is now back in action, this time for riders. London Thing 94* of 1000: Ride Mail Rail. Mail Rail, London’s newest attraction, is also one of its delightfully dorkiest. In dimly lit subterranean tunnels stretching from Paddington in the west to Whitechapel in the east, a narrow gauge train ran between Royal Mail …
The Thames Barrier is the linchpin of London’s flood defence system, and once a year, you can watch the modern marvel at work at the annual test closure. London Thing 786 of 1000: Visit the Thames Barrier. For something that doesn’t get shouted about, it’s actually pretty monumental. The Thames Barrier is one of the biggest movable flood barriers in the world, and it protects London from storm surges that …
The City of London has been the headquarters of trade guilds since medieval times, and the ancient meeting halls of these wealthy unions are a sight to see. London Thing 266 of 1000: Tour the City Livery Halls. Hidden behind unassuming facades or locked gates, more than 35 livery companies call the square mile of the City of London home base. These astounding buildings, often reconstructed in the aftermath of the …
The gorgeous Isokon Building is one of London’s greatest examples of modernist architecture. If you time your visit right, you can even take a peek at the penthouse flat. London Thing 644 of 1000: Go Art Deco at the Isokon Building. You know those buildings that make your heart race and your knees go weak? No? Then this blog post is not for you. Now that I’ve lost all the non-dorks, …
Housed in an old fire station, the London Buddhist Centre is an authentic slice of the Far East in London’s east and a great place to try guided meditation. London Thing 558 of 1000: Meditate at the London Buddhist Centre. Across from some council estates on a nondescript stretch of Bethnal Green Road rises the ornate London Buddhist Centre, housed in a Grade II-listed Victorian firehouse. Colourful prayer flags strung from …