BES Assignment One: Street Life

BES

Assignment One

Street Life

Because London is a city with such a vibrant and fascinating street life, it only makes sense that it includes many extraordinary markets. The markets of London are some the best places to go a get real feel for the diversity amongst the city. Not only are the markets an excellent place to experience the culture of London, they also contain great purchases and for excellent prices. During my time in London I have been to various markets including Borough, Portobello, and Camden. There is also Brixton and Columbia Road Markets that I plan on visiting at some point. There are smaller markets throughout the city as well; the ones I have listed are the larger, well known markets.

Portobello Market is best known for its antiques and collections. It is located in West London and one of the most famous street markets in the world! The market takes up most of what is known as Portobello Road stretching around two miles. I ventured to Portobello one afternoon with Lucy, Tess, and Lindsey. We all really enjoyed the experience, made some great deals, and walked away with lots of shopping bags! Out of the three markets I have visited, Portobello is my favorite thus far. The atmosphere at Portobello was very inviting and full of various cultures. Many of the items found in the Market included jewelry, food, antiques, and some clothing. The jewelry was really appealing to me especially. Although, there were countless jewelry stands, each was unique and had something to offer that the previous one did not. There was very expensive jewelry from Italy and there was inexpensive jewelry. Tess and Lindsey were able to bargain with one vendor in order to get six friendship bracelets for a total of eight pounds. We also found great shoes, but had to convince ourselves to walk away. We are still kicking ourselves for that decision, so we plan on going back next week. They had great food shops along the road as well. Lindsey and Lucy got cupcakes and Gelato and for lunch the girls tried out some delicious pizza. The market was fairly full and a little crowded when we went, but I felt it was organized well enough I hardly noticed. We walked the whole market and back which was quite the amount of walking, especially towards the end when the shopping bags kept magically accumulating. I had a great time at this market and really hope that when my mom and grandparents come to visit they will enjoy Portobello Market too.

Camden Market or Camden Town is also a favorite of mine. It is unlike any of the other markets. It is well known for its trendy pop culture, variety of colorful markets, shops, restaurants, bars, pubs, clubs, and theaters. Camden Town definitely attracts enormous crowds of Londoners and tourist alike, however it is most appealing to the youth of London.  Before experiencing Camden Town, I was told it was the place in London where Amy Whinehouse called home. After experiencing Camden Town I would agree that Amy Whinehouse is an accurate description of Camden Town. Upon visiting Camden for the first time I was a little sketched out. It was a whole other culture that reminded me a lot of the Hot Topic shops back home. As we walked around I became more familiar with the area I came to really enjoy the atmosphere and the many shops it had to offer. The atmosphere was fun, exciting, colorful, and full of life. There always seemed to be something new just around the next corner. The majority of Camden seemed to be clothing, jewelry, and food. The most interesting shop we stumbled upon was Cyber Dog. It is full of clothing that Lady Gaga would love to wear. It also reminded me a lot of the clothing worn on Disney’s Zenon Girl of the 21^st Century. I didn’t purchase anything at Cyber Dog, but it was definitely cool to get browse. My favorite thing about Camden Town was the many stands by the water area. They have lots of jewelry, bags, watches, and other fun odds and ends to offer. The best part is they are extremely easy to bargain with. I purchased a bracelet that was originally two pounds, but with a little help from my bargaining partner Lindsey, I was able to get it for just 46p. I felt pretty proud! Since then I have been able to bargain my way down on all sorts of things. I really enjoy Camden and have been there three or so times and I plan on returning this week when my best friend Ashley comes and again when my boyfriend Jack comes.