When I moved to London almost three weeks ago, I was ready for the rain, the tea, and the accents. One thing I wasn’t expecting besides the dreary weather and adorable finger sandwiches though, was the love affair London has with vintage markets (a similarity that unfortunately I share).
Greenwich, the small southeast borough of London that has quickly become my new home, is a quaint area filled with vintage markets, £1 book stores, and best of all, great food. This past week concluded the Greenwich summer food market, highlighting everything from Spanish paella to Peruvian chicken. And, as if the main dishes weren’t tempting enough, French and Italian tents advertised nutella crepes and a wide variety of home-made gelato, making an afternoon out for lunch an all day affair.
After eating my way through great cuisine, I strolled down to the Greenwich vintage market. While the old-soul in me loved how much character everything had, my shopaholic side had a hard time not purchasing everything (thankfully I convinced myself I didn’t need a 1920s type-writer and 4 fur jackets).
While Greenwich in itself has so much to offer, central London has an even wider array of markets. Covent Gardens Market hosts a myriad of clothing boutiques, pubs, and art all inside a 19th century Piazza. Booming with culture and local musicians, Londoners stroll throughcenturies of paintings, vintage cameras, and street performers all before stopping for afternoon tea a Crusting Pipe or Patisserie Valerie. Mondays at Covent Gardens are dedicated to antiques, while the rest of the week highlights stalls with clothing, food, and gifts. The weekend wraps up with artists selling hand-made candles, clocks, and jewelry all to begin again with antiques on Monday.
Besides love for vintage though, my obsession with art soon found me at the National Gallery in central London. After a short two hours I had only made it through the Impressionist section of the gallery, stopping awhile at Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers” and Monet’s “The Water-Lily Pond;” weeks earlier, having stood in Monet’s actual water-lily garden in Giverny, it was surreal to see history link together in my own experiences abroad.
Check out these incredible garden comparisons and the websites below for more info on London: the capital of vintage & art.
Greenwich Market London // Covent Gardens London
