Shopping

Stanfords travel book shop first opened its doors in 1901 and has since seen its fair share of customers, ranging from classic authors to modern day travel writers such as Bill Bryson and Michael Palin.

Centrally located between Covent Garden and Leicester Square, Stanfords is three stories high and is stocked entirely with guide books, maps, travel literature and accessories. Therefore, for any lover of travel and escapism, a visit to Stanfords is an idyllic way to spend a rainy afternoon and plan your next holiday.

Stanfords has an impressive selection of guide books covering every corner of the globe and detailed road maps to assist even the most adventurous traveller plan their next trip. Scattered among the books and maps are travel journals, colourful travel photography books and old fashioned world globes – making Stanfords a great place for a unique present.

And for those unable to travel, yet forever dream of a sejourn in exotic and far away places – travel literature lines the century old walls, allowing your imagination to be transported across the globe. Understandably, Stanfords is my favourite bookshop in London!

Tintin might be better associated with Belgium, but there is a tiny shop hidden on a side street in Covent Garden dedicated to the crafty Belgian journalist (and his dog Snowy).  The Tintin Shop is a cosy shop (definitely not as spacious as Captain Haddock’s Marlinspike Hall), but it is packed with plenty of gifts to keep Tintin fans happy.

The Tintin books are the centrepiece – hardcover editions, special collectors’ books and Tintin art books pack the shelves.  For fans who know all of Tintin’s adventures by heart, there are other items like t-shirts, coffee cups, framed posters and stuffed Snowy dolls to keep everyone pleased.  For serious collectors, there are special figurines which can cost hundreds of pounds, but who wouldn’t want the Thompson twins or Professor Calculus sitting on their desks? 

The recent Tintin film may have introduced Tintin, Captain Haddock and Bianca Castafiore to a new generation of Tintinologists.  This shop ensures that new fans and old can tag along with Tintin on all of his thrilling adventures.

Shopping on the King’s Road in Sloane Square is a serious business; anyone caught idling on the pavements will be run over by determined shoppers who will show no mercy when looking for the perfect gift. Bargain hunters here wear determined faces and take their shopping extremely seriously.

Yet on Saturday afternoons at Duke of York Square, shoppers and locals seem to take time to chill out. Steely faces melt into smiles, and gruff mutterings turn into laughter. The Farmers’ Market seems to have that kind of effect on people.

An hour or so wandering around the stalls at the Duke of York Square Market is a relaxing tonic for the mind and a treat for the stomach. The air is filled with smoky British sausages mixed with the fragrance of Jamaican rum cakes. French cheese carts stand next to Nigerian food stalls. A short meander is like walking through a global gastronomic wonderland.  The market is also a few steps from the Saatchi Gallery, so you can combine modern art with eclectic food.

On the Saturday afternoon of my visit, a local jazz band entertained locals as they sat down on public benches to chat and eat. I munched through a few empanadas at one booth before sneaking some chocolate at another. I figured the carrying of shopping bags would burn the calories.

I love to relax with a good book. I also like to chill out with a glass of wine. But try taking a hardcover book into a bar. It’s dim. It’s crowded. And you’ll probably be sitting next to a very desperate guy chatting up a girl way out of his league. Not an ideal place to dive into a book.

The solution to the above dilemma can be solved at the V&A Reading Rooms in South Kensington (which has recently been transformed to give a more ‘Continental vibe’ – think sidewalk cafes and street musicians). Located just a few minutes from the V&A Museum, this little bookshop/bar offers space for the more discerning readers just wanting some peace and quiet. Many of the books specialise in design, but there are many other books covering current events, poetry and literature as well.

This cosy spot is actually two bright and airy rooms full to the ceilings with books, with the first room also holding a small bar. Rather than separate you from the book stacks, tiny tables are placed throughout the rooms to actively encourage you to challenge your interests as your taste buds drown in wine or espressos. Just be sure not to spill any of your drink into their books – that’s just rude.

Broadway Market on a Saturday is a snap shot of what life in Hackney is all about. A true mix of styles and cultures, young and old, traditional and new. It is a microcosm of what living in a truly global city is all about. 

Broadway Market is not a large street yet the market on Saturdays see this street crammed with life. The weekly stalls attract the crowds, but the shops, the pubs, the restaurants and cafes all join in. It is what I want a weekly market to be. Lively, but offering something for everyone. Go for the shopping, stay for the people watching!

The market is primarily a specialist food market where you can get organic meat, fruit and veg alongside fresh fish, cakes, bread, cheese, sausages… but you can also get vintage clothes, furniture, hand made brooches, bike repairs/spares or hit the shops instead of the stalls and get art books at Artwords, fabulous coffee at Climpsons, all your sewing needs at Our Patterned Hand or a proper East End pie and mash at the historic Cooke’s. The choice really is that varied.

Personally, I always make sure I pick up at least one samosa from the Gujarati Rasoi stall as they are simply the best I have ever tasted. But be aware, if you only get one you will have to go back and get another, and at £ 1 each why not?