London city guide

To enjoy top quality pizza, I find that one needs to look beyond the pizza chains and all-you-can-eat buffets that litter central London. And don’t even get me started on those places that display overpriced stale pizzas with rubbery cheese under the heating lamps – it’s a pizza travesty!

When I have a pizza craving, I hop on the London Underground and travel to the west London neighbourhood of Chiswick. Making a 40-minute journey solely for a pizza may sound extreme to some, but once you experience the sourdough pizzas of Franco Manca, you’ll make the journey as well.

What makes the pizza so tasty is the focus on quality ingredients. While other pizzerias may smother their pizzas’ crusts with a mountain of ingredients, Franco Manca has enough confidence to gives its soft sourdough crust the starring role. The mozzarella and ham toppings are all locally sourced, and they never overwhelm each other – each bite is a perfect harmony of Italian flavours.

An added bonus to any visit to Franco Manca is the price. Pizzas start at only £ 4.50 – less than half of what you would pay at most of the pizza chain restaurants. It’s quite possible to have a pizza, a glass of wine and an espresso without breaking a ten pound note. 

There are also branches of Franco Manca in Brixton Market, Northcote, and in the new Westfield Shopping Centre in Stratford, but this will always be my local (albeit a 40 minute journey).

German cuisine in London is not as well-known as other countries’ cuisines. Every Londoner seems to have a favourite Indian curry house or Australian coffee shop, but how many have a favourite German cafe? After sampling the goodies at Bakehaus, many Londoners will be sure to return.

Located on the busy high street in Hammersmith, Bakehaus stands out among the bland poundshops and discount chains. Its freshly baked offerings go beyond the German stereotype of humble pretzels. For fans of sweet baked goods, sample the yeast crowns – a light but sweet baked roll. The butternut crest pastry with hazelnut filling is also an option for those who want something a bit more indulgent. Try to get there early when the baked goods are fresh from the oven; the smells of all of the breads are intoxicating!

If your tummy is looking for something more filling, Bakehaus serves many salads and sandwiches. There aren’t the usual packaged sandwiches here. German dark rye bread smeared in a tangy ramoulade sauce gently hug the German meat, cheese and pickle fillings.

If you simply cannot do without pretzels and bratwurst, well they are here too. For the amount of food you’ll get, the prices are very reasonable, which makes for a return visit quite obvious. Wunderbar!

Chess is a game that demands extreme patience, requires sharp foresight and commands cunning strategy. Sadly I have very few of these traits which makes me a poor chess player indeed. However this does not stop me from browsing the London Chess Centre on Baker Street (a street known for another cunning thinker, Sherlock Holmes).

This charming chess shop offers chess sets for every budget – from travel sized to grand budget-busting sets. There are also plenty of books, magazines, videos and computer study guides to help budding chess wizards improve their skills. For those fashion conscious chess fans, there are even chess t-shirts on display.

If chess is not your passion, the shop also offers other games including bridge, Carcassonne and even Jenga so no one should feel left out. When shopping for future birthday gifts, perhaps more traditional chess sets or board games will make a greater impact than just another DVD or video game? Check(mate) it out! 

When I began making friends in London, a big revelation for me was the difference in toys and games everyone played with as children. In one conversation I mentioned playing “Hungry, Hungry Hippos” as a child. My British friends informed me that in the UK, the game is called “Hungry Hippos”. Perhaps in America the hippos are hungrier?

A visit to the V&A Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green reveals not only how different cultures today experience childhood, but explains how people throughout history experienced play through toys and games. A walk around the galleries explains key themes surrounding these toys and asks questions you might not necessarily think of with playtime – what did it mean to be a child in Tudor England? How do toys differ across a number of cultures?

The displays are not all serious though. There are many interactive exhibits that bring history to life. The newest exhibition highlights the small intimate collections children collect themselves. These ‘Treasured Collections’ will be on display until autumn.

The exhibits I found most engaging were the dollhouses – a grand collection of intricate houses from Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian periods reflecting tastes in fashion and interior decoration. What fascinated me most was the level of detail in each of these dollhouses – even their kitchens were well equipped with tiny copper pots and pans. All of the houses are enclosed in glass displays, so no playing with these houses is allowed.

For many Londoners (myself included), the closest we get to farm animals is the butcher’s counter at our local supermarket. What many people do not know is that there are several working farms within London, even in such urban neighbourhoods like Hackney and Vauxhall. When I am in the mood to play ‘Old McDonald’, I head over to London’s largest city farm – Mudchute Farm.

Located just minutes from Canary Wharf, the farm feels completely separate from the world of stock and bonds in the hectic financial district. The sights (and very strong smells) of the animals remind me more of the simpler ways of life. Our food does not magically appear in ready-to-eat packages. Spending time with the animals in Mudchute Farm reminds me of that.

Mudchute Farm has plenty of animals you would expect at a farm (pigs, sheep, chickens) and some you might not (llamas). There is also a pets’ corner and scheduled ‘animal encounter’ sessions to give young Londoners a closer relationship with farm animals. The staff is happy to answer questions and depending on the time of day and what needs to be done, they might enlist the help of the young (and young at heart) to assist with some farmyard tasks.  

I tend to spend most of my time leaning against a fence watching the young horses gallop around their enclosure. A couple hours here will give you a taste of the peaceful country life without leaving the confines of the city.