The London Look

My bff has set a challenge on her blog and what kind of friend would I be not to contribute?! That, and there's a prize at stake... The question asked was 'what is the London look?'. For those of you in England, you'll know the (REALLY annoying) Revlon advert feat. Kate Moss pouting into the camera saying 'get the London look'. I have always wondered what on earth that means. You would too if you've ever wandered around Soho of a Saturday night... I fear that this isn't the blog to detail that London look!

Initially I figured I'd cook something. But I wasn't sure I could describe food as being from London. England, yes, but London specifically? Not so sure. So I pondered a while as to why it is I love living in London so much and what is it that makes it such a fantastic place. And I have come to the conclusion that it's the parks. It's a huge city so of course there's all the usual great things such as fantastic restaurants, amazing markets, shops to suit every whim and more bars and pubs than you could ever hope to get to in a lifetime. But what's so fantastic is that, amidst all the hustle and bustle, there are literally hundreds of parks.

I did a bit of research and it turns out that London is one the greenest capital cities on earth, with more than 600 garden squares, 148 parks and gardens,122 heaths, commons and greens, 16 city farms, 8 Royal Parks and even 1 historic battlefield (in Barnet). Now, I have no idea what the difference between a park, heath, common and green is, but I can assure you that London parks are worth a visit.

I'm not one for frequenting the Royal parks, amazing as they are, purely on the grounds that they're actually quite a way away from our flat. I used to live in Crouch End, before JJ and I moved in together, and as I was flat sharing with 2 other guys, things were a little on the cramped side! So I will always have fond memories of the long walks JJ and I used to take, meandering through Waterlow park, down into Highgate and across Hampstead Heath, taking in the view from Parliament Hill. Just stunning. Of course the motivation for such a long walk was cake! Gail's in Hampstead makes the most unashamedly rich chocolate cake that even I can't quite eat a whole slice of. It's immense.

On our long weekend a couple of weeks ago, JJ and I decided to pop up the road to Waterlow park again as it's such a gem. It's on the edge of Highgate Cemetery too, which is the final resting place of many famous individuals, most notably Karl Marx, but also Douglas Adams (the author of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy), Alexander Litvinenko (Russian dissident, famously murdered by poisoning in London in 2006), George Eliot (author) and a clutch of Rossettis. We have yet to go in (you have to pay and yes, we are that cheap) but from the street you get a glimpse of the stunning Gothic tombs and buildings.

In Waterlow park, it's just incredible to think that you're in the middle of such a noisy and busy city. London time seems to go that much faster than the rest of England and having such a haven close at hand (and you'll find most Londoners have an equivalent) is just what is needed to stop you from loosing it when you've been barged on the underground one too many times! Londoners are not on the whole all that friendly... Especially at rush hour. So this is, to me, the London look. A place to escape without actually having to do battle with public transport or roads.

This bee is just too cute. It's covered in pollen from rummaging around in the flower! The lavender was swarming with them - that'll be some good tasting honey.

Rosy xx