Tourist in My Own City, London - Rebecca

Hello, I’m Rebecca and my husband and I get to call this incredibly historic, often cold, often hectic yet magical city of London home. What is amazing about London is that amongst a city of 9 million people, tube stations, buses, minicabs (and Ubers), is gorgeous architecture that dates back to 600AD. I could be heading into Kate Spade on Regent Street but the building I’m walking into could be 200 years old and when I stop to realise, it always makes me feel grateful (and not just for the handbags). You can also walk for miles and get lost down one of London’s many side streets to find a cool handmade market, or a queue of people standing outside the latest pop-up, or even stumble upon a courtyard of an old church that entices you to sit with your take away latte and just take a moment. Speaking of lattes, let's go on a tour of our #prettycitylondon starting with the best place to get one.

Best place to buy a takeaway latte:

Strolling through Borough Markets with a takeaway Monmouth coffee in hand on the lookout for fresh pastries or Bread Ahead donuts makes the perfect combo. You may end up with a bag of ground coffee, flowers, cheese and a bunch of other produce you didn’t really need, but the latte is worth it. 

My favourite cafe:

Caravan is in my top few, purely because of the food and coffee. You get that Saturday breakfast satisfaction with choices like almond butter and jam french toast, brioche with vanilla marscapone and maple, or a healthier green skillet eggs with edamame, stem broccoli, chard, miso verde and coriander, any of these hit the spot. 

A beautiful place outdoors to visit:

London is full of beautiful parks that span miles. Hampstead Heath is stunning, with its deer and other wildlife free to roam as they please, ponds for an afternoon swim on a British summer’s day, it’s view of the city that’s especially spectacular at sunset and the lush greenery in it’s own right makes for quite the scenic walk.

My favourite clothing store:

Touring my own city, I’d have to say a browse in Liberty London, a department store in an old Tudor Building is a must-do especially if you’re in a treat-your-self mood. When it comes to everyday clothing stores, I tend to shop online to avoid the masses, apart from one off pieces from boutiques like Aimé in Shoreditch. 

Best place for fine dining:

This is a tough one to narrow down because London has an infinite amount of restaurants and pop-ups, so naturally my top few keep changing! I’ll mention my two current favourites, though I won’t promise they’ll be the same next month. German Gymnasium is a favourite to gather friends for really delectable food for your fine dining tastebuds, but affordable price, and it’s interiors make you feel like it’s your birthday even if it isn’t. Think super high ceilings with creative floral installations sprayed across the centre of the room, balanced with dapper velvet and leather seating to compliment it’s marble tiles. The other has to be mentioned because are you really in London if you don't have afternoon tea? Sketch London is made up of different themed rooms, you can choose to eat in one with a magical forest feel, the Lecture Room full of reds and oranges or The Gallery being this cool, artsy, must-instagram-the-toilets, pink interior with afternoon tea to match the deliciousness. 

My favourite family-friendly activity:

High on the list for family friendly visits is the Postal Museum. There are lots of interactive activities like sending notes through tubes via a hydraulic system. You can ride the mail rail through 100 year old tunnels, that actually transported mail underneath London! Another great activity for everyone is the city farms (like Mudchute Farm). They’re easy to get to because they’re well, in the city, some of them have cute farmers markets and they’re free. 

A hidden treasure (underground spot):

St Dunstan in the East is a beautiful treasure easily missed. It was a church that was destroyed in the Second World War, leaving behind the stunning façade covered vines and foliage weaving through it’s giant windows. A great little spot to take a picnic and a book, and maybe a cheeky photo.

A local organisation I want to highlight:

I’ve described London as being beautiful and busy at the same time, but what is confronting about the city is the number of people that live on the streets and are without a home. It’s something that breaks our hearts, and I hope it never stops doing so, so that we continue to take action to help. Crisis is a great charity that aims to end homelessness, giving people access to training, financial advice, education and the tools to rent and keep a home.  

A local organisation I want to highlight:

I’ve described London as being beautiful and busy at the same time, but what is confronting about the city is the number of people that live on the streets and are without a home. It’s something that breaks our hearts, and I hope it never stops doing so, so that we continue to take action to help. Crisis is a great charity that aims to end homelessness, giving people access to training, financial advice, education and the tools to rent and keep a home. 

Kingdomcity in London! 

Kingdomcity London meets right at the centre of Covent Garden at the Arts Theatre, which is such a great location to be able to take someone along to lunch after our 11am service. In addition to our cool venue, we have some pretty great people for Pastors. Pastor John is authentic, creative, loves a good laugh, has a huge heart for people and vision for our city and Pastor Michelle is genuine, has a passion to impact our government policies, a gifted preacher and a prayer warrior. Our multi-cultural family at Kingdomcity London are so blessed by their sacrifice. Warning: if you visit, you’re probably going to want to stay.