East London's Broadway Market
Last Saturday we ventured to the outskirts of London to find the much buzzed about Broadway Market. London has always been famous for its many eclectic markets that range from food, antiques, vintage clothing and furniture. Luckily Peter trusts my extensive research and instinct when it comes to finding cool things to do, however it does take courage to do the non-touristy things when you're on a limited amount of time in a foreign city, because from time to time it turns out to be a complete fail, which usually means a waste of time and/or money. If you have the courage to follow these less traveled paths you can sometimes stumble upon a gem...and that is exactly how I would describe our experience with Broadway Market. We took a bike ride about an hour and a half into the heart of East London, only locals here. The best analogy would be, visiting NYC and leaving Times Square for the Brooklyn flea, only Broadway Market is more likened to an authentic Williamsburg. I have never seen so many creatively dressed people. It seemed like everyone had their very own look and owned it. If you don't at least have a different/cool pair of shades, hair, or are French, you may feel as though you don't fit in at this hip & stylish street market.
All and all it was a fine market, with your usual delicious local food and drink vendors, crafts, and vintage clothes, none of which were the reason for my adoration. It was far and away the people as a group that made it a special experience for me. And here I was thinking that New York was the best people watching on the planet, but (I can't believe I'm about to say this) I've never seen so many fascinating people to look at in one place at one time...Ever. The truth cannot be denied. I also found a treasure in the form of an accordion playing French girl who sings and composes, her name is Garance Louis and she was playing with her band The Mitochondries. There's something about a young lady singing in French and playing accordion that just makes me happy, I had a permanent smile on my face while watching her perform. The only thing I left with was her recently recorded album.I dare you to not fall in love with Garance. It was her endearing facial expressions, casual confidence and low vocals that got me in the end :-)
Garance Louis and the Mitochondries
If you happen to be in London on a nice Saturday morning/afternoon do yourself a favor and take the long trek out to East London's Broadway Market, you won't be sorry. The next day we wanted to explore another market (Chatsworth Road) that I had heard about, which was even further into East London, and it turned out to be a total flop. If you never try you'll never know :-) It took about 2 hours to get there and once we did we were stuck in the land of no tube, bikes, taxis, or ubers, finally over the course of several hours we found our way back. You win some, you lose some...the important part is to be adventurous, seek the unknown, and take the road less traveled, that is usually where the magic resides.
Future plans in East London: - Gay/Straight Cabaret Pub/Nightspot: George & Dragon - Drinking Gems: Farr's School of Dancing & Happiness Forgets as recommended by my favorite London fashion blogger Stella.
