in our last London video I created my
perfect five-day travel plan what I as a
local would recommend in my own hometown
and all of you seem to find that useful
well almost all but your overall
enthusiasm for that vlog has sparked
this mini sequel so in this video I'll
be going over some of my other favourite
lesser-known hotspots around London
local tips with a few hidden gems thrown
in they will almost certainly be
something on this list that you haven't
thought of but definitely should if you
have the extra time if strolling around
canals getting lost in London's very own
mini forest visiting Harry Potter film
locations and a lift that sings to you
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all sound like your cup of tea then stay
with us if you're new to the channel we
make travel movies from around the world
hoping you might just find your next
holiday inspiration this is suitcase
monkey going even deeper into my
hometown of London situated in the East
End of London Spitalfields market hosts
a trendy melting pots of independent
traders bringing together a wide range
of designers and artists if you're
looking for a souvenir a little more
unique than this then Spitalfields is a
good place to start with handcrafted
pieces home wares and original artworks
along with a mixture of contemporary and
vintage clothing starting life in an
empty field 800 years ago the market has
always kept up with the times
with a recent regeneration creating what
you see here today once you've finished
market hopping Spitalfields also boasts
an impressive selection of tasty grub
although vera market is my favorite
London market which I covered in my
previous video Spitalfields is a close
second it branches beyond food with a
younger more dynamic vibe and
you'll only well by now you know that I
am indeed down with the kids as with
most of the things in this video I'd
link more details about Spitalfields
market in the description below along
with our own social media links so you
can follow us as we discover London and
the rest of the world live as it happens
next is an area I avoided for years but
have recently come around on naming an
area as little venice is a very quick
way to make me Don my sceptical British
hat and dismiss this marketing naming as
nonsense and while you should very much
understand that Little Venice should in
truth be called not really Venice in any
way but there is a nice canal so please
visitors it does actually offer a
peaceful Oasis starting near Warwick
Avenue tube station you have the choice
of a shorter stroll towards Paddington
Station or a longer roughly two mile
canal meander towards Camden Lock again
I have links to a website below with a
full map of the walk walking past
residential homes cafes bars wildlife
and more you'll also have the option to
ride some of the canal boats if you
prefer an even more leisurely approach
it might not be Venice but it certainly
won't feel like London
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one of the first touristy things I did
in London 15 years ago was a tour guided
walk whilst the typical sightseeing
buses are a good way to cover lots of
ground quickly London will always be
best discovered on foot
there are numerous tour guide walks
throughout the city some which are free
and you can google for yourself but the
company I've used and always have
enjoyed his London walks over the years
I have been on ghost walks Jack the
Ripper walks historical walks and as
filmed here a Harry Potter film
locations walk starting in the city
our guide talked us through the areas
thought to have inspired JK Rowling's
magical world from there we quickly went
on to the original Diagon Alley and the
entrance to the leaky cauldron and as a
quick aside if you are in the City of
London then leathern Hall Market is a
great thing to see in itself boy wizard
or no boy wizard built by Horace Jones
his next project after this was Tower
Bridge so he was onto something of a
role here now I'm not specifically
putting this Harry Potter walk on my
list here but instead pointing out that
London really comes alive when told
through the words of a guide right in
front of you
London walks have so many varied tours
happening each day there will probably
be something that fits your location and
interest even on this Harry Potter walk
there was lots of extra London history
included and it helps you notice all the
little details that goes into making a
2000 year old city on my last London
video I glanced over this South Bank
without much detail so here I want to
highlight something which is a bit of a
hidden gem in the list of rooftop Bars
rooftop Bars in London sound like a
great idea but are often overcrowded and
expensive requiring advanced booking or
a long queue before you can even start
to enjoy them enter the South Bank
Centre and Royal Festival Hall this
Music Hall opened in 1951 for the
nationwide festival of Britain a
particular highlight along the way is to
take a ride in these sea
lift going from a deep voice on the
basement level to a high soprano on the
sixth sometimes I find myself having
just one more go like a mad child on
Space Mountain this lift also has more
Twitter followers than me which is
something I'm certainly not bitter about
but it's on the fifth floor that you
will find the unheard of happening in
London a bar a balcony and a view with
plenty of space for which to enjoy it
and just behind the festival hall away
from the River Thames and therefore very
easy to miss is an occasional food
market if you are in the area and don't
want to eat at a chain restaurant it's
worth checking if it's open for a quick
tasty bite
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next is Kings Road in Chelsea a long
stretch with a mix of fashionable
boutiques designer shops and high street
staples along with a range of eateries
the name Kings Road comes from king
charles ii who used this as his own
private road to travel to q but fast
forward to the swinging sixties it then
became synonymous with mod culture and
miniskirts and then later with hippies
and punk I'm not quite sure what it is
about Kings Road that I like so much
since it is basically just a row of
shops but I think it's that in terms of
shopping it feels more local unique and
authentic then say bond or Oxford Street
there's yet another mini food market
here there's the Saatchi Gallery which
features Contemporary Art multi pastel
coloured houses and also the place where
Chiaki and I got married oh and there's
also apparently wizards
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Hampstead Heath is so lovely I'm
actually thinking of doing a standalone
video just on this one area upon exiting
Hampstead tube station you're
immediately welcomed with this quaint
English neighborhood vibe wandering
around its numerous streets passageways
side streets alleys and other things
that all mean the same you can spend a
good hour to just meandering and taking
it all in
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after leaving flask walk make a gentle
beeline towards Hampstead Heath itself
and while along the way making sure you
enjoy the houses that you'll never be
able to afford
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walking through Hampstead Heath is
probably the furthest away from London
that you'll feel while still being in
London once the greenery surrounds you
on all sides
it's easy to forget that there are 8
million people beyond those trees a trip
to Hampstead is not complete without
reaching the summit from Parliament Hill
offering the best wide-angle view of the
city and if you're feeling spontaneous
and especially if the weather is good
then why not end your visit with a spot
of swimming in a Hampstead Heath bathing
pond in my previous London video I
suggested the Natural History Museum as
my favourite museum to visit if you
still want more however then the British
Museum is a great choice open to the
public in 1759 it is the first national
public museum in the world entry was
always free and given to all studious
and curious persons nowadays it's just
open to all persons it probably helps
keep attendance once inside and before
you see anything old you will see
something relatively new opened in the
year 2000 the great courts is the
largest covered public square in Europe
and is a sight in itself beyond this the
museum houses an unrivaled collection of
relics from all over the world with the
actual rosetta stone being one of its
many highlights
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if you are near London Bridge then Hayes
Galleria marks the start of a nice
little walking route I've enjoyed many
times before the Galleria reveals itself
beautifully when coming from Tula
streets crossing an assortment of shops
cafes and traders it's often a quiet
oasis for a pit stop
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heading out from under the roof you'll
be met with some great views of the City
of London and the HMS Belfast a second
world war battleship which acts as a
floating Museum walking further east
will bring you to an open area known as
more London or London Bridge city
considering this is ultimately a place
for financial companies and City Hall
it's a pretty great place with a number
of events happening mostly over the
summer months
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this is also the best spot to get that
photo with Tower Bridge
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bringing us back full circle towards
London Bridge is they walk down more
London Place which is a long narrow path
lined with modern glass offices this so
far doesn't seem too interesting but as
you walk down I love how the design of
this Street is positioned so that one
side points towards the shard which is
the UK's tallest building whilst the
other side points directly to Tower
Bridge it's a great little photo spots
and a unique piece of town planning if
this is your first visit to suitcase
monkey then please check out our UK and
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monkey