Day 12 - Notting Hill
Another day, another great street market. Plus picking out our future house…
17/11/2023
Another morning of early starts, coffee & work. I’m sure this is becoming a boring start to a blog for all of you, but today was a bit different. We woke up and were out of the house by 6:30am to head to Starbucks and work from there (shake things up a little). We worked from the Starbucks located at Turnham Green Terrace, a favourite little street of ours, that houses our previously mentioned plant shop, as well as some thrift shops & cute restaurants.
Chels had another Gingerbread Latte (Christmas decorations all around the shop may have influenced this), and I stuck to the tried and tested Long Black.
We worked from here until 11:30am before packing up to head into the city. On our way to the bus station, we stopped in at Waft Coffee, as Matt had seen it on a few other blogs (yes we read blogs too haha). We refrained from ordering the great-looking pastries and stuck with lattes instead. Was alright, but still not great Aussie coffee. Service was also only alright, not Aussie!
We caught the 237 bus to Shepards Bush, and then the 295 onto Chesterton Road, where we found the Portobello Road Markets! Thank you to Tina/Granny for the great recommendation, we loved it here. These London markets are famous for having one of the most culturally diverse offerings, from clothing, antiques and food. Not only are they diverse, but they are longggg! The markets stretch all the way down Portobello Road, measuring just over 1 mile!
Chelsea found a lot of cool secondhand Jackets, and I went looking for vintage football (soccer) jerseys. We decided they probably weren’t needed (proud of us), but I did pick up a cute handmade necklace for Chelsea from a local jewellery maker. Chels also bought a neat little vintge-looking brown leather watch. I was hoping Chels would return the favour and buy me one of the many cool vintage film cameras I kept finding, but alas, she said she thought the camera I have might be a bit better…
After strolling the markets for a while, we were sucked into the street food section, which wafted smells down over the market stalls. Again, far too many good options to list, but Chels went with a Chicken Goyza bowl, and I picked out a Greek Toasted Flatbread with chicken, fetta & cheese).
After refuelling, we walked back into the markets and further along Portabello Road towards Lancaster Road, known for its beautiful colourful houses. Along our travels, Chelsea found a cute knitted handbag - which she thinks Di may need one of too haha.
Before setting off down Lancaster Road, we ducked into a local pub called The Castle for a pint, wine and Facetime chat with Niah who was on her way home from a night out in Yeppoon. We laughed about the fact it was near midnight there and Niah was wearing shorts and a singlet, while it was near midday here and Chelsea and I both had 3 layers on.
After Chels had a few laughs (and tears) with Niah, we headed off down Lancaster Road to pick out our future house (surely the lotto tickets we haven’t even bought come through). The pictures don’t do it justice, but we will definitely be back here to stroll the streets some more, as there are private gardens, beautiful cars and so many colourful houses & alleys to explore.
After walking another couple of km’s down the road, we made our way into the Shepards Bush Bus Station and caught the 237 back into Chiswick. We stopped off at a local restaurant/pub called The Lamb. We shared some olives (had too much to eat at the Portobello Road Markets) and a couple of beers. I asked the bartender about some local beer options, and I was given what was practically a free-tasting paddle of all the different options.
One of the great things about Chiswick is that it has that small-town feel, which is something Chels & I have both been cherishing since moving away from Yeppoon. It’s great to see and experience the big city life in London, but it’s also great to be able to relax in a more hometown feel and chat with friendly locals.
After a few more beer tasters, we got on the bus and returned home. Another day of walking 15,000 steps through great markets and beautiful English streets in the books.
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Cheers,
Matt & Chels
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