Urban Pixxels » Connecting the dots in a new city

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mei 19, 2013

A Saturday at Broadway Market

When I was living in Paris, every time someone came to visit me, I basically took them to the same places that I knew and liked. Which is great for them (no need to go through tourist guides), but as a result I had to go see the Mona Lisa over and over again instead of discovering new things. So this time in London, I’m using my Dutch friends and family as an excuse to explore new parts of the city. No guarantees for them, but a lot more interesting for me.

This weekend I had a friend staying with me, and we went to a part of the city I hadn’t been to before: Hackney, or better said London Fields. On Saturdays the local (and trendy) crowd goes to Broadway Market to drink coffee, buy organic food and to shop some original vintage clothing. The food can’t compete with Borough Market, but the people watching factor is definitely better here. Plus it’s less touristy. I loved it so much that I wouldn’t even mind taking the next person that stays with me there. (As long as we’ll then have our lunch at a new hotspot of course.)

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mei 16, 2013

Berlin Street Style

Berlin always seems to surprise me. When the sun doesn’t shine it’s grey and kind of ugly…. but then the sun comes out and all of a sudden it’s the most amazing city. That’s why I love going there.

This week I was in Berlin for work, which unfortunately didn’t give me a lot of time to explore the city. But while my colleagues were taking a rest before going to dinner, I grabbed my camera and walked down the Kurfürstendamm for some serious people watching. And if you think you can find eccentric looking people in London or Amsterdam, you haven’t been to Berlin yet. Not sure if you can call it fashionable, but some definitely have their own style.

Part of the ‘Ku’damm’ is known as the 5th Avenue of Berlin with exclusive designer shops and beautiful shop windows. Although I’m not sure if these people are really their target audience.

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mei 7, 2013

London’s Calling

There are so many famous London icons: the Big Ben, the London Eye… and of course the red telephone box and the black cab. Even though you still see black cabs pretty much everywhere you go, you’ll also notice that many of them are now being used as a moving advertisement. And when you combine these with a traditional London icon, you could end up with a funny situation like the one in this picture (which I took with my iPhone yesterday in Chelsea).

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mei 6, 2013

Colourful houses

Remember the house with the blue door where Hugh Grant lived in Notting Hill? Well, in London they don’t only like to paint their doors, but you’ll find streets like this where each house has a completely different colour. Although the neighbours do seem to have agreed to all go with pastels.

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mei 4, 2013

Greenwich Time

Sometimes you just need to be a tourist in your own city. And as it is a long weekend, which means that the city is filled with tourists anyway, I thought why not join them. So I rode my bike - through the rain – to Greenwich.

On my way to Greenwich Park I walked by the Old Royal Naval College. This 17th century monument is kind of impressive (and free). And as you walk around, you’re being accompanied by beautiful classical music played by practicing students of the Trinity College of Music. Pretty cool!

Then, from the 17th century I went back to Greenwich Mean Time at the Royal Observatory. And as a true tourist, I’m proud to tell you that I took a picture of the famous Meridian Line with each foot in a different hemisphere. You actually need to stand in line – on the Meridian Line – to take that picture, but when you’re there anyway you can’t leave without it of course.

Fortunately by then the sun had come out…. Until it was time to leave and I could ride my bike -through the rain – all the way back. But hey, being Dutch it feels just like home.

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