London - Notting Hill

Notting Hill 又是我讀書時沒有去的地方但一直很想去，尤其是看過 “Notting Hill”後，幻想著戲內主角曾到過的地方，很浪漫~~就在某年下天，我便去了一趟。乘地鐵Notting Hill站落己看見一群群的人向著同一方向行，便跟著冇走雞，沿著Portobello Road行，我感覺不到一點兒的浪漫，只覺熱鬧到不得了的景象。

一條長長的路擁擠不堪，己見一群人圍著一間古董店 --- 老板 聲嘶力竭地以拍賣的方式推銷手上的“古董”，只看不買的也津津樂道。整條Portobello Road很長，分成幾個區域；各區有賣各式各樣的古董、食物、衣服、飾物、等。單是古董相機及玩具也多得眼花撩亂。 到Fruit & Veg區，除了新鮮生果和蔬菜外，其實還有很多各類型的小吃及café。 行完“古董區”後，累了便到café坐著嘆杯咖啡，望著途人的生活寫照，另有一番風味。

再向前行到“跳蚤市場”(flea market) ，有一檔賣黑膠唱片及錄音帶，播著Bossa Nova，途人一邊聽一邊起舞，氣氛一流!

行到最後一個區是賣New Goods，有幾新？當時最流行的 Anya Hindmarch “I’m NOT A Plastic Bag”都有售。檔口賣名牌？當然是冒牌…真不敢相信連在倫敦也找到冒牌貨!

London - Russell Square

每次去倫敦總是想重遊校區懷面一下，乘坐tube (Piccadilly line) 在Russell Square站落就是校區一帶。過馬路穿過Royal National Hotel對面便是學校，再過一條街便是我讀書時住的地方。

學校周圍是我喜歡來散步的大花園Russell Square 和小花園Tavistock Square。在這裡散散步，聊聊天，背景一年四季也多麼的美~~ 春天看到粉紅紅的櫻花，夏天看到色彩繽紛的鬱金香，秋天看到滿地都是橙黃色的樹葉，冬天看到淒美的枯樹，偶然也看到浪漫的雪景。
學校後門再行3分鐘便是一天也行不完的British Museum。讀書時這裡是避雨及避寒的好地方，可以逛很久，累了又可坐低飲杯熱騰騰的café latte 加件 blueberry cheesecake，再逛逛商店看書，已過了幾小時~~ 學校後門穿過SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies) 便到 Holborn 區，有我愛逛的書店 Waterstone’s，在這裡可以買到想要的學術書。記得以前因在圖書館借不到書便在Waterstone’s買，留起收據，好好保存買回來的書，強迫自己要在14天內看完，然後憑收據可退回錢。這是我讀書時慳錢的其一方法~~ :D Waterstone’s下層還有Costa Café，嘆杯 café mocha做功課都唔錯~~


Waterstone’s正門轉左一路向前行到Tottenham Court Road就是我每次到倫敦必去的地方 --- Habitat 同 Heal’s。因喜好家居佈置，總是要去逛一逛，拿些靈感。Heal’s就在Habitat對面，其實那裡一帶都有好幾間不錯的furniture shops，如 The Pier、Espacio 等。










總而言之，除了到British Museum一遊，其實那一帶地區也是值得逛一逛的~

London – Tube Station

倫敦的地鐵網絡頗完善，看似很複雜，其實很user-friendly，買ticket時只要留意destination是在那個zone，看清楚是zone 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6購買 ， zone 1(central London)最平。 試過在zone 1 Nottinghill Station 落，行下行下到了zone 2，若只買zone 1 ticket就出不到閘，可能要付罰款，不過多數是付差價。

最方便及慳錢當然是買 Oyster Card，在zone 1 單程 ￡1.5，若買普通ticket，要成￡4!!!! Oyster Card 好似「八達通」，只要top up ￡5，￡10 or￡20 就得。 還有，用Oyster Card 都可以乘坐巴士。

倫敦旅遊區的地鐵站內通常設計得頗有特色，其他的破舊不堪…

幸好有時可欣賞在地鐵站內表演者的樂聲~~

Tube內空間很小，一般外國人站立時差不多會撞到頭，peak hours時看見英國人擠坐在細小的絲絨座椅上，動一動也會撞到其他人。說起絲絨座椅，令我回想起初到倫敦時是想不到的 “熱”! 那年的夏季是30-33度，這鼓 “熱浪”甚至奪去了一些西班牙人及巴黎人的生命呀! 試想像在30-33度的氣溫下，沒有窗及冷氣的Tube內，再坐在已被其他人的汗水沾污的絲絨座椅上，像在焗爐內火燒似的!另外，在Tube內外，到處也看見垃圾，心想為何已發達的國家公民意識這麼差？在讀書時看見很多Londoners 食完野就咁放在枱或座椅上，rubbish bin 近在咫尺都不掉落rubbish bin，真是!

有彈亦有讚~~很欣賞看見在Tube內大部份的乘客一坐低便看書，不是八卦magazine，而是小說。感覺他們很有書卷氣和文化，不像澳門大部份的人經常看magazine和打機…

London – Borough Market

在倫敦居住了一年竟然沒有到某些景點，暑假時從遊舊地便打算以遊人的心情去了第一站 - Borough Market。我們乘 Tube 到 London Bridge Station下車轉彎便到達。

剛好中午時候，街市已擠滿了家庭主婦以及上班一族。我們打算跟隨著一群上班族看有什麼好東西吃，一邊走一邊聞到濃濃的洋蔥味，上班族停下來，我只見長長的人龍 - 原來在等買香腸飽(小的￡3.35 一個)。 味道不錯，只是略為貴了點! 街市還有林林總總的美食，如果肚餓又想慳錢，可以免費試飲試食~~
我們食完一攤又一攤，途中看見新鮮生蠔便停下來吃，即買即開即食~~
很喜歡逛Borough Market，很乾淨，不像我們地區濕淋淋的街市。Borough Market是愛吃的人必到之地。
Opening Time:

Thursdays: 11am - 5pm
Fridays: 12pm - 6pm
Saturdays: 9am - 4pm

The Hoxton Hotel - London

Whenever my friends ask me to recommend any good hotels in London, I’ll definitely reply “The Hoxton Hotel”.

Located in the Shoreditch area in central London, the Hoxton Hotel is a hip hotel opened in September 2006. It's really convenient - just 3 minutes’ walking distance from Exit 3 of the tube station - Old Street.

The Hoxton Hotel

81 Great Eastern Street
London

EC2A 3HU

United Kingdom

Reservations 020 7550 1000
Fax 020 7550 1090

General E-mail info@hoxtonhotels.com

I stayed there in summer 2007 for 5 nights. When I stepped into the hotel, I knew I’d found the right place. The lobby is designed in a hip-industrial style built with concrete brick walls. On each side of the lobby is the lounge, furnished with leather sofas, a fireplace and modern paintings.

At the foyer, there’s Art on display (as shown in the photo).

The staff was helpful and polite. We arrived 2 hours before the check-in time and the staff allowed us to have early check-in.

Though the air-conditioned room is a little bit small, it's really cozy, modern and well-facilitated- with a 32" satellite LCD TV, a couch, a fridge with 2 bottles of mineral water (free-of-charge), a safe and the best thing is the free Wi-Fi service in room (usually this is charged in other hotels).

Moreover, the bathroom is super clean. It's exactly like the photos shown from the website.

Up to now, maybe you’re thinking that the room rate must be very expensive. Well, I booked this double-bed room 4 months in advance and it’s just ￡59 per night (VAT included). Of course, the earlier you book, the cheaper rate it offers. It's really unbelievable to find such a comfortable and elegant accommodation in central London for just ￡59! The Hoxton Hotel is the one!

Another bonus point is the breakfast. How can this low-rate room include a Prêt-A-Manger breakfast (with yogurt, banana and orange juice)? It's really fantastic!

Just remember to hang the paper bag (shown in the photo) over the door knob outside before you go to bed at night and write down the time you would like to have the breakfast. The next day, you’ll find the bag with the aforesaid breakfast.

What's more, the Hoxton Hotel was awarded "Best London Hotel" - Sunday Times Travel Magazine 2008 Readers' Awards. I'll absolutely stay in the Hoxton Hotel if I visit London again.

* The Hoxton Hotel regularly promotes ￡1 or ￡29 per night. Just register to their mailing list as a member and you will receive updated news through e-mail.