For people who are not too much into the semi-literal meaning of sentences and who need clarification for above title: I love London. I love Paris as well. But in my head, whereas I always saw Paris as bright, effervescent, illuminating, whimsical, romantic and artistic, I consider London to be Paris’ dark, brooding, melancholic, grey, cool and brilliant brother.

My girlfriend and I went for a long weekend in the context of a ”just the two of us” kind of city trip. It was a freaking success!

We always tend to walk a lot but I think we might have pushed it a little this holiday. I do think it is the best way to see as much as possible and to experience local life to the fullest.

I’ve drawn an approximate walking route on Google Maps to illustrate which neighbourhoods we tackled and when. Please note that it was never this straight as our walks were coloured by walking into random shops, sipping tea at quaint little bakeries and tea rooms, snacking, detouring, etc.

Day 1:

Day 2:

Day 3:

My top 10 of London experiences, not in any particular order:

• Camden Market: colourful, intense, counter-cultural, exotic and local (you know what I mean), dense food market in Camden Lock. I had the meanest Mac ‘n Cheese there (The Mac Factory) and discovered a massive amount of awesome tea at Yumchaa
• Homeslice Pizza in Neal’s Yard. Crisp, thin, creative pizza in a pleasant, urban atmosphere
• Fantastic views in Primrose Hill
• Primrose Hill Books: quaint, little, very charming bookshop which despite its size contains a wide variety of genres. Proper selection
• Camden Town & Lock neighbourhood in general. I like to compare it to San Francisco’s Haight and Ashbury
• Walking through the little Soho streets and entering its plethora of independent cafes, stores, bookshops
• Foyles needs no introduction. I think I got lost in there. Their selection is definitely more of an asset than the store itself
• Koya Bar in Soho – cafe-style, orgasmic Udon noodles served on a communal table. I’ll be back for you, Koya Bar
• Krispy Kreme – needs no introduction AND YES, I did manage to recommend a  giant chain doughnut corporation on my blog.. because.. oh, mamacita!
• Brick Lane Market & Brick Lane: don’t expect an extremely picturesque walk and mind-blowing views. Its eclectic, traditional, folk-like street spirit and tiny slightly torn down side streets and alleyways provide for a fuller, more wholesome travel experience. I loved the graffiti cladded walls and the infinite amounts of touristy Indian-Pakistani-Bangladeshi eateries.