United Kingdom Archives ⋆ Page 3 of 14 ⋆ The Passenger

May 9, 2024September 12, 2024

Japanese curry

When I went to Japan 15 years ago my favorite Japanese food was initially sushi, but I learned that there is something better: Japanese curry (Karē). It was introduced into Japanese culture only in the late 1860s when Japan had to give up its self-chosen isolation and came into contact with the British Empire. Karē was by that time a military dish, today it is a beloved everyday meal ubiquitously available. While travelling through the country I often stopped by at a chain restaurant called CoCo Ichibanya serving delicious Katsu karē.

May 9, 2024June 27, 2024

Courtauld Gallery

A visit to the Courtauld Gallery leads you into a very special building, the Somerset House. It was built in 1776 and was for long time the seat of aristocracy, later it was turned into a government building. Today Somerset House is a center of art which hosts an ice skating rink in winter and it is often used as backdrop in blockbuster movies. Since 1989 it houses the Courtauld Gallery which is focused on French impressionism and post-impressionism – a very good reasons to stop at Somerset House.

May 9, 2024June 27, 2024

Saatchi

If you’re into contemporary art, the Saatchi Gallery at London is for you. Located at Chelsea close to the Sloane Square station it offers rather small exhibitions in a beautiful building; some free of charge, some ticketed. It was opened by art collector Charles Saatchi in 1985 to make his own collection accessible to the public. The building itself is the former headquarter of the Duke of York. Artists exhibited here are British ones like Damien Hirst; but you can also find works of some German artists like Jörg Immendorff.

May 9, 2024June 29, 2024

Kensington Gardens

We all know the famous Hyde Park at London and when looking on a map you’ll see one big green rectangle between Paddington and South Kensington – but in fact the West Carriage Drive going from North to South in the center of it divides the Hyde Park in the East from the Kensington Gardens in the West. The latter is named after the Kensington Palace that was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and built in 1689 for William of Orange to cure his asthma.

May 8, 2024June 27, 2024

Battersea

Well, Battersea is just a city quarter of London at the river Thames, but it has two important highlights that first time London visitors might not drop by. The first is the Battersea Park, a vast garden opened in 1858. It is great for a walk, for doing some sports like jogging, or playing tennis. But it also has a large lake on which you can ride a paddleboat, the Peace Pagoda and good bars to sit outside and enjoy nice weather (if there is some).

January 18, 2024January 21, 2024

Canary Wharf

Within the Docklands in the East of London you can find the shiny modern city quarter Canary Wharf, named like this because it was once used for trading with the Canary Islands. On the Isle of Dogs surrounded by river Thames you can find some of the highest towers of the United Kingdom. Many banks are now settled here, making the area a rival to the historic financial center at the City of London.

January 18, 2024January 21, 2024

Crossrail

I hadn’t been to London for over four years and when I headed through the underground of the Heathrow airport towards the Heathrow Express I noticed a major change in public transport: the tracks used by the high-speed train to Paddington are now also used by the new Elizabeth Line colored in purple. The new line was created in a project called Crossrail, because it is a connection from East to West throughout the city – opened in autumn 2022.

October 30, 2019April 15, 2022

Notting Hill

It is an interesting phenomenon how a movie can shape the image of a complete city quarter and bring many tourists there. Well, Notting Hill would be anyhow worth a trip – but because of the 1999 movie with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant this city quarter of London, United Kingdom gets much attention. People search for blue doors, the ‘Travel Book Co.‘ bookshop (which is in fact The Notting Hill Book Shop) and private gardens with high fences.

October 30, 2019February 19, 2020

Pizza Pilgrims

I found a recommendation on the Internet that if you want to have a good pizza in London, United Kingdom, you should look out for Pizza Pilgrims. It is a pizza restaurant with many branches throughout London and they serve good Italian pizza – even a lot of vegetarian versions. And their speciality is a ring of pizza dough filled with Nutella and decorated with ice cream; that calls for a lot of sport afterwards. I searched for one of their locations nearby and what I didn’t know – I didn’t choose one of their restaurants but ended up in the Westfield shopping mall.

October 29, 2019December 4, 2019

The Sherlock Holmes

In between all those pubs in London, England there are some that stand out. One of them I like most is The Sherlock Holmes in Northumberland Street. You can find it between Trafalgar square and river Thames, next to the Charing Cross and Embankment stations. Downstairs you can enjoy a pint while watching some Sherlock Holmes movies. Upstairs it is a cosy restaurant and you can find a detailed reproduction of the study within Baker Street 221b.