Throughout my childhood, I lived only a short train ride from central London and saw most of the city’s major attractions during that time. It’s been many years since I’ve travelled to England’s capital for any reason other than shopping or meeting up with friends. However, last month while back home, I went sightseeing in some photo-worthy areas of London that weren’t familiar to me. Along the way, I revisited some old faves as well.
THE JUBILEE GREENWAY
The Jubilee Greenway is a scenic walking and cycling route with sections that follow the Regents Canal. The route was completed in 2012 to commemorate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and is 60km long in total. Here’s a Jubilee Greenway map which details all the places of interest that can be seen.
At about 10 AM I caught a tube from St. Pancras International to Angel (Islington) and walked east along the canal to De Beauvoir Town (Hackney). The 2km hike took me about 30 mins and having skipped breakfast, I stopped for brunch at Towpath Cafe. If you’re looking for a picturesque spot for your morning coffee or a bite to eat, Towpath is a great option.
SHOREDITCH
Since I was already in east London and the Old Spitalfields Antique Market was on, I got a train from Haggerston to Shoreditch High Street. Wandering down Brick Lane, I browsed the rails of every vintage store before heading to Old Spitalfields. It wasn’t a successful shopping expedition, but I did enjoy the street art and people-watching in this trendy part of town.
TOWER HILL TO MONUMENT
Next, was a tube ride further south from Liverpool Street to Tower Hill. Before moving on to my third stop, I had to get a couple of pics of the iconic Tower of London and Tower Bridge. It was such a beautiful sunny day.
Between Tower Hill and Monument stations, hidden amongst more modern buildings, is a ruined Gothic church called St. Dunstan-in-the-East. Originally built in the 1100s St. Dunstan’s was a casualty of London’s 1666 ‘Great Fire’. Following the fire, Christopher Wren designed a new steeple that was patched onto the existing structure. In the Blitz of 1941, the church was destroyed again and never repaired. Today the site is a lovely public garden, perfect for a picnic or an afternoon snooze 🙂
NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM
From Monument tube station I travelled west to South Kensington. There was time for a quick stroll down memory lane before leaving the city. I’m pretty sure that my last outing to the Natural History Museum was during primary school and I remember being completely awestruck by it. “Blue whales are how big?…. Woolly mammoths were real?” Exploding head emoji!
Apart from ‘Dippy’ being replaced by a whale skeleton and an animatronic T-Rex, not much had changed. The Natural History Museum was just as brilliant as I remembered it being when I was a kid. If you’re thinking of going to NHM later this year, don’t miss the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition.
South Kensington was the final destination on my 1-day London sightseeing mission. I do love this humongous cosmopolitan city and look forward to my next visit in a couple of years’ time.
Read more posts from this UK trip:
Hertfordshire – 3 Great Day Trips for Photographers + Families
Northumberland – Touring the Castles + Coast
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I loved your choice of things to do in London apart from those famous iconic sites. These places I never heard before reading your post. Regents Canal, London Borough of Islington looks very beautiful and I love such places. Strolling across Brick Lane and nearby Christ Church Spitalfields must be nice here.
Thanks Yukti, I’m glad you found some different ideas for London sightseeing.
So many of these stops are on my bucket list for a day trip to London. I’ve recently been watching reality TV shows about the narrow boats, so I loved that you including the Jubilee Greenway along Regents Canal. The Natural History Museum and The Tower of London are both high on my list, too. This collection of “must-see” attractions would make for a great day in London, for sure.
What’s the TV show you mention Jackie? I wonder if we can get it here 🙂 The Jubilee Greenway/Regents Canal is such a lovely break from the hustle and bustle of the city, I’m happy to see you’ll include it in your itinerary. There’s a restaurant onboard a canal boat near Paddington Station, it’s called London Shell Co. It’s on my list for my next visit.
London is such a beautiful city. There are so many interesting sights to see. I have always loved my trips here. Regents Canal is one of my favorites apart from the Tower of London and the museums, of course. Next time I am going to go check out the ruins of the Gothic Church. Never been there.
The ruins of St. Dunstan-in-the-East make a great rest stop during a day of sightseeing in the city. Good choice Soumya 🙂
This looks like a perfect day of exploring London and reminiscing your childhood memories. It is always good to go back to the places we visited as a kid and compare the changes. The Natural History Museum is really grand! It was also interesting to know about the St. Dunstan-in-the-East. I wish it was repaired again! It was nice to read about your sightseeing in London.
Thanks for reading Amrita! I hope to go back and re-visit some other parts of London the next time I’m seeing family in the UK.
What a fun trip. I can’t believe how bright and sunny it was for your trip. I haven’t been to London, but did spend a month in the north part of England while my husband worked one year. We enjoyed our free time. I always thought the Tower of London was an actual tall tower. It’s really quite pretty. You took some lovely photos to share too.
I know the weather was so good! But the first couple of weeks of September are usually lovely in the UK’s southeast (most years). Thanks for reading Kathleen, I’m happy you enjoyed my photos 🙂
If everything is under control, we might be able to visit UK this year. Hope to use this guide then. Natural history museum looks great.
Fingers crossed for all of us that this pandemic is over soon. If you make it to the UK I’d love to know about your trip Sinjana!