London Vibe

Breakfast At The Wolseley

Although I count myself lucky that I live & work in Tetbury a beautiful town in the Cotswolds - I do occasionally crave the vibrant energy of London.  Sunday morning we left Tetbury at 7am and by 8.45 we were parked in Dover Street to meet a special friend photographic agent Jo Clark for a birthday breakfast at The Wolseley a favourite venue of ours.  If you consider going - do book in advance as it gets pretty busy - the fishcakes served with poached eggs is very good.  After a long lazy breakfast and catching-up on news & gossip we headed to Marylebone High Street for some retail therapy.



Marylebone has a village feel to it due to the eclectic mix of shops favourites are Daunts Books which has the most beautiful period premises the Conran Shop is hip, modern cool, Rococo Chocolates is chic but quaint - my list of desirable shops in this area is endless.  This clever retail mix is the work of The Howard de Walden Trust which owns 90 prime acres including over 300 listed buildings.  Their ethos ensures the area doesn’t look like every other UK High Street by their careful selection and leasing of properties to businesses that compliment each other.

We next walked over to Regent Street which has been pedestrianised - absolutely packed with people enjoying the free fairground attractions and street entertainment.  Hamleys toy shop was shoulder to shoulder with shoppers - what recession?  Just on from here is the ultimate shopping experience at Liberty’s department store, their Christmas window displays are very clever - a visual treat.  As you can imagine, the store was packed with festive shoppers and tourists, our mission was Christmas cards & gift wrap - but the shelves were depleted, should have bought them on our last visit.

It was now approaching a time to think about going home, we decided to walk back via Burlington Arcade, and at this time of year they roll-out the red carpet throughout the arcade making one feel very regal.  The arcade has gorgeous shops with beautiful window displays; one of my favourites is Penhaligon’s.  Having had a really enjoyable day it was time to head home.

Liberty Home

Burlington Arcade

Penhaligon's