Jewel of east London #3: Thames Cable Car

North Greenwich is no longer just the location of the O2 Arena.  It is a real live public park, thanks to the cable car known as Emirates Air Line.  This weekend the crowds of families waiting for a cable car ride across the Thames were intimidating.

But here is my hint: board on the other side at the ExCel Centre (near Royal Victoria DLR station), because no one is lining up on that side.  This side of the river, in Newham, is also set to become an area of great family amusement with water sports attractions right by the ExCel Center and new projects including the London Pleasure Garden (about 1 mile from the cable car stop).

An other hint: avoid the ticket cue by paying with your Oyster card, it costs £3.20 for the one-way ride.  Kids over 5 also need to pay. The £1.60 listed price is impossible unless you have already ordered your children Oyster photocards  -- hardly worth the £10 administration charge for most kids.   Technically it is cheaper to wait in line for a £2.20 paper ticket, but if you are in hurry, you can buy adult Oyster cards from the tube station for the kids as well. Details about the fares listed here: http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tickets/23851.aspx

This is a surprisingly efficient form on transportation rather than a funride, and is quicker and less wobbly than the DLR you will probably board to get back.  Still, it is a bargain compared to the London Eye and you get some great views of east London, so snap those photos quickly!

east London Olympics countdown events

Some east London stuff to keep us occupied before the Olympics.  If it happens to be free or family friendly, that is only by chance.

On now:

(Until 9 September) Beautiful Games exhibit at the V&A's Museum of Chilhood

Coming up:


22 June: Our Londinium at Museum of London.  The first museum exhibit I have heard of to feature a nail salon, WAH Nails.

23-24 June:  BBC Radio 1 Hackney Weekend 2012.  I hope you have your tix by now!

30 June - 1 July: London Pleasure Gardens Grand Opening celebration Paradise Gardens. How steampunk-ilicious!

26 July: Opening of Victoria's Secret at Westfield Stratford City.  Finally some decent American underwear.

2 August:  Re-opening of William Morris Gallery.  Opening exhibit features Grayson Perry's Walthamstow tapestry.

Brit-Mex

Every time I go back to the USA, my London buddies tell me to enjoy the Mexican food -- while I can. What they mean of course is a style of Mexican food common in the USA. Wikipedia mentions three of these: Tex-Mex, California Mex, and New Mexican cuisine.  There is also something called Southwestern cuisine, which basically means Mexican ingredients with the fun taken out, served to elderly people at casinos.

Since when did New Mexican food start meaning something posh?

As a kid I could always tell we were in New Mexico by the abundance of dried chiles (which can also be spotted at Jamie's Italian), but other than the peppers themselves there was no talk of a special "cuisine" until later.

Currently, "New Mexican Cuisine" is held in such high esteem that restaurants in other states boast of it, as opposed to dreaded gringo Mexican food, which is, in Europe especially, labelled "Tex-Mex" (wrong!).  It has gotten so extreme that you can expect to walk into a so called Mexican restaurant anywhere in the USA (or Europe) and expect Old El Paso brand food (apparently the queen's favourite).

Why are the New Mexican restaurants more cultured?

New Mexican restaurants across the USA charge much more than Mexican restaurants, although New Mexico is one of the poorest states, and food is very cheap outside of tourist hotspots.  The decor is thoughtful, the chefs are respectable, the ingredients are fresh, and there is an abundance of exciting ingredients like pomegranate and indigenous nuts.  The atmosphere plays homage to ancient New Mexico, location of the oldest city in the USA. Increasingly at these out-of-New Mexico restaurants, Mexican-style cheese (usually made in the USA) is used and sopapillas are rare. However, many of the restaurants in Old Town Albuquerque seem to have exploited their new found reputation by charging more while the cheese actually gets yellower.

I asked my mother (who knows everything) about this curious phenomenon and she said New Mexican food is posh because the place most people visit in New Mexico, Santa Fe, is posh.

Santa Fe has a particularly international history and has long been connected with trade from Europe via the Santa Fe trail. Santa Fe Archbishop Jean Baptiste Lamy imposed French culture in this very Southwestern locality, paving the way for the best elements of international cuisine to become incorporated.

As for gringo food, I would like to point out that most Mexican-American taco, burrito and fast food chains are actually Californian.  Yes, California is to be thanked for 50 years of Taco Bell, currently serving up tacos in Doritos shells; I am not sure if these are availble at the new UK (Essex and Machester) locations. I have actually heard that they are delicious.

One should note that, according to my mom, the elements which make New Mexican cuisine so special also apply to the food in Texas.  In New Mexico and Texas, sauces are chile-based, and not tomato based as they are in central Mexico. Also flour tortillas are popular, in place of corn tortillas and bread.

I wonder if the New Mexico craze is going to hit Europe.  So far, Nuno Mendes, the Viajante known for doing his time at Coyote Cafe in Santa Fe, has brought posh to Bethnal Green.

2012 Olympics Stratford Practical Information

Stratford is the center of the 2012 Olympic games.  Here is some practical information about how to get there, and what it will be like in the future.


TRANSPORTATION TO STRATFORD

Rail from Europe

Eurostar will NOT stop at Stratford International Station in time for the Olympic.  This is in spite of the fact that trains coming from France pass through the station. Eurostar will review stopping at this station after the 2012 London Olympics.

The "Javelin service" is a high speed train connection between Stratford International and the nearest Eurostar station, St Pancras International.  It also connects Stratford to Kent.  It is much more expensive to buy on the spot than the tube or a regular train fare, costing about £11 for the additional ticket.

Information about buying tickets during the Olympic periods here: http://www.eurostar.com/UK/be/leisure/latest_deals/olympic2012tickets.jsp


Bicycle

Barclay's Cycle Hire scheme does NOT extend to Stratford.  This is also contrary to initial plans. Nearest docking stations are outside the borough, in Bow and Hackney.

Boat from Europe

For those who insist boat travel is better value (e.g., my mom, who suffers from perminent vertigo) you can take a Stena Line boat from Holland to Essex with rail (or coach) connections to Stratford. I have been warned away from this by east Londoners who prefer travelling by car via the Chunnel (much faster), but I am sure that will not divert my mom.

Airport Transportation


Taxi


You can travel by taxi to or from all the London area airports.  I recommend booking in advance online to save money. Sometimes pubic transportation is faster, though, especially if your driver chooses to drive through the city centre.


London City Airport


The fastest connection to an airport from Stratford is London City Airport, which only takes 15 mins by DLR.

Heathrow Airport

Heathrow Airport is also accessible by tube, but you will have to switch lines, and it will take over an hour.  If you have luggage, a good strategy is to switch lines at Mile End and Acton Town to avoid stairs.

Stansted Airport

The National Express coach (bus) is direct from Stratford to Stansted Airport in 45 min, and including free wifi.  The cost is £6 and up.

Terravision also operates a £6 bus service from Stratford to Stansted Airport.  These are the tickets they sell on Ryan Air flights.  The coaches are nicer but I am not sure if they have started offering wifi.


I have been told by rail staff that there is one train per day running direct Stratford-Stansted, but I have not been able to confirm this.  The usual trains from Stansted are not direct to Stratford and take an hour or so, including an interchange, see the National Rail website for more information.

OLYMPICS DEVELOPMENTS IN STRATFORD

Plans to build world's largest McDonald's at the Games site in Stratford, east London

Westfield Stratford City is the largest urban shopping mall in Europe. (However, that does not make it particularly spacious.)

POST-OLYMPICS DEVELOPMENTS IN STRATFORD

There will be a new museum dedicated to sport.

Several Olympic structures will be converted to sports facilities for public use.

The Olympic Stadium has not been promised to anyone yet.

The University of East London and Birkbeck, University of London are building a shared University Square.   University College London has bought land and plans to build a campus in Stratford.

An Olympic Museum is planned to open in 2014.

Ikea plans to build a housing estate in Stratford.

Souvenirs of London 2012

This Shopping List reeks of London 2012 (without the logo) and features items which may be useful at home, and could help you survive the Jubilee and the Olympics.

This jubilee shortbread tin could be kept handy as an spare (emergency) jubilee souvenir gift. It is only £5 at M&S Foodhall, cheaper than the Walker's you'd get at the airport, and of course you can eat the contents.

Absolut London Vodka with design by Jamie Hewlett of Gorillaz.  Sainsbury's also stocks matching glasses.

Beefeater Gin is nothing new, but what could be more London 2012 than a spirits bottle depicting a resident of prime east London real estate? Classic - I can see where the above idea came from. Available everywhere such as Waitrose.

This is just too funny.  Pampers Active Fit GB Nappy.  At Waitrose and similar places.  

I love the job the classic "Topsy and Tim Visit the Tower of London" (out of print) does with the American tourists! This newer printing has a bit of the Tower of London in it, and introduces their host, a cat named Boris, not too far from City Hall. Could explain where that re-election came from.  Buy or order from a London bookshop.

4D Cityscape Jigsaw London is not just a souvenir - it is the first jigsaw puzzle to use time as the fourth dimension! At the Science Museum Shop.

The Zoo Winners line from The London Zoo Shop














and the Union Jack line from The London Zoo Shop

History of London playing cards from the Museum of London Shop.

William Morris Forest I Tapestry Cushion from the National Trust Shop.  Are the royals represented in The Lion?  I have no idea but anyway it's a beauty.

'Queen' Sex Pistols Pin Badge from the V&A Shop.  You still have that denim jacket, right?

Diamond Jubilee Commemorative chess pieces may not be the most attractive chess set at the British Muesum Shop but it is certainly the most contemporary, and the funniest











Royal Borough tea for one from National Maritime Museum Shop in celebration of Greenwich becoming a Royal Borough in 2012, bestowed by the Queen as part of her Jubilee year celebrations.

Learn about the queen in a jiffy from this Orion picture book. Claim you bought it for your baby neice.

East London royals have plenty to celebrate -- in West Ham United FC style.

The Other Side (west London)

So admittedly I do go to the other side of London a lot, and I like it, much more than "England" generally, or most other cities.  I am stunned that most of my neighbours rarely get further into the city than Zone 2 with their kids, although they take the tube across town for work.  On the other hand, my old friends (being west Londoners or coming from out of town) like to go out in these 'classic' parts, but I do not agree with nightlife in west London, and prefer north, south, or east.  They tend to win and so I  get bored and go home quickly.   West London caters a lot to Western Europeans and Americans.  I do some shopping at the big Whole Foods and Cool Chile Company, but west London is not really worth it for the French stuff (i.e., things considered luxuries here, but normal there).  It doesn't take long to cross the channel by train or boat, to where the options are far better and cheaper.

Here are the 10 things you really MUST go to west London for:

Bloomsbury. I think the British Museum, British Library, St. Pancras, and Lincoln Square all count.  I Am less excited about any of the museums you have to pay for, they tend to be 'crumbly'.  Historically a magnet for intellectuals, but the nucleus seems to be moving further north towards Islington.

Camden. Mecca for the inner teenager.

Chinatown. For food shopping, bakeries, and atmosphere. There is a very cute back road with very fresh fish. But - I still have not found a restaurant there which is worth the trip, let me know if you have.

Christmas. Lights, department store displays, and outdoor markets. They are not always good, but at least it feels like Christmas. There are special days when Oxford Street and Regents Street go pedestrian.

Crowds. Nothing brightens a melancholy day like the noisy tourists and cheesy displays around Leicester Square. For the record, I also love to go to Hollywood, Times Square, and Champs-Élysées.  As horrific as M&M World is (why not at least be Cadbury's?) even the worst commercial porn is at least something to deflect your loathing.

Denmark Street. Concentrated shopping for musical instruments and sheet music.

Foyles. The most complete bookstore in London, with all the trimmings like a kiddie fish tank, jazz cafe, and intellectual events for the pubic.  Waterstones Piccadilly comes next in completeness: well tall and organized, but not so bookish with its focus on celebrity signings.

Soho. The best concentration of quick cheap eats anywhere in London.

South Kensington. How could I not go again and again with my children to these museums which each take several visits to explore?  I always have a reason to go back for more.  It is a social injustice for the three most massive state-funded museums to be concentrated adjacent to a posh residential area.  In the USA the big museums at least have the decency to be along massive parks and fairly isolated from residential areas, and the ones near by are rarely the most expensive in the city.

Theatre.  Of course, the perfect date, and you can dress up how you like. In addition to the West End, there are important theatres south of the river.  I always warn tourists heading to musicals to do their research and avoid end up eating at the worst tourist traps.

Souvenirs of east London #2

I keep finding great souvenirs for you!

The iconic Tower Bridge (smaller version) from the Lego Store at Westfield Stratford City.

Cufflinks from the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, will keep one timely and directed.

Outfit from Puja Silk, a saree store on Green Street with straightforward and helpful service.

Hoxton Gin was created at the famous cocktail bar the Hoxton Pony and is available at Waitrose.

Hackney & Shoreditch Cushion by Barbara Coupe from The Orange Tree, in Wanstead. Also  stock ultra-rare "I (Heart) Wanstead" canvas bags.

Mysteriously, my kid would mutter "chicken licken" during every tantrum, kicking.  I made the cockney rhyme connection when this book came home from nursery.  Buy from an east London independent book store (Victoria Park Books, Newham Bookshop, Foyles ; check stock first). Also, "Conkers Bonkers", if you can track down that one.