east HOME IN HACKNEY walk GOING TO LONDON? THINK EAST END
I spent three months of my 2016 sabbatical in London. I was blessed with an opportunity to live with a most welcoming friend in the East End of London in Dalston which is an area of Hackney. Below is a mapping out of various routes from Hackney into the other parts of London. The advantage of staying in Hackney, as opposed to Central London, is that you experience a sense of being able to de-compress. Staying in Hackney, especially in quieter residential areas of Dalston, places you in the centre of what is undoubtedly one of the most vibrant of London's many many neighbourhoods with good transport connections into the rest of the city . Enjoy!!
BIG PICTURE STUFF ESPECIALLY TRANSPORT
transport for london has this search engine https://tfl.gov.uk for all transport. you can also use google maps for travel planning. it seems that its controversial among londoners as to which mode works best. i recommend, especially on weekends, that you check ahead re closures which are an ongoing and frequent fact of london life; the overground seems to be especially dodgy at times. some overground doesn't start until late in the morning on weekends. also look at the site for information about the right pass for TfL. you can get one very easily at the airport tube kiosk or at the overground stations. you cannot get on any buses in london without an oyster card so good to get it sorted asap.
for buses to central london -- longish trips but mesmerizing views on the upper level of the bus -- think 38 bus ( along the route from hackney are: islington, angel, exmouth market, british museum, soho and west end theatres, short walk to national gallery and portrait gallery, piccadilly, mayfair, green park (great for a stroll after a long bus ride or change for the tube), goes around park close to buckingham palace) in general it is really worth getting to know your bus routes as they offer an incredible way to introduce yourself to the lay of the land. another route to central london is the 242 bus (thru shoreditch, thru financial district aka 'the city', st. paul's cathedral ... ). for folks staying on mare street, catch all your buses on the south side of graham road just west of mare street.
or a fairly short walk to
dalston junction overground station: southbound to whitechapel tube station; change for district line west to central london. this route provides access to many points along the river, st. paul's cathedral, tate modern via millennium bridge which the kids will love ... https://goo.gl/maps/ezFPb6pGM7o
or
dalston-kingsland overground station (just north of dalston junction station on kinsgland high street) whose train goes east and west. super convenient for getting to parts of the west end. take the train from here https://goo.gl/maps/vGeL9Sis7EQ2
or
closer to mare street, from hackney central overground station https://goo.gl/maps/Xxzzczpr3dz to highbury and islington station and change for the victoria line (tube).
or
as an alternate (say the overground is closed for some reason) you could take the 272 bus, again on graham road, which will get you close to highbury and islington station. listen for announcements on the buses which will advise you when to alight for a certain exchange point, in this case highbury and islington station.
MORE DALSTON STUFF
just above dalston junction overground station is where the real action on kingsland road begins. many many choices but some of my favourites are: stone cave turkish restaurant https://goo.gl/maps/CHiD1bTU45q with this good health food store https://goo.gl/maps/PAw1Ceukysn across the street, or, there is this south indian restaurant https://goo.gl/maps/nhN3DjpwfU32 just off kingsland high street ... a bit pricey w small portions but cozy and good. do not miss the ridley road market: https://www.hackney.gov.uk/ridley-road-market ok ... this really IS kensington market on steroids and open daily except sunday!!
the story goes that jamie oliver has claimed violet https://goo.gl/maps/4eTmdAFsNHS2 to be the best bakery in london. it is also about 1 minute from cathy's house on the now famed wilton way. pricey but kids will love the cakes etc. nice lattes. lovely outside patio if nice: very trendy, it is close to a laundromat which is next door to spurstowe arms pub (also very trendy), so you could combine ... also convenient re laundromat is footnote cafe https://goo.gl/maps/2uPPn7WFix22, also on wilton way. full of earnest laptop-using types. has nice brekkie and sammies. overall, wilton way features some charming shops to check out.
great fish chips just north of you off mare street on graham road: https://goo.gl/maps/3cv4p8BEv4x
very nice spot, big room, good for BRUNCH, kid friendly would be my guess: https://goo.gl/maps/N8VjT8VB5HL2
visit this super cool bookstore https://goo.gl/maps/P2yUQGLLgqt to start your visit to broadway market (street name) which is at the bottom of london fields ... then head south for tons of cool shops including LOTS of food shops: go even further south and you'll hit the regent's canal but be super-super-cautious re the cyclists who are EVIL ... seriously. but kids will love the boats!! also on broadway market are EXCELLENT but pricey spanish tapas https://goo.gl/maps/ep2eQhSKhH22 i ADORE this spot! on saturday you must go down to broadway market for the BIG BIG outdoor food market, especially good for foodies who buy prepared food: packed so go early: http://broadwaymarket.co.uk/market/market-overview/
near and around london fields don't miss super neat spaces built under the rails lines, now defunct industrial uses now converted to various shops, services etc. such as this super cute restaurant/bar/cinema which i suspect is kid-friendly: https://goo.gl/maps/zUpDAQsjoMA2 or this funky vintage furniture shop: https://goo.gl/maps/dP6vnt9P6fF2
and!! you haven't left hackney yet!!
STUFF IN THIS SECTION STILL IN THE EAST END BUT GET THERE VIA TRANSIT
v and a museum of childhood, south of you in bethnal green, one stop south of london fields overground station to cambridge heath overground station then walk south a few blocks: gritty 'hood but okay: you will experience the real london for sure. https://goo.gl/maps/aAtKvSdt5yy london aquatics centre, former olympic pool in stratford: reasonably close to you but probably a day trip. i bet this would be a highlight for geza. https://goo.gl/maps/qCkZpMKSjAk relatively close to hackney, still kind of in the east end is a super lovely street called exmouth market and you can get there on the 38 bus. see this website http://exmouth.london for a list of stuff to do: its like the best little hanging out street you can imagine and tons of cafes with outdoor seating. there is a very well known restaurant called moro but it is pretty pricey but i would guess very kid-friendly.
MY IDEA OF KID-FRIENDLY CENTRAL LONDON ... SO GOOD LUCK!!
there’s a sandwich and salad place in london called pret a manger https://www.pret.co.uk/en-gb/our-menu and they are everywhere: they make a nice and cheap toasted sandwich, ham and cheese, for example; coffee not so great. but there is great coffee everywhere now in london.
museum of london (38 to angel station then take another bus south …) 140? https://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/museum-london
museum of natural history http://www.nhm.ac.uk , the science museum http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk and the victoria and albert museum https://www.vam.ac.ukare all in the same cultural precinct which includes albert hall and the albert memorial in kensington gardens / hyde park. a bit isolated from the rest of central london but its own destination for a day or two of great inside stuff on a fine day ending in a park. to get there take dalston junction overground to whitechapel station then the district line west to south kensington tube station. there is a tunnel to the natural history museum and on to the v and a or you can walk … note that the south kensington station is particularly INSANE and tons of people going into the tunnel so keep the kids close. there are signs warning people about overcrowding at the station …
british museum https://goo.gl/maps/dbUpFE9CW4x from graham road you can take the 38 bus all the way … easy peasy. just a quick walk once you get off the bus which will announce the stop … alight here for british museum. the main central courtyard of the museum is beautiful, great for people watching and has very nice areas for sammies and coffees which are reasonably priced. but suggest you have a plan for what you want to do because the place is gigantic and discombobulating. fabulous african area … in the basement … tons of egyptian stuff and, of course, the parthenon marbles which are pretty sublime if i can put it that way. watch out for all the homoerotica!! all superb and one of my favourites is the assyrian lions … but the place is chock a block with goodies!! http://www.britishmuseum.org
design museum … https://designmuseum.org and, yeah, i think it’ll prove to be kid friendly! also close to a park. dalston junction overground to whitechapel station then the district line west to high street kensington tube station then walk four blocks west. there is also a waitrose grocery store https://goo.gl/maps/zCH5Fyeqns42 just outside the museum: super convenient for schlepping some cool food items back to hackney!!