a little visit to cirencester | england.

I dropped into Cirencester on my way back from Bath - a visit you can check out here. It was one of the only places I went that weekend where it didn't absolutely wazz it down. In what was probably sods law, it was also the smallest place I went. The Roman capital of the Cotswolds, there's a Roman Amphitheatre which was full of dog walkers and kids throwing themselves down the hills which was worth a visit. Cirencester is a traditional Cotswolds market town and the pretty Cotswold stone buildings are everywhere. I enjoyed getting away from the touristy crowds which are a normal in London and Bath and fully recommend stopping for a cake and a coffee at Jacks (44 Black Jack Street, GL7 2AA)

a little visit to hampstead | london.

I've been on an effort recently to try and improve my photography. As you can see it's not going well, but as I've also been on a mission to try and get out more at weekends and see places, it's been a good excuse to get the camera out and at least try. A little while ago, one of those places to visit was Hampstead - an area of London I haven't spent very much time in before. I didn't realise it had such a villagey feel to it and it's quickly become one of my favourite, if a tad expensive, parts of London to visit. 

Recommendations:

See: Hampstead Antiques Emporium (12 Heath Street, NW3 6TE). Ramshackle but with more than thirty different dealers it's worth a look around. 

Hampstead Community Centre (78 Hampstead High Street, NW3 1RE). Rotating different markets on a Sunday but with usual traders on other days of the week. 

Eat: La Creperie de Hampstead (77 Hampstead High Street, NW3 1RE). Utterly ridiculous queues on a weekend for a creperie, but its been around a long time and the crepes are massive and relatively good value for the amount and the choice you get. 

Drink: The Flask (14 Flask Walk, NW3 1HE). Has been a pub since 1874 and the inside is something else, as are the tiles on the exterior.

a little visit to abbeville village | london.

Going to Abbeville Village always succeeds in making me feel ridiculously poor, house prices in the area have shot up in recent years but there's usually a run down house on each street that clearly didn't keep up pace with the fast moves of gentrification in the area. It's only a short shopping parade, and surprisingly suburban for somewhere which is so close to central London, and it's also pretty well hidden from the manic Clapham Common. Look out for their June fête, their winter fair and a farmers market on Sundays off Bonneville Gardens. Head to Comensal (32 Abbeville Road, SW4 9NG) for good cocktails and Bistro Union (40 Abbeville Road, SW4 9NG) for brunch. 

a little visit to balham | london.

A little while ago, I took a walk down to Balham to spend a bit of time there (and also because I was trying to find Balham Leisure Centre which is a council run pool with a sauna. Result). I live very close to Balham but honestly spend little to no time there and so a trek to find a pool is a good excuse to have a look around too. 

Firstly we went to Balham Farmers Market (Henry Cavendish Primary School, Hydethorpe Road, SW12 0JA). We were late to the party and as a result many of the products had already been sold - it was so much more popular than I'd expected - but there was still a really good choice. I think next time I'm not feeling the crowds in Borough Market, this is a pretty great alternative. We picked up some Guinness sausages - the farmer assured me they'd only been made the day before - which were used for brunch the next day, and they were pretty good. I'm already looking forward to going back for their special plant fair - hello window box. 

Afterwards we headed to Hildreth Street Market (Hildreth Street, SW12 9RQ), where we tried cheese and I lusted after some tulips (I didn't buy any, and seriously regret it, which is a constant state of being when it comes to me and tulips). We then grabbed a coffee (and a cheeky almond croissant) at Blackbird Bakery (Hildreth Street, SW12 9RQ) - I need to go back soon and try out some of their amazing looking breads.

If anyone has any recommendations for places to go in Balham, let me know for when I'm back down!