Karissa's European Adventure: Portobello Markets

Hey Everyone,

Ever since I had arrived in London I had heard about the famous Portobello markets and knew it was something I definitely wanted to go to before I left England. Holly's house in Ladbrove Grove is really close to the market which was so convenient and we decided we wanted to go together along with Sarah a couple of weekends ago.

Portobello Road is a street in the Notting Hill district of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in west London, England. It runs almost the length of Notting Hill from south to north, roughly parallel with Ladbroke Grove. On Saturdays and Sundays it is home to Portobello Road Market, one of London's notable street markets, known for its second-hand clothes and antiques. Every August since 1996 the Portobello Film Festival has also been held in locations around Portobello Road.

It was a really nice day the weekend we went to the markets and we had breakfast at a small cafe not far from Holly's house. Sarah and Holly are quite the coffee drinkers and convinced me to try a mocha with them as a change. I only ever drink tea and am not a coffee drinker at all but the mocha that I had was actually quite nice. As we sat and ate a delicious breakfast we laughed and chatted before heading off to the markets.

We walked through the entrance near Ladbroke Station and into Portobello Markets. It had so many stalls and lots of antique items which varied in price and were very unique. I picked up a fur vest for 12 pounds at the second stall I visited which was an awesome bargain! There were lots of clothing and jewelry stalls all over Portobello Market as well as art, music and food stalls. There was something for everyone and there was so much to look at I didn't know where to begin. There were thousands of tourists walking the street the day we went as apparently Saturday tends to have better stalls then on the Sunday. As we walked along we could hear lots of really good local buskers playing instruments which added to the great feel of the market. There were loads of fresh fruit and vegetable stalls and we decided to buy our fresh produce at the markets to take home for the baked dinner we were cooking back at Holly's that night. I really enjoyed Portobello markets and picked up two cool rings for 5 pounds as well as my fur vest so I walked out feeling happy and glad I visited.

Before heading back to Holly's house we stopped in at Sainbury's which is like a Coles or Woolworths back home to pick up a few bottles of wine and extra things we needed for the baked dinner. When we got home we relaxed around the house before starting to prepare dinner. We had invited Rachel and Rachael over for dinner as well so we were quite excited to be throwing a dinner party for the girls. Georgie was still in Italy loving the sun and pizza so unfortunately she wasn't able to make it. I prepared and cooked all of the vegetables which I steamed and I cooked the potatoes in an oven bag which had Mediterranean flavours mixed through it. Holly helped prepare the vegetables and made our cheese platter for the night as well as assisted Sarah in preparing the chicken for baking. Sarah stuffed the chicken with garlic and sprinkled sea salt and seasoning over the chicken before placing it into the oven for roasting. Everything was looking and smelling fantastic and we were all pretty proud of ourselves while we were washing up the utensils we had used in making our roast dinner. We sat around the table and ate cheese and sipped on wine before dinner with the girls and it felt like home in a way which was so nice. I hadn't had a good home cooked meal since I started my travels and missed mums amazing weekly baked dinners which was why I suggested to the girls that we cook our own that night. So there we were five Aussie girls sitting around a table in London eating a home cooked baked dinner.

We all had a great night sharing each others company and the baked chicken, vegetables and potatoes tasted amazing. Rachael ended up staying on the couch while I slept in Holly's bed that night. I even cooked her bacon and eggs in the morning to make her feel welcome and special in our house which she enjoyed.