London Off the Beaten Path Tips by aaaarrgh

IMO any attraction not near a Tube station is "Off the Beaten Track". The Horniman Museum is out there in the suburbs in Travel Zone 2. But it is one of the nicest in London by far! FREE ENTRY!! You will find here a fabulous collection of cultural artefacts, collected over 30 years of the nineteenth century by a rich London tea-merchant. And a vast collection of musical instruments from around the world. And two splendid buildings, built in 1901 and 2001, with a busy modern cafe. And a nice hilltop park, with plants, animals and great views.

The Horniman is well-known as a good place to take children. Lots of activities inside the museum, as well as the rabbits, goats, an owl and peacock in the gardens.

It is also well-known for having a 130-year old stuffed walrus in the museum. And for architects it is well-known for an 'eco' education building, with two grass roofs.

A great day out, if you like learning fascinating facts. Can get very busy and quite noisy with all the children. No horny men though!

DIRECTIONS - Bus 176 from Oxford Circus/Trafalgar Square. Or British Rail train to Forest Hill.

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Phone: (020) 8699 1872
Website: http://www.horniman.ac.uk/

Almost every year since 2000 an international architect has been invited to design and build an exciting pavilion in Hyde Park. They have a very short period to produce an idea, then the structure is built and displayed for 3 months. A range of extremely interesting and successful architects have taken part: Zaha Hadid (2000), Daniel Liebskind (2001), Toyo Ito (2002), Oscar Neimeyer (2003), Siza and Souta de Moura (2005). Dutch architects MDRDV are planning their creation for 2006.

The pavilions are used during the day as a cafe and, during the evenings, for concerts and talks.

They have all been interesting. My favorite so far has been the 2005 pavilion, a beautiful, clever structure built from timber pieces and polycarbonate sheets. And I am a big fan of MDRDV, who were due to display in 2004, but have postponed to Summer 2006.

Next door is the (free) Serpentine Gallery, which generally has excellent displays of modern art. And just across the road is the Princess Diana Memorial Waterchute.

LOCATION: middle of Hyde Park next to Serpentine Gallery (South of the road bridge across the Serpentine Lake). Walk from Hyde Park Corner or Marble Arch Tube. Generally open to the public from around July to September/October.

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If you are in the area of Canary Wharf and interested in wierd, out of the way spots, then this will be your place! It took quite a bit of finding. "Urban Space Management" have created a complex of artists studios, Container City out of colourful shipping containers. Occasionaal exhibitions and performances.

A few yards around the corner is London's only Lighthouse (1863), which was used to train lighthouse keepers before they were sent to some godforsaken rock or other in the North Sea.

Best of all here, I think, is "Fat Boys' Diner". It is an authentic1940's American Diner - the type you see on road movies in the desert! Very cool, especially in such a remote windswept corner of Leamouth. Great for a frothy coffee and cake, or a hot meal, in the company of various arty people from the studios.

Container City is on the opposite bank of the Thames to the Millennium Dome. You can get a great view of this amazing ...erm... tent, and some of the new housing being developed nearby.

ADDRESS: Trinity Buoy Wharf. Go to East India Docklands Light Railway (DLR) Station, then walk east for 10 minutes or so along Orchard Place (lined with old warehouses). Maybe a map willl help!

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Phone: 020 7515 7153
Website: http://www.trinitybuoywharf.com/

This would also be an excellent shopping tip, but for the fact it is one day a week only!! The Flower Market on Columbia Road in East London takes place every Sunday. The mid-section Columbia Road itself is packed with street stalls selling fresh flowers, herbs, trees and plants of all descriptions. Surrounding the area are a number of smaller streets and courtyards, with more plants, garden furniture sales, specialist shops and cafe's.

Ezra Street forms a small square at one corner, which seems to be a focus for food outlets and musicians. And evidently a place to be seen too - I spotted TV art historian Dan Cruickshank posing with a bag of shopping :-)

Starts around 8am, finishes around 2pm, so I am reliably told ;-)

LOCATION: Columbia Rd, off Hackney Rd. Bus 55 will get you there from Oxford Circus.

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