Travel. Travel Memories. Travel Writing Prompt.

London Off the Tourist Trail

My favourite London memories you won’t find in travel guides

Regents Canal at Victoria Park in East London. Photo by Alex Markham.

My favourite travel memories from the country I was born in are from the city I lived in — London.

It might seem odd that someone would travel around their home city and find it the best memory. Maybe it’s nostalgia now my wife, Alejandra, and I live in Spain? I don’t think so.

London covers 600 square miles so there’s a lot of London to travel to. Here are a few of my favourite London travel memories — off the tourist trails.

The Lost Villages and Towns

London expanded rapidly in the 20th century, eating up villages and towns in its path like a hungry tidal wave. In many areas, vestiges of the past remain: ancient village greens, churches, cottages and historic buildings. These are the places I travelled to.

The Village Green at Chingford, North East London. These 17th-century whiteboard cottages are now surrounded by later developments but the Green remains. Photo by Alex Markham