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Although you may no be an experienced gardener or are not even particularly interested in botany, it is still a good idea to go on a Sunday morning to this unique plant and flower market you will find in London’s East End. If the weather permits and the sun shines, it can be a lovely experience.
In its origins, which date back to the 19th century, Columbia Road Flower Market was a conventional market. Its specialisation did not come until the 1920s.
Framed by a setting of Victorian houses, there are approximately 50 stalls, which represent a veritable display of colours and aromas of all types of plants, flowers, shrubs, bulbs and trees, for both indoors and outdoors. You will almost certainly be attracted by the exotic flowers that come from the farthest and most unexpected corners of the planet.
As well as the stalls, around the market there are about thirty shops that sell gifts and accessories for gardening, a very popular hobby in England. If you need pots or seed trays, this is the place for you.
The stalls open at eight o’clock in the morning and close at two in the afternoon, so that if you finally decide to go there you should be disciplined and put off the day for spending the morning in bed to another date.
If you get tired of plants then do not worry, as close by there are lots of bars and cafés in which, as you watch the enthusiastic gardeners in search of a bargain or a rare flower that only grows in Hawaii pass by, you will be able to dedicate your time to something very British: having a lovely cup of tea.
Bank of England (55)
Chinatown (41)
Leicester Square (43)
Oxford Street (5)
Queen Victoria Memorial (68)
The Crown Jewels (20)
Trafalgar Square (4)
Big Ben (42)
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London City Hall (107)
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Regent Street (6)
The Shard (117)
Westminster Abbey (79)
10 Downing Street (46)
Admiralty Arch (69)
Battersea Park (73)
Camden Market (78)
Columbia Road Flower Market (10)
Greenwich (108)
Horse Guards (95)
Leadenhall Building (109)
Millenium Bridge (111)
Parliament Square (83)
Richmond Park (13)
Royal Hospital Chelsea (72)
Saint Jame’s Park (94)
Smithfield Market (100)
St Mary-le-Bow (45)
The Barbican Estate (116)
The Old Vic (85)
Victoria Park (119)
Wembley Stadium (15)
20 Fenchurch Street (118)
Albert Memorial (74)
Bond Street (40)
Carnaby Street (106)
County Hall (62)
Guildhall and the Lord Mayor of the City (54)
Kensington Gardens (76)
Leadenhall Market (110)
Neal's Yard (112)
Petticoat Lane Market (97)
Royal Albert Hall (48)
Royal National Theatre (91)
Saint Martin-in-the-Fields (65)
Southbank Centre (63)
Stratford (113)
The Dome (50)
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Wallace Collection (51)
Westminster Cathedral (67)
30 St Mary Axe - The Gherkin (2)
Alexandra Palace (17)
Borough Market (105)
Charing Cross (47)
Dr. Johnson's House (120)
Harrods Department Store (77)
Kensington Palace (75)
Madame Tussaud’s (38)
Notting Hill (11)
Portobello Road Market (12)
Royal Courts of Justice (57)
Royal Opera House (89)
Saint Pancras Station (92)
Southwark Cathedral (59)
Stratford - ArcelorMittal Orbit Center (115)
The Monument (82)
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Waterloo Station (88)
Winsor Castle (30)
Abbey Road (104)
Apsley House (102)
British Library (53)
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Globe Theatre (86)
HMS Belfast (99)
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Marble Arch (71)
One Canada Square (3)
Regent’s Park (25)
Royal Exchange (56)
Saint Jame’s Palace (93)
Shepherd’s Bush (14)
Speaker’s Corner (24)
Stratford Sports Facilities (114)
The Old Curiosity Shop (58)
Tower 42 (103)
Wellington Arch (70)