London (part 3): The best of the rest

Lastly, I thought I'd add a few more favorites that weren't really related to the London Pass or the Merlin Combi Ticket that we discovered along the way...

The Tate Modern & The Tate Britain:
I did both of these in a day with E. and it was great. First of all if you don't go to the temporary exhibits, they are both free. Both places are also very stroller friendly and I timed my first visit to be the Tate Modern to coincide with her nap. I had a lovely 2 hours to visit the museum and take it all in. Museums are pretty quiet places too, so naps last long :)
She then woke up and I finished visiting for another half hour and then we had lunch. The café at the Tate Modern offers great choices and kids eat FREE (when an accompanying parent eats). They gave E crayons and a kids placemat to colour on and the food was great. It makes such a difference when you eat with kids in a place that welcomes them.

From the Tate Modern there's a boat you can take which will go along the Thames and take you to the Tate Britain. E loved riding the Tate to Tate boat and since we had a travel card it was only 3.35 pounds (it's 5 if you have no travel card), no charge for E. The boat allows you to be on the outside deck if it's nice out and is a change from the bus & underground, was very stroller friendly and probably the most direct way to get from one place to the other.

So E. was awake for the Tate Britain and loved running around the big open spaces, stopped to appreciate and enjoy some of the art (I particularly enjoyed pieces of one of my favorite painters) and enjoyed some of the fun programs they had for kids . All in all, a great day.

Camden Market:
This was also a great day although I really do recommend a stroller because you may not want to have your child loose. E loved all the different stalls. My favorite area was Camden Lock Place where we found some great books at Black Gull Books and some adorable Owl Pillows for E which she now refers to as the "Owls from London" at The Arc.

The Arc in Camden Market

Black Gull Books in Camden Market

Last but not least, one of our favorite places which we found walking by on Regent Street on our first day in London. We then returned to the National Geographic Store two more times. The have a great café for a nice breakfast or lunch, an exhibit space with some amazing photography (we bought 2 prints including this iconic shot), a wide range of merchandise including furniture, clothing, accessories, hand-crafted items and a great, great children's section where they have demos on the weekend which E absolutely LOVED. Really, something for everyone on 3 floors. The day we were there they had a small reptiles & birds demonstration in the morning (what we saw, and inspired my idea for E's birthday party) and they had mammals &  large reptiles in the afternoon. We also bought an amazing stained glass lamp. Seriously, we could have gone back every day.

E at the National Geographic Café

We wish we could have taken part in the amazing family programs at Wigmore Hall, but they were already all booked and starting in October 2010, a fantastic exhibit featuring the work of Lauren Child of Charlie & Lola (E's absolute favorite) fame will be taking place at The Discovery Centre...

I guess we'll have to go back soon.