Notting Hill, London

Anyone who has seen the movie "Notting Hill" already has some idea why
this once-bohemian part of London has developed a cachet of its own.

Elegant townhomes like those that housed Hugh Grant's gang surround gated private parks, while commercial streets thrive with first-rate shops and restaurants.

Among the most celebrated is Portobello Road, lined with antiques stores, pubs and clothiers. It is best known for its Saturday market, which stretches for from the Notting Hill Gate tube stop more than a mile downhill then back up, changing personalities several times -- antiques, food, fashion.

Big Ben

  London post box, watercolor by Michael Arnold


London in winter
London's winter weather is usually deemed "blah," but in early 2003 it proved to be positively uplifting compared to the chill and snow dogging the Northeast. Despite a couple of unusual snowy days in the British capital,  U.S. visitors found the overcast skies and temps in the high 40s a welcome contrast to the subfreezing pattern back home.  Adding to the atmosphere was the political tussle over Iraq between Tony Blair and, it seemed, most of his constituents.