Arcadia England

A house is not a home without a sense of community, a sense of friendship with those you are sharing with. This is embodied within the activities the Arcadia houses do as groups. From day to day cooking together, going to the cinema, to group activities ran by the Resident Life Assistants (RLA's).

This sense of community is encapsulated in Palace Court’s recent visit to Portobello Road Market, where the residents, along with their RLA Phillip, enjoyed a morning amongst the hustle and bustle of the market. Phillip is a great advocator of the market as he takes students each semester to see the huge range of goods that are on sale.

Portobello Road Market is one of the most famous markets in the world and is internationally recognized for its second-hand and antiques section. Part of Portobello Road’s charm is its eclectic variety, featuring everything from street performers, to side streets with fascinating cafés, pubs, shops and not forgetting all the stalls. It is a place that one can return to repeatedly and discover something new each time.

Portobello Road Market is really several markets in one. The antiques section takes up the first part of the market, which begins where Chepstow Villas crosses Portobello Road. It carries on down Portobello Road for about half a mile to Elgin Crescent, at which point the antiques give way to a food market. This includes everything from fruit and vegetables to international street food. From the Westway onwards, market stalls sell clothes, both new and vintage.

There is much to see along the way. On one of the terraced houses just prior to Chepstow Villas is a blue plaque, indicating the former lodgings of Eric Blair, who wrote Down and Out in Paris and London from that address under the pen name of George Orwell. Blenheim Crescent houses the travel bookshop, where some of the external scenes for the film Notting Hill were filmed, starring Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant.

The market continues for nearly two miles of hustle, haggle, colour and energy, and is a great way to get out and about on a Saturday morning.

If you like the sound of this and weren’t able to make Phillip’s tour, Portobello Road Market is open every Saturday morning. For more information go to the market’s website.