A magical place to pick out souvenirs from your stay in London, Covent Garden is a must-see for anyone interested in fashion, traditional toys, open air opera and food in a fantastic location!

Walking over to the market from the Covent Garden underground stop, you'll see boutiques and theatres and super shops galore - try to ignore them and go first to the market for something more unique!

The closed-over market seems divided in two - there's the bric-a-brac, alternative clothes site and the artistic, crafty side where you can pick up pieces by designers starting out.

After a leisurely look, walk over to the shops surrounding the market. With everything from quirky to more upmarket clothes, there's something for every taste and most budgets. The make-up and skin care shops are specialist and expensive - perfect for a holiday treat - while the traditional toy shops are full of things to take home - I particularly loved the puppet theatres in every possible size. There's also the museum (and shop!) dedicated to London transport - in stock are, for example, DVDs showing the journey of London underground trains, and books with photos of old buses and trams. A perfect place to pick up postcards with a difference!

In the courtyards outside the shops, opera singers take it in turns to entertain in the open air as you eat waffles and ice cream from the cafés between shops. Covent Garden is a really special sight - it's expensive but an experience you won't want to miss.

If my surprise free trip up in the London Eye was the most unexpected thing I did while in London, then Covent Garden was certainly the most pleasantly unexpected place.

It’s not something you necessarily hear about simultaneously with London, though for my money it was the very essence of what makes London a phenomenal place to visit and not just another European city with lots of history.

The group I was with decided to meet up in Trafalgar Square for a bit of sight seeing of a wet London morning and then split off after a moment of realizing we all wanted to see something different. Me and several friends headed off past Nelson's Column and the most pigeons I'd ever seen in my life up to that point and off towards the National Gallery. After a bit of walking we stumbled onto something that at the time I had no idea existed.

With the possible exception of landing in Edinburgh the first time into the medieval setting that was several hundred years out of date, I've never felt so suddenly thrust into a completely foreign world before in all of my life. A few steps over some puddly streets and there before us was one of the wildest and most dazzling streets I've ever come across to date.

The sudden spectacular array of street performers, markets, shops, restaurants, pubs and musicians was a lot to take in all at once, even for London. I could quite easily have spent my entire three day trip in that one little corner of the city (and probably still not explored it half as well as one should) had I not needed to meet up with friends that afternoon in Piccadilly Circus.

There's not enough space on this little review for me to say a half of what should be said about Covent Garden, so before I run out of words I'll say the most important bit. If you’re planning a trip to London--no matter how short--pop by Covent Garden. It's the city's crown jewel as far as I'm concerned. Really amazing. Even with the International Festival in Edinburgh every year I've never seen street performs as impressive as the ones I saw walking through Covent Garden. The market is superb and huge. Allow as much browsing time as you possibly can.

Also, and I say this to all fellow travellers in a slightly conspiratorial tone, there is something in particular you should try. There was a palm reader on the corner who remarkably resembled Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka. He's a bit of a marvel (and works by donations only.) Even flat broke myself and all my friends left him generous tips. I will say no more, just try him out if you can, he will have you discussing it for years and leave you feeling as you’ve witnessed something a bit mystical.

Busy, vibrant Covent Garden is a far cry from majestic Westminster Abbey. But there is, as I discovered, a link between the two, for `London’s best shopping experience’ was built on land that originally belonged to Westminster. The `Convent Garden’, as it was known, came into being in the 1630’s due to the work of the architect Inigo Jones and the developer, the Earl of Bedford. The marketplace and piazza were created under the aegis of Charles I.

Initially a fruit and vegetable market, Covent Garden diversified into gambling and prostitution by the early 1800’s--a magistrate dubbed it the `Great Square of Venus’--and although it did revert to being a market, it acquired its present blend of restaurants, stalls and boutiques only in 1980.

Tarun’s very fond of Covent Garden--he loves watching the performers--so we decided to go spend some time at the marketplace. We arrived about 5, on a hot summer day. Our first glimpse was of some of the many street performers who show off their skills here. On our right, a man dressed in the red and black uniform of a guard, with a bulbous false red nose protruding from below his tall black hat, delivered the punchline in a one-man comedy act. On the left, a man stood stock-still next to a bicycle, which, like the man and his clothes, was painted gold. A few steps further on, a muscular man, his head shaved, stood clad only in a decorative loincloth-type costume--this time, all in silver. Another performer dexterously (and seemingly effortlessly) juggled with four white balls, while a young magician entertained a huge crowd with the help of a pack of cards, a small table, and a cute toddler called Lucas, all wide-eyed and blond, drawn from the crowd.

We wandered around for a while, admiring the dresses in the shop windows; trying to see if we could afford a show at one of the theatres, and then checking out the stalls at Jubilee Market and Apple Market. Many of the stall owners here were shutting shop, but some were still around, selling prints, inexpensive jewellery and souvenirs. A quartet was playing a piece of exquisite music, Mozart, I think, and the courtyard around them was crammed with people, listening in appreciative silence.

Sitting out under the garden umbrellas, we ate a lunch of delicious Caesar salad, along with a fruity drink spiked with vodka. The ubiquitous pigeons flapped about hopefully near our table, but disappeared after a while in search of more generous patrons. Our meal finished, we treated ourselves to frozen yoghurt desserts (I had a lovely mixed berry one) at the Covent Garden Yoghurt and Fruit juice Bar. Then, after a final stroll around Covent Garden, it was time to move on.

Covent Garden’s one of those rare and delightful places that offer nearly everything: theatre, opera, street performances, chic shops, affordable souvenir stalls, fancy restaurants like Chez Gerard and Ivy, and plenty of less-expensive cafés. London must-do? Definitely!

This raffishly enjoyable section of London is a people-watchers’ delight. People of every age and style frequent the potpourri of shops and eateries that make up this network of stalls, arcades, and pedestrian malls. The Piazza, which dominates the scene, is likely at any moment to come to life as a musician, mime or actor begins to draw a crowd. During the short period of time that we were browsing, we saw one young mime doing an audience-participation skit, and later an older guy in a different area had a cute little girl assisting him in a rope trick.

I was glad I got the chance to explore here for about an hour, and would have liked to return if we had had the time.

Everyone visits Covent Garden when they come to London. I'm not really sure why. There are some nice little shops and a market selling art, crafts, jewellery, etc., but really most of this stuff can be bought elsewhere. The prices are hugely inflated because it is mainly tourists who shop here, but they don't realise that it is overpriced. The shops on and around Neal Street are much better.

There is also the dubious attraction of street entertainers: mime artists, magicians, and, most famously, the living statues. For anyone lucky enough not to have encountered one of these, they are people in various costumes, painted head to toe in one colour, that stand very still so you think they are a statue and then move suddenly to "surprise" you. Dreadful!

The food places in the piazza are pricey and nothing special. The most famous pub here is the Punch & Judy, which again seems to be compulsory for all visitors. I went here a few times when I first moved to London, as it was a good meeting point with other friends who were new to the city before we knew any better. I had the misfortune to return here again in daylight recently, and it wasn't pretty. It is decidedly shabby and the clientele left a lot to be desired. Its attraction is the balcony overlooking the piazza, from which you can people-watch or watch the street entertainers while having a drink. Avoid this place - there are much better pubs nearby (all of them, in fact).

Covent Garden is near a lot of other attractions, theatres, galleries, shops, etc., but it isn't worth making a special trip to and the cobblestone is no good if you are wearing heels!