"I told you I was trouble, you know that I'm no good"

Ok team, here's the full scoop on why you have not been entertained by my exciting expeditions for over a MONTH now: I don't want to bore you. This is in part because for the most part my life consists of going to the library, studying, having lunch, doing more study and then coming home  - the blog equivalent of getting a Coke Zero AGAIN! The other part is that some of the places that I have been going are no photography areas (like the National Portrait Gallery), and I don't want to waste such a visual medium on a post with no photos. That would be insanity! However, now I have finally got my act together and can therefore present you with THE FIRST BLOG POST OF 2012!

Seeing as this is the new year, I think we should start it off with something that represents life and excitement and awesomeness. Yes, that's right, its CAMDEN TOWN!

Unfortunately, my photos of Camden are pretty rubbish because I've never been on an amazing day (they are pretty rare in London). But in my defence, I don't think you could actually get an understanding of the awesomeness of Camden until go there. Kind of like trying to describe the ocean to someone who has never seen the colour blue. Anyway, you will just have to use my rubbish photos as a platform for your wildest imaginings!

I bet, by now, you are starting to wonder about my overuse of superlatives in describing Camden, but this is by no means an exaggeration. And I've only been there to go to the market. Which is amazing. Camden Market pretty much has everything you could ever wish to buy - new clothes, vintage clothes, antique mirrors, handmade ceramic jewellery, second-hand books, antique suitcases. Last time I was there I brought some purple heart-shaped sunglasses (which I'm wearing right now, because all the cool kids are wearing sunglasses inside on a Thursday night) and a pack of canasta cards. Seriously, there is even a guy that sells bird calls on CD.

Look at all the stalls!

Camden Market also has some of the best food stalls that I have ever seen. There is one stall that has cake pops, which if you haven't heard of before, I have just changed your life forever. Trust me, I wouldn't joke about something as serious as cake pops. There are also heaps of places where you can buy savoury food - everything from Chinese to Mexican. Just watch out for the ladies at some of the Chinese food stalls - they are always offering samples and exhorting you to "Come Try, Come Try", but as soon as you get within reaching distance of that sample, it disappears and you find yourself buying five pounds of fired rice. A trick for younger players there.

Some people are pretty anxious about eating food off a stall, but I don't think you should be. You can actually see the food being cooked in front of you, its clearly hot and fresh, and consequently, there is no way that bacteria have been using your burrito as a local teen hangout. Trust me, there is nothing better than a steak sandwich from Camden Market, followed up by a cake pop and a caramel and lime hot chocolate (the hot chocolate is a real thing, I had one last week and it was AH-MAZING).

Again, sorry for the rubbish photography, but for future reference, the cake pop stall is sort of in the middle right.

And, right outside the market is the canal with a lock, where you can watch boats going up and down and dream about how cool it would be to live on a houseboat, travelling the country with your faithful hound. Seriously, when I was there, there were two boats in the lock at the same time, one going up and one going down, and it was drawing a substantial crowd.

See, a substantial crowd!

Finally, we can't discuss Camden without mentioning the late, great Amy Winehouse. Whatever you think about her personal life, she was superbly, undeniably, amazingly talented. She pretty much epitomises Camden - the whole idea of being yourself, and doing what you love. Lots of people do what they think is expected of them and hide their true selves, while some, rare people are brave enough to be themselves and fulfil their hidden potential (Russell Brand puts this so much better than I ever could). And that's what makes Camden so cool, its a place where all sorts of different people can come and be themselves - seriously, the last time I was in Camden, I saw some Girl Guide leaders, older women, in amongst the teenage goths, and they were having a great time!!

So, get dressed up in your best Amy Winehouse gear, and get down to Camden to watch the lock and eat cake pops! You'll love it, I guarantee it!