Cactus Language Blog

Cactus Opinion: London (by Peter Rodway)

Posted by Sarah under Cactus Languages Abroad, Cactus Staff Opinion, English, Language Courses UK

‘London After Midnight - An Ode to Camden Town’, by Peter Rodway of Cactus Language Training

The front man of the rock group strides onto the stage through the lasers and smoke.

An image most of us have seen few times except this particular front man was nearly seven foot tall and had a double bass strapped across him with a length of industrial chain, holding it as effortlessly as I would a ukulele!

Downing a bottle of red wine in one he casts it aside and the band launch in to their set…

Ever wondered what those people who wander around dressed like a Victorian going to a funeral or a mixture between Hellraiser and Star Trek actually do in their spare time apart from looking moody?

First of all, just like anyone else they go shopping! And London has some of the coolest shops for Rockers in the world.
The Camden Market area has some particular favourites of mine..if you want to see some “interesting” fashions try CyberDog (Techno/Trance) or Black Rose(Rock/Goth) and for music try Resurrection records.

There are also some really great piercing and tattoo places including the world famous Cold Steel, perfect if you have finally plucked up the courage to get that piercing you have always wanted!

The best thing about Camden and London in general is the pubs and clubs. In the Camden area there are some pretty famous bars like “World’s End” but people who want somewhere that rocks might also like the Devonshire Arms.

As night falls we move on to my favourite thing about spending a day in Camden…the Electric Ballroom.! This venue has hosted some of the greats in rock music like the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, U2 and Ozzy Osborne. From Oasis to Canibal Corpse if you play rock you’ve probably been on stage at the Ballroom.

It also plays host to one of the best rock/darkwave/industrial club nights around. Sin City (previously Full Tilt) is a night out you will never forget.

Sadly, there are plans afoot to redevelop Camden which will mean that many of my favourite “haunts” will be demolished to make way for the fake sound of progress. My that fire was convenient huh? This may include a new tube station which will replace the Electric Ballroom…it will be like a funeral for a friend to me…I recommend going to check it out while you still can!