One thing I hate about London since moving here: The tourists. But somehow I still manage to find myself often dealing with them. Why? Because I find myself constantly near Oxford Circus, PIcadilly Circus, Leicester Square and Covent Garden. So you think I would hate this shop as it's literally there just for tourists.
I kind of do hate it, but I also find myself here all the time. Any time any one is visiting the UK, this is where I take them. It's annoying, but yet it's full of so much tat that I'm pretty sure anyone could find something for anyone on their list.
You can also have an amazing time here waiting for people to shop. For a place called "Cool Britannia" they have an amazingly non-British music selection piped in. Don't expect The Beatles or your other favorites British band. No, you get Madonna and the Go-Gos. Awesome.
We also had an experience recently while we were there. We had a tourist shopper. There were three of us waiting, and we actually needed a corkscrew to open some wine later. We figured we could find a cheap one there. (Which turned out to be easier said than done to be honest.) We camped out with our bags near some of the cheap, plastic-y purses and women's wallets. We couldn't help but pick them up and look at them. Nava picks up one, opens it and yells, "Holy crap, is that smell coming from this?" Turns out it was. We all had our fair share of smelling the terrible smell, then trying to get rid of the smell by smelling every other plastic purse/wallet there. I'm pretty sure that stuff is dangerous, as I felt really high after we left.
So word of advice, smell your stuff before you buy it. But come here to see it and if you want to experience life as a tourist in London. read more