Keats House Museum

Two years ago, I had the great pleasure of going behind the scenes at one of my favorite London landmarks, a place that due to its placement and its nature, is just off the beaten path enough to maintain its simplicity, integrity and beauty.

That place is Keats House Museum.

The front façade of Keats House. (artfund.org)

I took on a temporary volunteer position at the museum while I was studying abroad in London in 2012 and though my time there was limited, the experience of visiting Keats House on a regular basis never meant the loss of the magic that this centuries old building holds.

Keats House is an ode to the Romantic era. In its preserved walls lies the story of John Keats, a young poet in the early 19th century, who fell in love with a fashionable young girl who (along with her mother, brother and sister) was sharing the house (then Wentworth Place, a duplex of sorts) with Keats and his friend and fellow writer Charles Brown.

Keats and Brawne had an emotionally charged and yet delightfully innocent courtship, which is forever commemorated in poetry and letters written by Keats for the object of his affection (unfortunately, letters from Brawne to Keats were buried with the poet when he passed away at 25 years old), and present in the peaceful tranquility of the pristine white-walled exterior of the Keats House Museum.

The museum sits nestled amongst multi-million pound homes in the wealthy and semi-rural neighborhood of Hampstead in Northern London. It's only accessible via the Edgware branch of the Northern Line on the London Underground, and though this doesn't make it difficult to get to in the slightest, it does feel further away than most of the sites the average London tourist might frequent.

Keats at Wentworth Place. (steinerag.com)

Keats House hosts a treasure trove of artifacts, including Fanny Brawne's engagement ring, given to her
by Keats, which had originally belonged to the poet's mother. But aside from being one of the only spots to visit in London that will keep you fully separate from the sounds of high street traffic and the frequent sirens of the city, Keats House is also an incredibly short walk away from one of the most beautiful parts of London: Hampstead Heath.

The Heath has the park benches and paved walkways necessary for 21st century convenience, set against muddy paths and wooded beauty that transports you back to a more romantic time. In the summer and fall, the trees change color and the ponds glisten in golden sunlight. In the spring, the gloomy rain turns the marshes into a kind of glorious swampland, your wellies (rainboots, for Americans) caked in wet soil and your hair wild and mangled from the wind and rain.

And not far from Keats House and the Heath is Hampstead High Street (which on its northwestern end
is Rosslyn Hill and on its southeastern end Haverstock Hill), which provides a taste of an old world English town. The street lies filled to the brim with tiny alley ways (Flask Walk is a great one just near Hampstead Tube) and little shops. Save for the odd McDonald's just by the tube station, it has the aura of a classic high street.

Hampstead High Street. (jrunsblog.blogspot.com)

Pop into the local sweets shop, toy store, book shop or stationery store, take a breather at the local restaurants (some are chains, but they're quaint chains like Paul or Café Rouge) or go shopping at high end stores (the street boasts everything from French designer brand The Kooples to the British classic French Connection and trendy and sophisticated Whistles).

If you feel like truly stepping back in time, visit the Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Chapel, a building that has stood on the site since 1692. It peeks out onto the high street from its tiny little cubby hole as a slightly anachronous addition to a decidedly modern street. Other local churches include the 19th century church St. Stephen's (also on Rosslyn Hill, though southeast a piece) or St. John-At-Hampstead which houses a bust of John Keats.

For a quick bite, note the long line extending into the street from a seemingly innocuous little food cart. That's La Crêperie de Hampstead, a little hole in the wall (lacking the actual real estate) where you can get a little taste of France in the middle of London proper. Try a fresh savory snack or a sweet treat, they've got all the variety you could ask for from Spinach and Cheese to the traditional Crêpe Suzette. Be prepared to wait for the pleasure of tasting this delicacy - the line can sometimes stretch quite long.

Hampstead is a great place to visit for all its amenities, but the small town feel and the history of Keats really makes the neighborhood something special. The Keats Community Library stands next door to the Keats House Museum and serves as a setting for some events organized by the Museum, as well as a stand-alone library for community members. In addition, Keats is the namesake for a pharmacy (Keats Pharmacy) on Rosslyn Hill, a reminder of the poet's history (he studied to be an apothecary at King's College London).

Visiting this part of London, you will find yourself immersed in a stillness unlike any other part of the city possesses. Start at the Keats House and you'll know what I mean.

Keats House Museum is located at 10 Keats Grove NW3 2RR. Find more information at http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/.