Westfield Shopping Centre, London

Everyone I have spoken to who has been to Westfield has raved about it.

So, as my son and I had the day to ourselves, I decided that it might be a good idea to bite the bullet and go shopping for his summer wardrobe!

I was brave and drove and I have to say that the parking was excellent. Very clear and the standard spaces were large enough to get my son out of the car without either damaging another car or having to make him stand in the road while I got his pram out.

As a women who doesn't really "dig" shopping (so sue me!) I have to say that the architecture and feel of the space was quite overwhelming.  Being a Tuesday, it was fairly deserted, so we pretty much had the place to ourselves.  What's really different about this shopping centre is the relaxation zones; in your usual shopping centre you would find some cramped cold stone benches that you'll have to share with the local hoddie crew who've kindly left their old McDonalds bags strewn around the base.  Here you'll find designer chairs filled with media luvvies sipping on lattes and deciding whether to lunch at the nearest sushi bar or grab some dim sum.

As a mother with a pram though, I don't have the luxury of being able to convince my son that a quick chill out would be a good idea!  I am therefore left to what I can force him into: shopping.  And as shopping goes, it's fairly standard stuff.  All the shops that I'd find in Kingston, but on steroids.

I got what I wanted and that was great.  I lunched at Pizza Express, because that's what my son wanted to do and then we headed home.  I probably will go again, but probably in the winter, when I've got nothing better to do!