My Trip To London

London is bursting with towers, turrets, domes, and spires. Around the corners are full of cobbled charm and well done graffiti that works in my mind. There’s every kind of beauty here, from ancient medieval to polished modern, to vibrant lush pallets. It’s rich with thick diverse culture and the Indian food is awesome. 

Like Paris, London is really massive. It’s got hundreds of years of history brimming from nearly every inch of every city street. So, don’t you dare try to see everything historical (or modern), because you’ll go crazy and be overloaded quickly. Make sure that you plan for one or two attractions each day and then give yourself some time to travel leisurely between each. Your mind and body will love you for it. This goes for all big cities by the way. It allows you to take your time and really experience every aspect more.

When I hit a big city I really just love to walk everywhere. The transportation in London is amazing. Definitely get an Oyster card. Oh! Please note: you can’t share the Oyster card, it’s one card per person. They have security all over so don’t try to share it, they will call you out on it. The Oyster card works on the underground tube and busses. The tube takes a little getting use to but, there are plenty of staff around that will help you out too. So no worries.

It rained while we were there. But that didn’t stop us. London is still quite charming even in the rain. When the sky lightened up, my camera was out.

Oh! Parliament and Big Ben were under construction and covered in scaffolding, so no picks of those. 🙁

I’m a big lover of antiques and fun shops. Next to Notting Hill is Portobello Road. You know… from Bedknobs and Broomsticks, remember the song? It’s considered one of the world’s largest antiques market with over 1,000 dealers selling every kind of antique and collectible. There are definitely tourist shops mixed in with charming shops. If you like shopping and antiques, it’s a great place to walk through.

I would totally drive this car!

FYI, I love David Bowie.

After we did those, we just wandered, hopped on the tube and wondered some more.

Picked up a snack. Yum!

Walked some more.

We met up with some friends (that moved to London) for dinner. They recommended Dishoom, delicious Indian cuisine. It was a lovely evening with good friends and the color’s still continued to burst even into the night.

Following that Nate and I walked some more, hopped on a bus and walked to Buckingham Palace. It was quiet and we were the only ones (except for security) walking around the palace. No crowds, no rushing, just us enjoying every step.

We stayed in a tiny little place called The Sydney House in Chelsea, London. It was a great location, very close to the tube and close to sites we wanted to experience. London is not cheap! In fact, it’s very pricey, so if you’re on a budget, be prepared for really, really small hotel rooms, tiny elevators and very narrow stairwells.

Being a lover of color and charming neighborhoods we took a lovely stroll through Notting Hill. We were lucky we had a little sun before it really started to rain. Oh my! This area is soooo lovely! I’m just going to let my photos speak for them selves.

I took A LOT of photos in this area!

I loved the landscaping!

We found our way over to Saint Paul’s Cathedral. That’s the “Feed the Birds” cathedral from Mary Poppins. We happened to sit in on the Good Friday mass, and listened to a beautiful sermon about Christ as well as a stunning live Vivaldi solo performed on the violin.

After strolling around some more we hit The Tower of London. Located on the Thames river and right alongside the beautiful Tower Bridge, the Tower of London is a castle which dates back to 1066. It was used as both a prison and a royal residence. It’s got armer, torturing devices, the crown jewels. It’s very known for holding many famous and infamous prisoners. Lady Jane Grey and two of Henry VIII’s wives, Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard, were imprisoned and later beheaded in there.

It was super windy too!

Speaking of Henry VIII, I couldn’t help myself, I had to take a photo of his armer. Ha, ha, ha. Do you think he was compensating for something? Ha, ha, ha!

After that we just wandered all over the city some more.

We ended up eating dinner at Harrods. We were so hungry by that time, I didn’t think to take photos of Harrods, so you’ll have to Google it. It’s an exquisite department store with the most elaborate rooms. We entered the meat room and Nate was in love! They have stunning rooms that are for seafood, desserts, meats, fruits, you name it. It’s a must see to walk through. Not cheap either. We had a fresh hand cut roast beef sandwich that was totally a mouthgasm! Oh yes, it was that good!

It was lovely and full of life! I hope to visit there again soon!

Up next, we travel to Scottland!

Don’t you just love the colorful row houses?

XOXO

Melessa