Travel: London

Dear Readers,

So I have had a really busy last two weeks, school work, combined with a few study trips to Edinburgh and Stirling, but most importantly I had a weekend trip to London!!! Technically, I was in London two years ago when I was travelling to visit friends in Wales but I only drove through the city and spent two hours at the Victoria Coach Station before traveling out to Swansea. But, this weekend was the first time I truly got to experience London, and I loved it.

My friend and I flew down Friday evening, arriving at the Liverpool Station around 8:30pm meaning we still had the whole evening ahead of us! I was really fortunate, that my friend I was travelling with has a cousin in London so we were able to stay with her for the weekend. The best part I think about staying with a local is getting to experience their favourite places in the city, instead of just visiting the prime tourist attractions. We went to this really cool bar Friday evening that was outside called Dinerama, inside there were all these different places to grab food, and upstairs it was called Winerama where you could go get a wide selection of drinks. It was a blast, and I definitely would go back next time I visit London.

Saturday morning we went out to explore the city. Hitting tourist locations like Leadenhall Market, St. Paul’s Cathedral, the Millennium Bridge, Shakespeare’s Globe, Borough Market, Tower Bridge, and the Tower of London. It was so lovely just walking everywhere. My favourite place we went was the Tower of London, I was so excited I teared up a tad. For me, I have been reading and studying about people who have lived or have been imprisoned in the Tower of London for ten years, so it was so incredible to finally step foot on the location. Especially since my Undergrad Thesis focused on Henry VIII, it was so incredible entering a location where he had spent a lot of time.

St. Paul’s Cathedral

Millenium Bridge

Shakespeare’s Globe

Borough Market

Tower Bridge

The main gate of the Tower of London

The Central Tower

Henry VIII’s armour from 1520

Sunday we explored even more, starting at King’s Cross Station to see the infamous Platform 9 3/4’s, Buckingham Palace, the Queens Palace, London Eye, Big Ben, Parliamnent, and Westminster Abbey. All of the buildings in this area were so beautiful! I especially liked seeing Buckingham Palace, and I was  picturing in my mind the Royal Family waving out from the balcony. Unfortunately Big Ben is currently covered in scaffolding so it wasn’t really photo worthy, just means I will have to go back another time to get a picture!

King’s Cross Station

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

The London Eye

Westminster Abbey

 

For just having a brief visit to London we really managed to do a lot, and I was exhausted when I arrived home. We ate at great restaurants, went to some really fun bars, and got a good feel for the city! After this weekend London might rival Copenhagen as being my favourite city I have ever travelled to and I can’t wait to go back!