A Weekend in London
Greetings!
Long post ahead - I just got back to Barcelona after a weekend trip to London! I went with my friends Katie and Amelia from CIEE and Amelia's friend Rachel. We had a busy but very fun weekend visiting London's top attractions. My flight got into the London-Gatwick (LGW) airport on Thursday night, and I took the train/tram to our hotel off the Wandle Park stop. Although we were worried this would be too far away from the city center, we were pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to get into the city in the morning - only about 30 minutes away. It was snowing and very chilly when we got in!
Friday was our major sightseeing day, and also happened to be the colder of the two we spent in London. We started our morning with Buckingham Palace, where the Queen of England lives with her corgis. We barely missed the famous Changing of the Guard ceremony (they were walking away as we got there) but got to see the outside. It was cold and we were hungry, so we decided to stop into a cute cafe nearby called The English Rose. I got a traditional English breakfast and a latte - hearty and warm!
After brunch, we went to Harrods (and the Knightsbridge area), London's infamous department store/museum, where we walked around for a while and "shopped." A few fun things we saw included:
A few things I really liked about London (not including the attractions and things we did):
Amy
Long post ahead - I just got back to Barcelona after a weekend trip to London! I went with my friends Katie and Amelia from CIEE and Amelia's friend Rachel. We had a busy but very fun weekend visiting London's top attractions. My flight got into the London-Gatwick (LGW) airport on Thursday night, and I took the train/tram to our hotel off the Wandle Park stop. Although we were worried this would be too far away from the city center, we were pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to get into the city in the morning - only about 30 minutes away. It was snowing and very chilly when we got in!
- Original artwork by Warhol, Dali, and Picasso
- Designer clothing (Gucci, Prada, Balenciaga, Christian Louboutin, etc...)
- Designer Dog and Cat Boutique
- A fun glass sculpture by Dale Chihuly - a famous American artist
- And, of course, the classic London souvenirs!
We continued along Hyde Park towards the Royal Albert Hall and Kensington Palace afterwards and passed by the Albert Memorial.
Then, we decided to switch to a different part of town. We took the Tube to the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey. Unfortunately, Big Ben is under restoration at the moment so we could not see it.
After our quick tour there, we took a bus over to Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery, with a quick detour to the Horse Guard's Parade. We went inside the National Gallery and looked at artwork by artists like Monet, Van Gogh, Velazquez, and more. I enjoyed re-visiting the museum and getting to see stuff I hadn't seen in a while!
To close out our sightseeing, we walked to Piccadilly Circus and continued to my dad's favorite bar at the Dukes Hotel. We got dinner in the area and dessert at Said Chocolate before heading back for the night.
Saturday was less busy but much sunnier! I started the morning off at St. Paul's Cathedral as recommended by my mom and dad. It's absolutely stunning! I was impressed at the size and scale of everything, as well as the dome itself. Admission was somewhat pricey but definitely worth it for the incredible view of the city from the top! The rest of the group hung out at Cafe Rouge, where I met them after for lunch.
We walked across the Millennium Bridge towards the Shakespeare Globe Theater and stopped by to admire it for a second. Then, we continued along the banks of the Thames towards London/Tower Bridge. We came across a street performer by a Shakespeare mural and enjoyed listening for a couple minutes before continuing along.
There was a cute church along the way so we stopped in. It was free and there was someone performing on the organ - really fun to listen to!
Later, we crossed the Tower Bridge and stopped by the Tower of London for a quick photo and warm drink (tea!) before heading across town to the Westminster stop again to get a picture with the London Eye.
Finally, we went to the Camden Market and explored. It's a cute area with lots of fun shops! We went to dinner after at an Indian restaurant called Shah Tandoori. We tried a variety of different things as a group and headed back to the hotel from there.
A few things I really liked about London (not including the attractions and things we did):
- Water is free at restaurants! This was a nice change from Spain where you always have to pay for it.
- The escalators at the various metro stops are fast! Public transportation was easy to use as well.
- Speaking English for a little bit was nice again!
A couple things I missed about Barcelona:
- The warmer Mediterranean climate!
- My homestay / home base for the semester - I enjoyed getting back today!
Until next time!
Cheerio,
Cheerio,
Amy
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