Friday:
After our 8 hour flight, we arrived in London around 10:30 am. We took a cab to the hotel -- which was in a perfect location and across the street from the Victoria Station -- to refresh and drop off our luggage, Scott and I rallied and walked down to Buckingham Palace. The weather couldn't have been more perfect. Not a cloud in the sky and in the 60's -- seriously, we lucked out all weekend! Buckingham Palace was only about half a mile from our hotel, so we enjoyed the walk -- especially after sitting on a cramped plane for hours! Unfortunately, we didn't see a single member of the royal family...
We then ventured through St. James Park behind the Palace. The daffodils were starting to bloom and people were already out sunbathing in the grass. Of course I had to get myself a nutella waffle..because, why not??
We continued our walk down to Big Ben, Parliament and Westminster Abbey. After a few photo-ops, we took the Tube down to Piccadilly Circus. Scott wanted to see "Times Square" {not sure if Piccadilly Circus was the best choice, but it has all the big screens like in NYC} and we walked around a bit and admired the shops and theaters in the area. Then we stumbled upon a tavern and had a fabulous fish and chips meal. Seriously, why don't they cook like that here? We continued our walking down towards Oxford Circus and did a little shopping. I had to hit up the European H&M's and found some great stuff including a couple of summer dresses, a midi skirt {however, I think I may be a tad short to pull it off. We shall see!} and a fun kimono style cardigan. We also found the most adorable couple of streets -- Carnaby Street -- with so many fun restaurants, shops and pubs. The pubs on this street looked just like you'd think -- tucked behind an alley way, lots of ivy, the young professionals still in their suits drinking outside on the streets {I think it's so strange you can drink on the sidewalks in front of the pubs}-- pretty much perfection. I also loved that Scott is now loving European fashion and the way the men wear their suits and style their hair. I hope he brings a bit of that same style now that we're back in Texas. We then decided it was then time to call it an early night to knock out the jet lag.
Saturday:
That morning, we left the hotel and headed down to Notting Hill to grab brunch and do some shopping on Portobello Road. After finding out they don't brunch past noon {brunch past noon is one thing I do think we do right here!}, we still grabbed a great burger, and continued our walk down to Portobello Road. This was the one thing I wasn't able to do last time I was in London, and I'm now obsessed. The pastel buildings, lines and lines of antique stores, flower shops and fruit stands -- not to mention another day of perfect weather -- made this the highlight of London for me. I found an adorable dress that will be perfect for UT games, and Scott found the neatest antique leather bound book of U.K. maps from WWII for his mom. Portobello Road is a MUST if you're ever there. And a tip: While there are several restaurants as you get off the Tube, go straight to Portobello Road and eat at one of the cafes. The one we ate at was fabulous, but those cafes on Portobello looked just as you'd picture an English cafe to be!
After a couple hours of shopping, we ventured to the High Street Kensington area to do a bit more shopping a visit my old stomping grounds! We admired Hyde Park as we arrived at Imperial College -- which looks just the same! It was then time for tea, which I also think we should begin to incorporate into our day-to-day in America.
That evening we attended the Broadway show, From Here to Eternity at the Shaftesbury Theatre. It's a bit of a love story and follows the men stationed at Pearl Harbor months prior to Dec. 7 -- it's based off the movie from the 1950s. The acting was wonderful and the songs were catchy. They also had some great one liners that made you laugh out loud. I recommend it! After the show, we went back down to Carnaby Street and grabbed a great Italian meal before calling it a night.
Sunday:
We decided it was time for a little history and took a tour of the Churchill Imperial War Museum {and I think the highlight of Scott's trip!}. It really was fascinating that no one knew they were under there and many of the rooms are still in tact exactly as they were left. We got to see all the rooms, the original maps and all the sleeping quarters.
Then we hopped on the Tube and went to the Tower of London and Tower Bridge. Again, it was an absolute perfect day and we enjoyed just sitting on the banks of the Thames with the castle behind us and the bridge in front of us.
It was then time to take the train to Cambridge to visit one of my oldest friends, Kate, who has been living there since grad school and now works for Christie's Auction House. It was a quick 50 minute ride through the countryside. We wandered the city center -- and is also where Cambridge University is -- before we met Kate and her fiance for dinner at a local pub. Three hours, several beers and wonderful company later, we headed back to London to pack up and head out to Amsterdam the next morning.
{Kings College - part of Cambridge University. This picture doesn't do it justice. Cambridge is breathtaking!}
{our train left out of King's Cross so had to visit the Harry Potter platform!}
Stay tuned for the Amsterdam update!
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