‘Ello Gov’na

London, England

By Nos Étapes

July 31^st, 2014

07.31.14. - Eurotrip Day 1

Upon arrival to London, we took what they called a "black cab" (there were NO yellow cabs...) to our hotel, which was super close to Westminister Abbey. After unpacking, we walked over there, a little tired and lost, until Jeren saved us by becoming navigator (even throughout the trip) ! Auntie got tickets to the "Big Bus" tour, which was a double-decker bus that went around the whole city. We ended up sleeping the whole trip...LMAO. We were tired and most likely jetlag, but we got off near the Tower of London and discovered a hidden boat dock surrounded by "fufu" restaurants filled with locals in their business attire. It was apparently their happy hour, which they spend outside the building, drinking and standing in a little sectioned off area (compared to our usual happy hour in the US). After that, we took the metro back to Westminster, then walked to our hotel. At the end of the night Jeren and I tried my melatonin pills to help our jetlag, we thought it was just a placebo effect, but we felt it within 5 min... they worked, and that topped off the day.

08.01.14. - Eurotrip Day 2

So this trip wouldn't have been successful if it weren't for the itinerary made by Auntie Chidel. She had planned to watch the "change of guards" at the Buckingham Palace but it was the last day of London (until the last days of Europe) and she wanted to go to as much of the prime locations so we had to remove that event out of the plans. After that decision, we left the hotel to get some English breakfast: Beans, Hashbrown, English bacon, eggs, a grilled mushroom and tomato. We walked to Westminster Abbey and took an audio tour. I was able to see the graves of Sir Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, and Charles Dickens!!!

Next, we went to the Covent Gardens, which was a beautiful marketplace that looked like a train station with street performers. On our way they...We bumped into the changing of the guards!!! Yay! Pretty Cooool. And, we continued to Covent Gardens to get lunch. I got the fish and chips, since London is known for it :) Afterwards, we went to the Tower of London. It is very rich in history, so DO RESEARCH- so much stories behind the castle's walls. One famous site there, are the crown jewels. Lastly, we took a ride down the river back to the Big Ben, and got dinner- which had the best tiramisu and penna cotta I've tasted!

Also keep in mind, we only took metros and walked. But we finished everyday with a glass of wine :3

BOUNCIN’ TO THE LAST DAY OF OUR EUROTRIP SINCE WE SPENT IT IN LONDON ONE, LAST, TIME.

08.19.14. - Eurotrip Day 20

This is our last full day in Europe :( We took a plane from Berlin and went back to London. After unloading our things at the hotel, we went back to Covent Gardens and stayed in the area to get lunch. Next, we happened to bump into a vintage fair, and there were many knick-knacks I was tempted to get, but eventually didn't. Then we went hat hunting! It was pretty fun cause it felt like a scavenger hunt, it was for the hat store that we saw when we first came to London. It was definitely a journey cause, all of a sudden, it started pouring and we had no umbrellas and no jackets. It was funny cause the busy streets and sidewalks suddenly emptied cause people ran to safety from the rain; imagine a busy London street in one instant and everyone pushing each other for a spot under the eaves in the next. Haha. We finally found the hat store! We then went to look for platform 9 3/4! Teehee. We took a few transfers on the metro and arrived at the station that also happened to be a train station too. SUCCESS! Then we grabbed dinner at that station, and headed back to the hotel. Last night in Europe! D;