Weekend Trip to London!

This past weekend, I went to London to visit my friend, Ollie, who I met sophomore year at UGA. It was my first time in London and I was grateful to have a guide :).

On Friday, I arrived at Heathrow airport around 6 40pm. Ollie met me at the airport and the first stop was a fish and chips place! Shockingly enough, it was a rainy evening. 

Fish and Chips with a fruity drink!

After that tasty meal, we went to a pub for a pint. It was pretty crowded inside this pub, so it was difficult to find seats. Luckily for us, this older guy walked up to us and let us know that he was leaving, so that we could have his table. So polite! Just how I always imagined the English, lol. So, I was not really surprised when this happened, but Ollie sure was! Haha! He said that this is not common… 

London Pub

That night, we watched a French-Spanish movie called, “L’Auberge Espagnole.” This movie was about a group of European roommates who share an apartment in Barcelona for one year. It was a pretty interesting movie, but a different style than American films that’s for sure. 

Saturday was the busiest day out the weekend. It all started in the most English way possible, with an English Breakfast. This breakfast was so tasty! I had sausage, bacon (real yummy english bacon), egg, beans, and buttered toast.

Mmmmmm so good!

After that grand meal, I was ready to see London! The first stop was the Tower of London. It is not a tower like the name suggests, but rather a fortress and castle. It’s got lots of towers and different buildings. I really enjoyed exploring this historic place! I got to see the Crown Jewels which was a highlight of the visit. These royals have/had some serious bling. 

Tower of London

At Tower of London, look the sun! 

Something else that I thought was interesting, was that the king had different exotic animals (lions, monkeys, polar bear, etc.) in and about the castle. Enjoy the interesting animal facts in the picture below:

Interesting...

While walking around outside, I saw the Tower Bridge, which is not far at all from the Tower of London. I also saw some sunlight today which was exciting!

Tower Bridge

After seeing the tower of London, we walked around, and funny enough, we walked past a building that was almost made for me ;). It's just missing one letter...

My place in London, no big deal

Next, we went to the Buckingham Palace. It was cool to see the balcony where the Kate and William had their famous kiss on their wedding day! It’s a shame that I didn’t get to see any royals, but perhaps next time.

Famous Balcony

In front of Buckingham Palace

Next we walked from the palace to a fancy shop called: Fortnum and Mason. On the way though, it started to rain pretty heavy. It even hailed a little bit! The wind was super strong as well! Luckily, we made it inside Fortnum and Mason, where we wandered until the rainstorm had passed. There at the shop, I bought some Ceylon Orange Pekoe tea!

Tower of Tea

After the rain let up, we walked around some more. We walked to Piccadilly Circus, which is a famous square in London. Near there, I went to a souvenir shop and bought some postcards, a little Big Ben, and a mug :). Next, we went to check out M&M world. I have never seen so many M&M type things. There was even a man giving out M&Ms to people.

M&M World

We were getting pretty hungry at this point, so we thought we would go to Five Guys (so we could reminisce about downtown Athens times) but the line was so long! We decided it wasn’t worth it to wait around in the cold, so we decided to go to another place called: Ed’s. It was a very nice diner which reminded me of steak and shake. I had a burger, fries, onion rings, cole slaw, and an Oreo milkshake! Sooo yummy, but so much food!

Diner dinner

After that filling dinner, we went to Trafalgar Square. There, I got to see the huge lion statues (which looked pretty similar to the Lion statues on Barcelona). 

With a Lion

Next, we went to the Tate Modern which is an Art Museum. First, we saw a beautiful view of London at night. After enjoying the view, we visited an art exhibition of the artist named Paul Klee as well as other art galleries. 

view from the Tate Modern

After viewing some art, we headed back to take the tube back home. On the way, we passed by Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre!

Globe Theatre

Once we took the tube, we ended up taking a red London double decker bus! It was exciting to take one and to sit on the second floor! I even heard people speaking Polish on the bus, which was cool! In fact I heard Polish throughout this weekend and it was nice to hear it again.

Saturday night, we watched an English film called Notting Hill. This romantic comedy featured Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts. This film helped get me in the London spirit and I really want to visit Notting Hill next time!

On Sunday morning, we had planned to go to a market in Camden, but it was raining heavily when we got up. We ended up changing our plans a bit, and we ended up exploring the British Museum while we waited for the rain to clear up. After touring that museum for a bit, we met up with another girl who went to UGA named Jeannette. She was so nice and friendly! It was nice hanging out with another fellow Georgian :). The three of us spent the afternoon together.

We went on the London Eye together. It drizzled a little, but once we got to the top, it seemed to have stopped for a bit. We got some decent pictures from the top! The entire ride was about 30 minutes long and it was a great way to see the city. 

Ollie, Jeannette, and I

Next, we got close to Big Ben (which I recently learned is actually the name of the bell) and Parliament (Palace of Westminster). We also saw Westminster Abbey which is where the royals get married!

Westminster Abbey

I had been on a mission to find a red telephone booth that had a clear view of Big Ben in the distance (because I saw a postcard at a shop with this image earlier) and luckily for me, I ended up finding it! :) 

This pictures captures London so well :P

Then, we took the tube to an Asian restaurant called, the Hare and Tortoise. It was pretty good! I had Chicken Lo Mein. After our lunch, we went to a Cider Tap and I enjoyed a really yummy Apples and Pears cider! 

Cider choices

After a nice chat and some cider, we went to King’s Cross Station. There, we went to Platform 9 3/4! It was so exciting!! There was even someone there who let you wear a scarf of your choice (from one of the four houses) and they threw the scarf up for you for your picture so that it looks like you are really going through to Hogwarts! Such an awesome experience! There was also a lady who took your photo, but you could have friends take it as well. 

Off to Hogwarts! 

After that, we said goodbye to Jeannette because she was meeting friend at the station. Next, we went to the Harry Potter 9 3/4 shop where I got a little Hedwig, a chocolate covered frog, and Harry Potter Jelly Beans. It was so surreal being in Kings Cross Station and I am so glad I got to experience it!

Once I got over all the Harry Potter excitement, we took the tube home. Ollie’s family was so kind as to make a roast dinner. The roast dinner was, shall I say, lovely. We had roast chicken, roast potatoes, gravy, a puree, broccoli/cauliflower, and Yorkshire puddings! I really enjoyed the meal and conversations with everyone. After dinner, we watched an English classic, called: “Four Wedding and a Funeral.” Hugh Grant also starred in this film, and so did Rowan Atkinson. 

On Monday, I had some tea and my first crumpet (sort of like an english muffin in the US) with raspberry jam for breakfast. Then, I took the tube to Heathrow for my afternoon flight. I had a delicious chicken sandwich and fries at the airport. I even heard some of the waitresses speaking polish to one another. I think I will miss hearing people speak polish around town. At about 2pm I boarded my flight to Lyon, and I ended up having a whole row to myself. I sat by the window and enjoyed the view. 

Sunny flight back to France

Overall, I had an awesome weekend with Ollie, his family, and his dogs! I can’t thank Ollie and his family enough for being so hospitable. I hope to see them all again sometime soon! :)

Enjoyed London and can’t wait to visit again, 

Magdalena