England, Take Two

London

london-eye

The beauty is in the eye of the beholder--or the London Eye. With views of the entire city, this futuristic ferris wheel is a fun stop to make. 

the-british-museum

My favorite place to go in London--The British Museum. It is FREE and you get to see the Rosetta Stone! On one of London's many rainy days--this is a great place to spend an afternoon...or your first stop off your red eye.

rosetta-stone

Here it is in all it's glory--THE ROSETTA STONE. This stone helped us translate ancient cartouche hieroglyphics. 

big-ben

What time is it? The Big Ben can help you with that. 

harrods

Harrods, the world's most famous department store is always on my list of things to do. The only reason being the food floor. 

french-macarons

There are macarons galore... my heaven. And by the looks of it, there are more on the way. YAY.

yoga-in-london

Yogis in London. We met on our Yoga Teacher Training in Costa Rica, and here we are a couple months later. Soul Sisters! 

generator-hostel-london

The Generator Hotel in Russell Square--clean, modern and safe. All the rooms have lock boxes under your bed to store all your stuff. There is a bar/club with a DJ, study room, cafe and bar--it has everything you need--Including free wifi. 

yoga-festival-london

We found free Yoga--The Navratri Festival in WAY far out suburbs of England. It was definitely not what we expected, but there were free issues of Yoga Journal and samosas. 

london-tube

On the tube. 

kensington-garden

Prince Albert in Kensington Gardens. 

Planting Trees in London.

Planting Trees in London.

I LOVE staying in Russell Square. There is a quant garden square with a coffee shop in the center. It's very relaxing to just sit in the park and enjoy the nature all around you.

pret

The fist Pret I have ever been too. YUM. I must admit, I do love Pret's food--Quick, "healthy" and delicious. When the first US location opened in NYC, I did take a trip there JUST to get Pret... I've since then calmed down. 

africa-on-the-square

Trifalger Square, or now Africa on the Square. We ran into this pop up Music Festival on our walking adventure. FUN!

the-tube

The tube--very easy to navigate and a lot faster than the trains in Boston. If you're waiting more than two minutes for the next train.. you can consider that a delay. 

red-phone-booths

Phone booth Yogi Selfie...minus the stick. 

On the train to Gatwick Airport--Gatwick? Until I got here, I thought I was landing in Heathrow. OOPS.

Takeaways 

  • Keep your Oyster card (train pass), you need it to exit the station

  • Check out the British Museum--it is FREE

  • Russell Square is an accessible, safe place to stay...with the Generator Hostel just steps away

  • Bring a lock if you are staying in a hostel

  • Bring an umbrella.. there is a good chance you will need it

  • Eat Fish and Chips

  • Ride a double decker bus around the city

  • Enjoy some afternoon tea...or at the very least some english breakfast :)

  • Use your handy Travefy app to stay coordinated throughout planning your trip..it may save you from forgetting what airport you're arriving at.. I wasn't so lucky!

England

London
THe-British-Museum

I woke up in London after my red eye from Boston. My first stop, the British Museum. It's FREE and the amount of Ancient Egyptian artifacts is amazing. They have the Rosetta stone- THE ROSETTA STONE. 

Russell-Square-London

The hotel was right in Russell Square—SO close to the British Museum. 

Harry-Potter-Platform

Calling all Harry Potter fans! After unsuccessfully searching INSIDE the train station, I finally found Platform 9 3/4 outside and it is a BIG tourist attraction.

harrods-london

Harrods was amazing. They have a whole floor dedicated to gourmet foods. By the time you leave, you will be so full from all the samples you may have to walk back to Russell Square—I did! 

The tube is WAY cooler than the MBTA. "Mind the gap", how polite. In Boston, you'd be lucky to fill the gap on an overcrowded train. 

London-Bridge

London bridge is falling down, falling down. The nursery song comes to life in this photo. 

london-eye

It is mostly overcast and rainy in London, but if you can catch a nice day to ride the London Eye, DO IT!

thames-river

River Thames is filled with kayakers, boats and some brown water. I did take a pretty nice river cruise that provided a unique view of London. 

big-ben

My favorite photo of the whole trip—BIG BEN. It is gorgeous in person and in this picture. 

big-ben-at-night

If you take the London Eye at night, it provides a spectacular view of the city all lit up.

Bath 

roman-baths

I took a tour that made a stop in the city of Bath, England. It was a really cool experience that took you back to 1897. 

roman-baths
roman-baths-england

Wiltshire 

stonehenge

Stonehenge—one of the wonders of the word is more than a circle of rocks, t’s a prehistoric monument. I stared at these giant stones wondering, what is the purpose and how did these rocks get here? 

stonehenge

How did someone lift these stone!?

england

There was plenty of farm land on the way back to London. I tried to snap some photos from the bus. 

Takeaways from England:

  • The British Museum is the BEST and FREE

  • The tube is really easy to figure out

  • The food in London is way better than people tell you

  • There are many Hookah bars

  • The city is very walkable and I felt really safe walking around at night

  • There are many free things to do: museums, churches, and parks

  • Prêt A Manger (which is now in the states) is a really yummy cafe. The chicken pesto sandwich is my fav and the fudge brownies are great

  • Fish and chips and afternoon tea is quintessential London... so try them both—maybe not at the same time