We stayed at the Generator hostel, which was quite the experience within itself. When we walked in there was bumping club music and blue lights in the main lobby- this is a hostel, not a club remember haha. We checked in with a positive attitude, figuring it could be fun. After going upstairs to see the room- we decided it was a pretty horrendous hostel. Not to get into any details to scare anyone, but let's just say the room had stains in various places- and I slept on top of the featherbed with my jacket as my blanket and my sweater over my pillow. But enough about that!
After dropping our bags and freshening up, we went out to dinner at a chic little restaurant and met up with Alex's friends from home.
After that we went to the London eye for our 8pm reservation. For those of you who don't know- it is a gigantic Ferris wheel that sits on the Thames River and overlooks all of the city. Instead of ferris wheel cars, it had these giant glass globes that can fit up to 25 people. It goes about 1ft. per second and takes about 30minutes to make a full rotation. At it's highest point it reaches 443ft! It was absolutely beautiful to see all of the sites at night and the whole city was lit up and amazing. The best site to see from above was Big Ben- he stood high above everything else! After that I got the most amazing cookie I have ever had in my life, which I felt the need to mention because it was my first shortbread cookie- which apparently England is known for- unreal. After that, we made it an early night because we were tired from the night before. We got some grapes and cheese at the grocery store and had a little girls night at the hostel.
The next morning we were up bright and early for the "all you can eat" breakfast- which was comprised of jam with toast and cereal haha. We were out by 1030am and took the tube to Hyde Park Corner to meet up for the free tour. The tour was just about 2 hours and took us to see all of the major sites in London. We had an amazing tour guide- a woman who was from Ireland but living in London. Our first stop was the Wellington Arch. Apparently Wellington was a major contributor to the British way of life, and though he was a selfish politician when he lived- the British now look up to him and love him. We then made our way over to Buckingham Palace which was quite impressive in itself. At the cross walk, we encountered a cross walk button high up that was made just for people on horses! At first I couldn't understand why it was there but immediately after we saw both a cop on horse and the Queen's guard- all on horses!
We learned that at Buckingham, there could be a possibility of 2 flags flying, but there is always one up- one being the British flag and the other being the Queen's flag. The Queen's flag is only up when she is in the palace (which she was not on that day) and the British flag is always kept flying. The British flag was not always kept flying, and this was a recent addition since the death of Princess Diana because when she died they had no flag to fly, and the Queen did not want to use hers. We also saw Charles private castle which was directly across the street. He also has his own flag and the British flag flying- and he wasn't home either! We also saw a few of the funny guards that don't move and took a few pictures near them. We were told not to get to close though because of the recent events with one of them. Apparently an American student got in one of their faces in an attempt to make him move and made the guard so angry that he chased after him and was hitting the student with a sword. Very funny actually, and you can watch it on youtube.
After that we made our way around the city, seeing some more of the major sites. We saw wher the 2012 summer Olympics women's volleyball games were going to be held. It is also known as the Horseguards area where you can see the changing of the guards. We also saw Downing Street from a far, where all of the major politicians live and is heavily guarded due to the nature of the residence. We stopped at a woman's house named Nell Gwyne. She was one of the King's whores (many years ago) but a name for herself, got a house and a title (earldom ) for her son! She is a lady that many people in London, oddly enough, find inspiring. We stopped at Westminster Abbey- which was one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen. We also saw big ben of course and the houses of Parliament. All of which were very impressive. We also stopped but an arch crossing that had a little nose sticking out of it, just randomly placed there. It is rumored to be Wellington's nose- but it was very funny to see. We saw a number of other small sites, all of which were great. At the end, our tour guide to us to a park and told us the tale of when the entire new British parliament was almost over thrown by a group of rebels. It was quite historical and interesting- it was a bit of a long story so I can't remember all the details, but if you google a story about the British parliament being stormed you can find it. Once the tour guide left, we sat and enjoyed a typical British lunch- toast with jam and butter haha.
After the tour was over we hopped onto the tube and made our way over to Harrods. IT WAS AMAZING!! The store is absolutely huge and we spent a few hours just walking around in awe starring at everything. We of course started on the floor with the food and I got a slab of handmade fudge- it was sinful. I also got a little green bag with godl 'Harrods' lettering on it, and a little Harrods bear that came in the bag! How could I leave Harrods without something? We spent a lot of time walking around the womens clothing section. It was so awesome to see all of the designers collections as they would be in their own showrooms. There was only about 1 of each piece of clothing and the dresses for many of the collections were absolutely beautiful. I feel in love with the D&G line in particular- typical. We also went over to the LG room- which is where they have a lot of new technological devices on display. We got to play with the new HP all touch screen computer. It was so cool! I'm not sure if they have that out in the US already and I've just been missing out, but it was a pretty sweet piece of technology. In the sporting goods section we experienced a very interesting cultural divide involving a middle eastern family fighting amongst themselves. A lot of the real shoppers at Harrods come from the Middle East because they are some of the only people that can afford the items sold there. Also, the owner for Harrods is from the Middle East and apparently his son was dating Princess Diana at the time of her death (?). I learned some pretty interesting things that day!
After Harrods- we headed over on the tube to the Piccadilly Circus area....where we went to....the...LONDON ABERCROMBIE AND FITCH!!!!!!!!!!
I am not going to lie, this made my spring break. It is ABSOLUTELY huge and amazing and I spent 20mins just walking around, shaking, sniffing, spraying myself, dancing, and touching the clothes. My goodness it has been a long time and I cannot wait to go back to work when I get home haha. When we were walking out, I went up to one of the greeting models and asked him if he would take a picture with me for my stores at home (I just really wanted to take a pic with him). After reviewing the picture, I came to realize that there is a huge possibility that he was the model in the poster that you see when you first enter the store- wonderfullll.
After a day of mayhem, we went back and freshened up at our hostel.
Later that evening, we went to dinner at a little English Pub and I got fish and chips with mushy peas!!! It was sooo yummy. The chips are actually french fries and the mushy peas were a bright green, like split pea soup. We also got more shortbread cookies for dessert.
After reading up in our free trashy London newspaper, we came to discover that the Marlee and Me premier was going on in London. It was 9pm once we were done with dinner, so we figured it was the perfect time to head over to the premier, in hopes that we would see some stars on their way out. Although we did not catch Jen An or Owen Wilson, we did see a boat load of famous British people. It was actually quite hilarious because we had no idea who any of them, but following the groups of screaming young girls, and crazy paparazzi, we snapped photos of unidentified British stars- it was so much fun.
After that we headed back to the hostel to get our free drink at the bar in the lobby. After finishing the drink and experiencing the creepy eurotrash envirnoment, we ran upstairs and went to bed.
The next morning, our last day- we were up and out around 11 again. Our first stop of the day was the London Castle. This was the site of many monumental times in British history- but the most important to me being that Anne Boleyn was beheaded there!!!! I know that sounds weird, but for all of you that know me- you know I am obsessed with the story of the Boleyn sisters and the Tudors. I can't believe that I got to stand somewhere where Anne and Mary Boleyn once stood! Although it was a little rainy, it was super cool. We then made our way over the tower bridge towards the London Bridge. Under the tower bridge was a creepy haunted house that we saw from outside- and it looked very scary. It was monumental to see the London Bridge, but not the most impressive site I've ever seen. Due to the typical English weather, we ran for cover in a nice inside mall and sat and had our usual lunch. After that we walked past the Clink, the 1st ever prison that gave all other prisons their name- it was pretty creepy, and pricey to enter to we kept walking haha. We finally made it to the Globe theater, which is the site of where many of Shakespeare's first plays were put on stage. Although it was burnt down and rebuilt- it was a pretty nice theater and cool to be in such a historical place- especially being a big fan of Shakespeare.
After that, we made our way over to Westerminster Abbey for the choir mass at 5pm. There weren't very many of us there, but the choir was absolutely unbeleivable and there was a little mass to go along with it. It was interesting to see how connected some people felt with the church, and it gave me a warm feeling inside. I felt comfortable and connected in such a massive, historical and beautiful church. Almost every Queen's corrination and wedding has been held there, and it was inspiring. I decided I wanted to start going to church more often.
After freshening up at the hostel, we went to dinner at Pret a Manger which I have now become obsessed with and most likely spend all of my money at this summer in the city. All of the salads and sadwichs are made fresh on site with really cool combinations in flavors and tastes, and if they have leftovers at the end of the day they donate all the food to local charities- I am in love with this establishment. After that we headed back to the hostel for another girls night in complete with shortbread cookies, grapes, cheese, trashy London newspapers and girl talk. It was a typical rainly London evening and it was great to spend it with my friends.
We rested up and headed out early the next morning for our flight to Dublin!
Ireland is next!!
After the tour was over we hopped onto the tube and made our way over to Harrods. IT WAS AMAZING!! The store is absolutely huge and we spent a few hours just walking around in awe starring at everything. We of course started on the floor with the food and I got a slab of handmade fudge- it was sinful. I also got a little green bag with godl 'Harrods' lettering on it, and a little Harrods bear that came in the bag! How could I leave Harrods without something? We spent a lot of time walking around the womens clothing section. It was so awesome to see all of the designers collections as they would be in their own showrooms. There was only about 1 of each piece of clothing and the dresses for many of the collections were absolutely beautiful. I feel in love with the D&G line in particular- typical. We also went over to the LG room- which is where they have a lot of new technological devices on display. We got to play with the new HP all touch screen computer. It was so cool! I'm not sure if they have that out in the US already and I've just been missing out, but it was a pretty sweet piece of technology. In the sporting goods section we experienced a very interesting cultural divide involving a middle eastern family fighting amongst themselves. A lot of the real shoppers at Harrods come from the Middle East because they are some of the only people that can afford the items sold there. Also, the owner for Harrods is from the Middle East and apparently his son was dating Princess Diana at the time of her death (?). I learned some pretty interesting things that day!
After Harrods- we headed over on the tube to the Piccadilly Circus area....where we went to....the...LONDON ABERCROMBIE AND FITCH!!!!!!!!!!
I am not going to lie, this made my spring break. It is ABSOLUTELY huge and amazing and I spent 20mins just walking around, shaking, sniffing, spraying myself, dancing, and touching the clothes. My goodness it has been a long time and I cannot wait to go back to work when I get home haha. When we were walking out, I went up to one of the greeting models and asked him if he would take a picture with me for my stores at home (I just really wanted to take a pic with him). After reviewing the picture, I came to realize that there is a huge possibility that he was the model in the poster that you see when you first enter the store- wonderfullll.
After a day of mayhem, we went back and freshened up at our hostel.
Later that evening, we went to dinner at a little English Pub and I got fish and chips with mushy peas!!! It was sooo yummy. The chips are actually french fries and the mushy peas were a bright green, like split pea soup. We also got more shortbread cookies for dessert.
After reading up in our free trashy London newspaper, we came to discover that the Marlee and Me premier was going on in London. It was 9pm once we were done with dinner, so we figured it was the perfect time to head over to the premier, in hopes that we would see some stars on their way out. Although we did not catch Jen An or Owen Wilson, we did see a boat load of famous British people. It was actually quite hilarious because we had no idea who any of them, but following the groups of screaming young girls, and crazy paparazzi, we snapped photos of unidentified British stars- it was so much fun.
After that we headed back to the hostel to get our free drink at the bar in the lobby. After finishing the drink and experiencing the creepy eurotrash envirnoment, we ran upstairs and went to bed.
The next morning, our last day- we were up and out around 11 again. Our first stop of the day was the London Castle. This was the site of many monumental times in British history- but the most important to me being that Anne Boleyn was beheaded there!!!! I know that sounds weird, but for all of you that know me- you know I am obsessed with the story of the Boleyn sisters and the Tudors. I can't believe that I got to stand somewhere where Anne and Mary Boleyn once stood! Although it was a little rainy, it was super cool. We then made our way over the tower bridge towards the London Bridge. Under the tower bridge was a creepy haunted house that we saw from outside- and it looked very scary. It was monumental to see the London Bridge, but not the most impressive site I've ever seen. Due to the typical English weather, we ran for cover in a nice inside mall and sat and had our usual lunch. After that we walked past the Clink, the 1st ever prison that gave all other prisons their name- it was pretty creepy, and pricey to enter to we kept walking haha. We finally made it to the Globe theater, which is the site of where many of Shakespeare's first plays were put on stage. Although it was burnt down and rebuilt- it was a pretty nice theater and cool to be in such a historical place- especially being a big fan of Shakespeare.
After that, we made our way over to Westerminster Abbey for the choir mass at 5pm. There weren't very many of us there, but the choir was absolutely unbeleivable and there was a little mass to go along with it. It was interesting to see how connected some people felt with the church, and it gave me a warm feeling inside. I felt comfortable and connected in such a massive, historical and beautiful church. Almost every Queen's corrination and wedding has been held there, and it was inspiring. I decided I wanted to start going to church more often.
After freshening up at the hostel, we went to dinner at Pret a Manger which I have now become obsessed with and most likely spend all of my money at this summer in the city. All of the salads and sadwichs are made fresh on site with really cool combinations in flavors and tastes, and if they have leftovers at the end of the day they donate all the food to local charities- I am in love with this establishment. After that we headed back to the hostel for another girls night in complete with shortbread cookies, grapes, cheese, trashy London newspapers and girl talk. It was a typical rainly London evening and it was great to spend it with my friends.
We rested up and headed out early the next morning for our flight to Dublin!
Ireland is next!!
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