So, I know this is super delayed and I should have written this one a long time ago and now that I have started I realize it probably would have been much simpler if I did it then because I am trying to remember everything we did, everything I loved and everything I thought was really weird about London. This was truly a trip of a lifetime with my best friends. Sam, Lorien and I were going to visit our best friend Brittany who had been living in England since September... However it actually felt like years. Maybe that was just me.
So, we departed from Canada on February 15th, I am gonna say around 1:00 o'clock in the afternoon. We were prepared to land in London the next day at around 6 or 6:30 in the morning. I HATE FLYING. Like hate it. It scares me so much even though I am like 99% more likely to die walking or driving my car I am still petrified of it and I'm not really sure why. So I take these pills I get from the doctor for anxiety. Needless to say I was not looking forward to this long as flight to England. but I was very much excited to see Brittany. The flight was long and extremely uncomfortable. We all used each other as pillows and I think Sam and I got a little bit of sleep but I think Lorien was S.O.L when it came to the sleeping department.
We landed at Gatwick airport right on time. We had to go through all the security crap again and had to tell them why we were visiting... WELL TO TRAFFIC DRUGS OBVIOUSLY. Just kidding. Seriously. We all told them the same thing and then we were on our way. We waited for our luggage and then we had to go find a coach bus to take us into London. We were about an hour and a half away from the city. From an outsiders perspective, if you ever wanna see something funny, watch 3 young girls in a foreign country, tired and kind of grumpy try to manoeuvre their way through a huge airport to find a freaking bus. Finally, we found it, thankfully their were tons of seats still available, probably because it was 6:30 in the morning. We had to head to our hostel where Brittany was going to meet us. Well, I can't speak for the other two beauties but I was SO excited to see Britt, it had felt like years since I saw her last but I WAS TIRED. I had previously written Britt a letter saying that once I land she should really let me sleep before we attempt to do anything. Which anyone who knows me well enough would agree with. Lol. We rode the bus through the smaller towns and eventually made our way into inner London. The thing about their buses? Nothing different, just as big as ours here but their roads?!?!? Holy Eff. I have no idea how we maneuvered through some of the roads this bus took, I swear they were like the size of our sidewalks. Eventually we got to the bus depot and then our next task was to find a taxi. OMG THE TAXI'S ARE SO FUNNY! They don't have passenger seats at the front of he vehicle there is space for bags up there. Also, they don't have trunks, everything just goes right in the back seat with the passengers. They also have little fold down chairs if there are more than two people in the back. Kind of smart actually. But a lot different than ours here.
We took the taxi all through the city and the hostel was only about a 12 minute drive. We went through about 14 traffic circles I think (OK, maybe 4) but still, so much different than home. We drove past Buckingham Palace and I almost cried a little. The flag was up which I knew meant the Queen was home! I couldn't wait to go there. Finally we made it to our hostel. It was called Rest Up London and I think staying at this particular place actually changed my life. But I will get into that a little later. Our taxi driver was the sweetest old man, he asked us about Canada and then we talked about snow if I remember correctly. (surprise surprise!) Sam had texted Brittany to let her know when we were leaving the airport which meant she would be waiting for us at the hostel. Finally around 9 we arrived at our final destination and honestly at that point I was ready for a nap. Lorien paid the taxi driver and we began the little trek into the hostel. When we first walked in their were vending machines on the wall in front of us and behind. We continued forward down a wide hallway where we saw the reception desk, Britt said she was in the lobby so we looked around. To the left was the reception desk. straight ahead were stairs which only meant one thing Brittany had to be to the right. And there she was, sitting at a table waiting for us. I let go of my bag and gave her the biggest hug, twice. (once for me, once for her mama.) I was so excited to see her, I got a few tears in my eyes but managed to contain myself as much as I could and didn't cry. To some that might be easy, for me. Not so much. So we headed to the elevator that would only take 2 people and one child at a time. So... We took our turns because none of us are child sized, so we had to do 2 at a time. We were on the 3rd floor I THINK. We walked down the hallway to our huge room awaiting us. HAHA. Just kidding..... This is it! Our humble abode for the next week.
There is no extra room in there! That's for sure. Two bunk beds on each side and a little sink as soon as you walk in. But we didn't need anything else, we were hardly in the room anyways. With this being the case, we decided to embark on our first adventure. Breakfast. We walked across the street to this weird little diner thing and decided to eat there. Also, English breakfasts? Not really my cup of tea. Most of them come with beans, tomatoes and eggs. ALL my favourite things really. Not only did ours come with these things but it also came with these guys:
Yup, those are two very very passed out guys. One even had food in his hand still and the other really just was about to drop is face into his plate. Apparently there, if a restaurant doesn't sell alcohol you can just bring your own in, which is what these two wonderful gentleman did. They just slept and snored the whole time while we were eating our breakfast.
After breakfast we decided to go for a nap, we slept for a couple of hours and then Brittany was ready to go again ! No real surprise, she never seems to sleep.... And always has so much energy. This time it was her idea to go and find Hampton Court Palace. I was so excited to see this place, I had heard so many amazing things about it. Britt said according to her phone it wasn't a very far walk at all. So we began our next adventure and walked through a bunch of random streets. Lorien and I were really confused we didn't think that it could possibly be this close to our hostel. We walked around for a bit and Britt said, well it says we are here. We looked around didn't see a palace anywhere. Or anywhere it could possibly be. And then we looked up and saw it. "The Hampton Court Palace" we were there alright, except instead of a palace it was really just a bar that was shut down or just really closed lol..... First tourist mistake................
After that little debacle we decided to walk to the river. We walked and walked and looked at all of the amazing architecture and houses. They were so much smaller than home, and built out of stone and brick. So so beautiful. Before we knew it we had made our way to River Thames. The city was connected with the most beautiful and spectacular bridges. We were shocked by the beauty of the city we were in. And then we looked up.
So, we departed from Canada on February 15th, I am gonna say around 1:00 o'clock in the afternoon. We were prepared to land in London the next day at around 6 or 6:30 in the morning. I HATE FLYING. Like hate it. It scares me so much even though I am like 99% more likely to die walking or driving my car I am still petrified of it and I'm not really sure why. So I take these pills I get from the doctor for anxiety. Needless to say I was not looking forward to this long as flight to England. but I was very much excited to see Brittany. The flight was long and extremely uncomfortable. We all used each other as pillows and I think Sam and I got a little bit of sleep but I think Lorien was S.O.L when it came to the sleeping department.
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| Sam, me and Lorien |
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| ALMOST THERE |
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| Me with all of our luggage on the side. |
We took the taxi all through the city and the hostel was only about a 12 minute drive. We went through about 14 traffic circles I think (OK, maybe 4) but still, so much different than home. We drove past Buckingham Palace and I almost cried a little. The flag was up which I knew meant the Queen was home! I couldn't wait to go there. Finally we made it to our hostel. It was called Rest Up London and I think staying at this particular place actually changed my life. But I will get into that a little later. Our taxi driver was the sweetest old man, he asked us about Canada and then we talked about snow if I remember correctly. (surprise surprise!) Sam had texted Brittany to let her know when we were leaving the airport which meant she would be waiting for us at the hostel. Finally around 9 we arrived at our final destination and honestly at that point I was ready for a nap. Lorien paid the taxi driver and we began the little trek into the hostel. When we first walked in their were vending machines on the wall in front of us and behind. We continued forward down a wide hallway where we saw the reception desk, Britt said she was in the lobby so we looked around. To the left was the reception desk. straight ahead were stairs which only meant one thing Brittany had to be to the right. And there she was, sitting at a table waiting for us. I let go of my bag and gave her the biggest hug, twice. (once for me, once for her mama.) I was so excited to see her, I got a few tears in my eyes but managed to contain myself as much as I could and didn't cry. To some that might be easy, for me. Not so much. So we headed to the elevator that would only take 2 people and one child at a time. So... We took our turns because none of us are child sized, so we had to do 2 at a time. We were on the 3rd floor I THINK. We walked down the hallway to our huge room awaiting us. HAHA. Just kidding..... This is it! Our humble abode for the next week.
There is no extra room in there! That's for sure. Two bunk beds on each side and a little sink as soon as you walk in. But we didn't need anything else, we were hardly in the room anyways. With this being the case, we decided to embark on our first adventure. Breakfast. We walked across the street to this weird little diner thing and decided to eat there. Also, English breakfasts? Not really my cup of tea. Most of them come with beans, tomatoes and eggs. ALL my favourite things really. Not only did ours come with these things but it also came with these guys:
After breakfast we decided to go for a nap, we slept for a couple of hours and then Brittany was ready to go again ! No real surprise, she never seems to sleep.... And always has so much energy. This time it was her idea to go and find Hampton Court Palace. I was so excited to see this place, I had heard so many amazing things about it. Britt said according to her phone it wasn't a very far walk at all. So we began our next adventure and walked through a bunch of random streets. Lorien and I were really confused we didn't think that it could possibly be this close to our hostel. We walked around for a bit and Britt said, well it says we are here. We looked around didn't see a palace anywhere. Or anywhere it could possibly be. And then we looked up and saw it. "The Hampton Court Palace" we were there alright, except instead of a palace it was really just a bar that was shut down or just really closed lol..... First tourist mistake................
After that little debacle we decided to walk to the river. We walked and walked and looked at all of the amazing architecture and houses. They were so much smaller than home, and built out of stone and brick. So so beautiful. Before we knew it we had made our way to River Thames. The city was connected with the most beautiful and spectacular bridges. We were shocked by the beauty of the city we were in. And then we looked up.
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| Lorien, Sam and Britt |
There it was, Big Ben. It hit me, I was in London, a dream come true and with my 3 best friends. I knew that this was going to be a wonderful adventure. Boy was I right.
xoxo
To Be Continued......
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