While in London | part 1

Hey friends! It's been a while...Like two months awhile.... Well, I'm going to take a stab at recording my trip to England and Ireland back in May.

Ahh, it was such a fun trip. this is actually kind of nice getting to sit down and reflect on the trip. Of course it's making me want to hop on a plane and head back now...

I've been dreaming of a trip to Ireland ever since I waved goodbye to my dear Northern Irish roommate of one year at school. It was definitely on my list --- HIGH on my list. obvs.

Back in January, one of my other school friends and I began to seriously discuss our travel to see my friend in Northern Ireland. I'd been setting aside money since the previous May, so I was feeling *sort of* ready to take the plunge and make the big purchase - the plane ticket. Whenever on the computer that skyscanner tab was open. searching searching searching..... it became an addiction..kind of distracting when you're trying to finish out your school year.

So we finally booked our tickets with a little back and forth trying to determine the dates. And it was set officially - we'd be off for three weeks...

38,000 feet and -40degrees F tends to bring a little ice.

Our first glimpse of Ireland: Arriving with the sun in Dublin - beautiful. Several hares were hoping around the air fields.

Our main flight arrived in Dublin, and we flew via Ryanair both ways into London Gatwick. Which is about an hour bus ride from London - Victoria Station. That worked out perfectly for us. Flying into Gatwick was cheaper than Heathrow and I think the bus was 10 pounds. We were exhausted by the time we got in because at that point we had been travelling for about two days straight. Being on a college student budget, we booked the cheapest - but most round-about way - to finally arrive in England.

The sun was shining and our eyes were drooping as we swayed along with the bus, nestled into the leather seats. I tried to keep my eyes open to finally catch a glimpse of some English countryside. I seemed to nod off even when I didn't realize it.

We hopped off at Victoria station and I bought a little sandwich from a side shop to fill my starving stomach. We wandered around definitely looking lost, trying to find the bus stop that would drop us at the Swiss Cottage station. We had purchased Oyster cards upon arriving in Victoria Station and that definitely ended up being the best and cheapest option for our three day stay. Later we realized it would have been a lot quicker to have taken the tube to Swiss Cottage because the bus stopped every few feet it seemed.

Finally, we reached our stop and drifted around the streets searching for Palmer's Lodge Swiss Cottage. A middle-aged man having a smoke break on a stoop noticed we seemed to be lost and obviously searching for a hostel with our bags so he called out and pointed us in the right direction, thankfully.

After checking in, we dropped our bags off in the 28-bed room and headed off in search of food. I'm sad to say the first night there we ate Subway...I know I know - how could we our first day in the United Kingdom. but we were exhausted from being awake for so long and ready for a hot shower and sleep.

The sun was still out, but we were ready to get some sleep! Goodnight London...

The next morning I woke up ready to see the city. We dressed and headed out, umbrellas in hand. First, we planned to see the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace, which started at 11:30am.

By then the grey clouds let down a drizzle and the chilly air blew our hair into our faces. We took the tube over to the station near Buckingham palace, arriving there a little early.

Side note: The tube is incredibly easy to take and from day 1 we never found ourselves on the wrong train. I love how the public transportation is set up in London. They have it down.

Our umbrellas kept a bit of cold and wind off us as we walked through the park near the palace. By the time we arrived there, a line of people were already along the fence waiting to watch the changing of the guard. We found a spot near the right corner. It was chilly with the cold wind and drizzle - a true England experience.

"Tut tut, it looks like rain..."

A few minutes later, I noticed a police on a small motorcycle block off the corner that turned towards the palace. I decided to film with my phone as I saw several people walk to the edge of the road and hoped maybe we'd see some royalty as everyone does when they head to the palace... ;) A few seconds later a dark green car drove by and the Queen herself was sitting in the back right seat. I couldn't believe it!! I just saw the queen! Another lady there started running after the car screaming "It's the queen!" over and over and waving her hands in the air.

The two cars zipped in and behind a gate inside the palace. We were so excited. The changing of the guard ended up being cancelled a few minutes later, but we didn't even care. We'd seen the Queen!

Walking through St. James. I love how many gardens are throughout the city.

Once we heard the event was cancelled, we decided to head to Westminster Abbey. We arrived and discovered that they weren't opening until 1pm. We walked a little while hoping to find a good, relatively cheap cafe and settled on a place right near the London Eye.

Earlier in the day, we'd decided that one of the places we would pay entrance to would be Westminster Abbey. Honestly I didn't even know all the history the Abbey held. I'm so glad that we decided to visit. If you are in London, it is a must.  I would recommend setting aside at least two hours to explore the Abbey. They also give you handheld sets to listen to as you walk through. It's fascinating to hear the history and all the famous people and events that have occurred there.

The famous red double-decker bus! They are everywhere.

Following the abbey, we went over to Trafalgar square and the National gallery to see some famous works of art. Monet, Picaso...

So tourist, but when in London, you have to

  

our station

our nightly pre-bed routine :)

In just the first day we had covered a lot of ground: Buckingham palace, the Queen, Westminster Abbey, London Eye, Big Ben, Houses of Parliment, Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery. I went to bed happy excited for the following days. I already loved this city.