Hi friends! I absolutely love writing trip report posts and since I haven’t gotten to do them very often over the past couple of years, this one is going to be a two-parter. Also, we did a lot of stuff in London so there’s lots to write about! This was my first experience traveling outside of America (I know, I know) and safe to say I have been seriously bitten by the travel bug and I cannot wait to plan many more trips! London was the perfect place for my first international trip for lots of reasons, mostly because I didn’t have to worry about any language barriers. And since I’ve spent a fair amount of time in New York and other major cities with functioning public transportation (so, not LA), I felt comfortable navigating the trains.
When we arrived in London, we headed directly to our hotel, the Fitzrovia Hotel in Fitzroy. I knew absolutely nothing when I picked this hotel and the neighborhood, I just liked that it was near a tube stop and had a bunch of restaurants within walking distance. It turned out to be a really great location and I would definitely stay there again (though when I go back, I will probably pick a new neighborhood because it’s fun to explore!). We didn’t do much that first day, other than grab a quick coffee and a nap before ordering room service for dinner and getting to bed pretty early.
Tuesday was our first full day and we started off with a bang at the Tower of London (is that a bad pun?). I have always been interested in the Henry VIII story (I feel like that is very millennial of me–he and his wives had a moment in the 90s/2000s) so it was cool to see the site of so many major events in person. We also waited in line to see the Crown Jewels which was cool, but also holy shit Britain has stolen so much from other countries. I knew that already, but it was kind of eye-opening to see it all in person.
After the Tower, we went to Borough Market and got some wine and cheese and a delicious rose cocktail and had a quick little lunch. It was a cool place to people watch and I wish we would have had some more time to really explore and try some more food, because everything we had was delicious.
Our final stop for the day was probably my favorite thing we did, a tour of the Globe. Now the original Globe burned down and the second Globe was basically destroyed by the Puritans in the mid 1600s. The theater wasn’t rebuilt until 1997, and while it obviously isn’t an exact replica, it’s pretty close. The tour was really interesting and we actually got to watch some of the rehearsal that was happening inside the theater (which is why I don’t have any pics from inside), which made my inner theater nerd very happy. It was super cool and I will definitely make sure to see a show there on my next trip.
We woke up early on Wednesday because my brother (who was in the country on a tour with his band and came down to visit with us) had to catch the train. After we saw him off, we headed over to Kensington Gardens and saw the palace. I’m not too fond of the royals who live there, but the grounds were beautiful, as was the statue of Princess Diana.
We headed over to Harrod’s after that and had lunch on their rooftop patio. It was one of the pricier meals we had, but the view made it worth it!
And Wednesday night we did my second favorite thing, going to see & Juliet! I had no idea what to expect from the show, I just knew I’d heard good things and it’s coming to Broadway soon. I’m so glad I saw this original version and I can’t wait to see it again in New York!
We managed to cram a lot into our first few days in London and they ended up being some of my favorite things we did! Stay tuned for part two!
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