Travel stories | London
Travel stories | London, UK
So, I started to write this blog back on 24 September 2023 to discover on 21 November I hadn’t finished! I was having too good a time in London to spend time writing/downloading photos etc. Anyway, here I am in Canberra on a Wednesday night at 11.20pm enjoying my trip again selecting photos to accompany my tips for visiting London.
Where to stay | My top recommendation again is Plum Guide. This is a new accommodation group giving Airbnb a run for their money. We stayed in Camberwell which is in Zone 2. It’s a little bit further out (30-40 mins) and if you don’t mind walking 6-10 mins to a bus / train stop and want affordable long stay accommodation then this will suit you.
Where to eat | oh! my! we ate rather well in London. Such a suprise for me as all I remember when I last visited (I was 22) it was stodgy, white food! It’s definitely much better now and you are spoilt for choices. I can’t recommend every place we went to but here’s a few standouts:
Toad Bakery for one of the best pastries! Okay, there are lots of fantastic places but this stood out! It was just down from our apartment and worth the wait (a long queue around the corner).
Tapas / Drinks / Dinners | there are so many good pubs you can’t go wrong - Blue Posts in Soho. We tended to drink a bevy or two, maybe a light tapas and people watch. We chanced a place near the South Bank called the Green Room. While the outdoor garden was chockers with after work, well dressed people enjoying a hot Summer’s night, we chose to eat indoors. The gourmet pizza, wines and top service made it a very relaxing night. Nearby the Ferris wheel and main buildings were lit up with reflections glistening in the Thames river. Another little local pub near us was The Victoria Inn. We didn’t realise but you can stay there too. We recommend the fish and chips with pea mash washed down with local brews.
What to do | Gosh! we spent 14 days in London and didn’t even scratch the surface. But it was long enough to enjoy and plan to go back soon one day. We were both smitten by how welcoming everyone was. From friendly chats on the red bus with locals to anyone working in public transportation - everyone made us feel at home.
My top recommendation is the Victoria and Albert Museum. Go underground on the tube for an adventure to wind through tunnels and suddenly enter a grand building without going through the front doors! Allow plenty of time to visit. I went 3 times and it still wasn’t enough. It’s a lifetime of exploring but you can speed date too. I lucked in with a special exhibition Diva - costumes, lyric sheet music, shoes, books - you name it, this show had everything. From its earliest history including Singer Marian Anderson in her defining moment in 1939, to a very glam Rihanna at the Met Gala - the definition of Diva certainly left me wondering about historical moments vs celebrity moments.
My next recommendations are the British Museum and the National Gallery. Both had incredible displays with very different purposes and all I can say is that again I was overwhelmed with both only wishing I had more time to explore the collections.
Historic Royal Places | You can’t go to London and not see something Royal wise. While I’ve been before to Buckingham Palace when I was 22, this time I went to Kensington Palace to see Crown to Couture. All I can say is that I was smitten with all the outfits, the interiors of the Palace they were shown in and I had a lovely lunch afterwards only wishing I had my girlfriends with me. We would have talked non-stop!
London is another walkable city. While we walked everywhere, we did rely on transport which was easy to tap on and off with our eftpos cards. There are new dedicated bicycle lanes as they encourage less vehicles to combat congestions. I so loved the red buses, tubes and trains as it all came flooding back how much I did love living in London for 1 year back in the late 80s.
Shopping | My fave shop & other stories is actually from Paris & Stockholm and LA. They have beautiful, quality clothing, accessories and a great budget skin/hair range called Ordinary. Pretty much all the art galleries have gift shops - big and small - very affordable and even better supporting designers and makers in fashion and the arts and crafts.
A hidden gem? The Courtald Gallery - one of the greatest art collections housed in Somerset House. This is a small gallery but it rivals some of the big names and if you want less crowds and read the labels in peace - go here! The other lesser known gallery is Royal Academy of Arts which has free exhibitions/displays.
Well, I haven’t included everything … I could write a novel just on London alone. We even had a side trip to Oxford and what a pretty little town! If you read my wanderlust journal you would see how much I love to travel. We are already planning our next trip in 2025 - Vienna and Spain. Hola!
Anne xx
PS in case you missed any of my previous travels please head here for cities / towns in Austria, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, UK and Scotland.
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