London Calling

Ever since Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen went to London in 2001, I have been dreaming of the day I could step a rain boot clad foot in the city. Finally, 12 years later I achieved that dream and made my first, but not last, visit to London! After a rough sleepless flight to Heathrow from Charlotte, Leigh and I checked in to our hotel and crashed. When we finally awoke from the dead we bundled up and wandered out of our hotel, The Thistle Marble Arch, to Oxford Street. As we stood on the corner of one of the best shopping streets in Europe, across the street from Hyde Park, watching red double-decker busses and black taxi cabs whiz past it finally hit me that I was finally in the #1 city on my bucket list! 

We woke up the next morning refreshed and ready to explore! We purchased a 48 hour hop on hop off bus pass so we road the loop toward Buckingham Palace to watch the changing of the guards. We arrived about an hour before the ceremony, but there was already a small crowd around the gates. What a site to behold! To stand in front of such a historic palace and think about the history of the city and people that have come and gone from that palace will really make one stop and stare in awe. As we were standing at the base of the Victoria Memorial, all of a sudden a parade of Royal horses appears from the side of the palace. Moments later we watched a black sedan depart the palace with a woman in the backseat who resembled the Queen, but we laughed it off until suddenly the British flag was lowered from the top of the Buckingham Palace and replaced with a Union Jack flag which is the symbol of when the Queen is in residence and when she's not. Leigh and I stopped laughing and stared at each other...we saw the Queen of England! 

We rode the bus to Westminster Square and got off to see the infamous Big Ben and Parlaiment, the River Thymes with the London Eye, and Westminster Abbey. As we passed stood on the corner waiting to cross the street, Big Ben struck 12 noon. Listening to that clock tower strike solidified itself as one of my "Ah Ha" moments in London that I will never forget. 

The afternoon was spent at the Tower of London getting sized for our new jewels from the royal collection. Ok ok, they just let us look at the jewelry. I didn't realize how large the Tower of London was or the history behind it until costing since our sole purpose was the see the Crown Jewels. 

Our second day in London was my personal favorite - although I think I could have been happy to stay in London forever! We strolled through Hyde Park to  catch the bus to Kensington Palace. I'll just admit it thrilled me to no end to wander through Kensington Palace knowing that Prince William, Kate, and baby George were somewhere on the same property as I was! We took our time visiting all of the King and Queens apartments. We got to see the Royal Dress Gallery and iconic fashions from Queen Elizabeth, Princess Dianna, and Princess Anne. My favorite, though,was Queen Victorias' apartment. I was captivated by her story of growing up in the palace and her love story with Prince Albert. 

We treated ourselves to high tea at The Orangery near Kensington Palace and that was truly a highlight of our time! Princess Dianna used to entertain guests at The Orangery so we felt quite special to be able to have high tea there. After tea, we rode the bus through the South Kensington neighborhood to the granddaddy of all department stores, Harrods! Leigh promised herself 30 years ago that she would never step foot in that congested 5 story madhouse again but...she loves me! We pushed through the masses and made it to the specialty tea selections where we stocked up and bought a cheesy token Harrods coffee mug. We survived shopping for an hour before we escaped back outside to see Harrods all lit up with Christmas lights! 

While I only had 2 full days in London, it was just as magical as I anticipated it would be! I was able to see the highlights of London, but quickly discovered that I barely scratched the surface of the historic city. My tea canister is almost empty so it's about time to begin planning my return trip to London!