A Fantastic New Years Eve

When I returned to London after Christmas, I had my second visitor only a day after I arrived!  My friend Leah from Chicago came to celebrate New Years Eve in London with me.  I was out doing errands and took the tube to meet her at our planned spot - and apparently she had to chase after me as we were on the same train, but I was walking at my new London speed!

After settling in, we headed to Covent Garden to get beers at the upstairs bar - unfortunately it was too cold and rainy to sit outside, but we were able to snag some seats inside instead - and then headed to a nearby Italian restaurant for a delicious meal.

On New Year's eve, we had a full day's schedule! We spent our morning attending the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace.  I hadn't been there since I studied abroad, and it was just as impressive so many years later.  On our way to the British Museum, we made the requisite stop at Pret before boarding the bus that winds its way right through the heart of London.  We spent a lot of time at the museum, needing a proper tea break to get our energy up!  Some of the things that caught my eye this time around were the Olympic Medals for London 2012, and a miniatures room that I had never made it to before.  We skipped most of the Egyptian rooms because they were so crowded, but the Chinese rooms with all the porcelain and silk never disappoint, as do the rooms with whole sections of the Parthenon from Athens.

The Countdown Begins

After our full day, we readied ourselves for our NYE celebration!  We gathered snacks and drinks (including a can of pre-mixed whisky and Coke and a bottle of champagne) and got prime seats on Waterloo Bridge, overlooking the London Eye and Big Ben where the fireworks were going to be set off from. The fireworks were absolutely beautiful, and we made some new friends by sharing our umbrellas and champagne!  The Tube was a mess afterwards, so we just decided to walk the 45 minutes or so back to my flat - and the people watching made it quite an enjoyable walk!

Happy New Year!

It doesn't get more London than this.

On New Year's Day, we both decided to sleep in a little, then geared ourselves up for another day of sightseeing.  We visited Tower Bridge and the Tower of London, Trafalgar Square, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and the Brompton  Oratory all before a late lunch.  Along part of our walk, we got to watch some of the New Year's Day Parade - complete with marching bands brought over from the US.

After lunch at a pub called "Bunch of Grapes", we went to Harrods to look at things that cost more than most people make in year, then headed to church and out for a drink with a few friends from Westminster Cathedral.

On Leah's last day in the UK, we got up before dawn and took a tour bus to see Stonehenge and Bath.  We were lucky enough to have a beautiful (but cold) day and a great tour guide who even recited the entire poem "The Highwayman" as we passed through towns like the one mentioned in the poem.  We took some great pictures at Stonehenge, and got to see the Roman Baths in Bath, getting a lot of information for the audio guides given to us at each place!  Such a lot of learning for a day trip out of the city! At the end of the day back in London, we made a visit to Brick Lane, and ate our fill of amazing Indian Food.

Leah headed out early the next morning - only two hours before my next visitor, Heather, arrived! More on Heather's visit in an upcoming post.  

More than just a pile of rocks - such cool history and meaning!

My First Visitors!

Oh my goodness – I cannot believe it’s almost been a month since I last updated this space! I have been blessed with a wonderfully busy and visitor-filled holiday season, and am just getting myself organized again! 

My first visitors – Pei Pei (a friend from work) and a friend of hers from college – arrived the Friday of the weekend before Christmas. Although we headed out for a late dinner, after a stroll along Regent street to see the Christmas lights we all caught a second wind and danced until early the next morning at a place I first discovered when I studied here – Tiger Tiger!

On Saturday we took a LONG walk to see some of the best sights along the Thames: the Tower of London, Tower Bridge, the Globe Theatre, Tate Modern, the London Eye and Parliament. Along the way we walked through Borough market, which was foodie heaven! We sampled some Empanadas before getting back to the river walk. Later, we browsed the Christmas market near the London Eye, and only held out against the many temptations by the promise of our delicious dinner to come. For dinner, we got dressed up and went to Inamo – a pan-Asian restaurant in Soho highly rated for its food and known for its innovative ordering system. We got a little carried away choosing from the touch screen menu with photos, but everything we ate was amazing!

Me and Pei Pei in front of Parliament.

A Snack?

Sunday morning we did a bit of shopping at Petticoat Lane market and Spitalfields Market near my flat. We found some great deals and unique Christmas presents! Later, we all experienced our first full “Afternoon Tea” – complete with crust-less sandwiches, scones, clotted cream and plenty of milky tea. It was a very filling meal, and it allowed us to get to the theater with plenty of time to spare. We had booked tickets to see Thriller Live – an all-singing, all-dancing concert/tribute to Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5. The performers were excellent, with different singers doing the various styles of music, and included one guy who had both the voice and the moves!

The girls stayed another day, but I had to work and attend one final Christmas party, but it was so nice to be able to spend some time with friends during the Christmas season in London! I spent the rest of the week finishing up as much as I could at work, as well as my shopping, but found some time to go to the “Winter Wonderland” in Hyde Park with some friends I met through work. I had heard nothing but rave reviews, and it lived up to its hype. There is nothing that brings out the Christmas spirit and child inside like riding some carnival rides.

Merry Christmas from London!

Happy New Year!

I'm back in London after Christmas in St. Louis, and have been busy with all of my wonderful visitors!  I've posted some pictures that you can link to from the main blog page, but I promise to catch up with details soon!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!