London: The Sights
In Part One, I shared with you the experience of getting to London for our first-anniversary trip (and the nightmare that greeted us — Hi, rat traps. Shook. Now the real fun begins.
We spent a total of six full days in London. And we saw maybe, 5-10% of the city. In all honesty, I didn’t realize how BIG the city actually is. Sure, in terms of population, I was aware — but actual land, I had no clue. So, it’s huge, and like any big city, plagued with traffic (although not as bad as I was led to believe), but it was relatively easy getting around.
Getting Around
Most people we talked to were shocked that we didn’t use the Tube to get around. I’ve heard nothing but great things about the efficiency, but ultimately, we opted to stick to the street level and use our time in the back of the black cabs as a bit of reprieve from the hustle and bustle of the crowds. It was like (much-needed) 20-minute meditations here and there throughout the day with very minimal talking, if any.
Speaking of which, the little black cabs around London are amazing. The drivers (obviously) know the ins and outs of all the roads (unlike being in the back of an Uber — with a driver who’s focused more on the map on their phone than the actual road), and even with seemingly aggressive driving, it’s like everything just works — no honking, shouting, or expletives. Ok, maybe just once. (And for once, not by me!) It felt like magic when merging worked like a zipper. Imagine that!
A little more on the black cabs: Prices were a bit more than an Uber, but the back of the cab feels like a little oasis with the plexiglass partition. There’s LOADS of room since there are a couple of stadium-style seats that face backward and remain upright while not in use, and my two favorite things: no overpowering air fresheners or overly chatty drivers. Bless.
These were the areas we spent our time on this trip. We’ll definitely have to come back and spend more time exploring. There’s so much city to see, so please don’t view this as a definitive guide to London — merely a jumping-off point.
The ratings
I rated each area and/or attraction from one to five flags with my friend Erica who’s going to be visiting this month, in mind. Again, my point of view, and not a definitive guide. Haters, don’t come for me.
Ratings are as follow:
🇬🇧: (Probably) pass
🇬🇧 🇬🇧: If you’re nearby
🇬🇧 🇬🇧 🇬🇧 : Interesting
🇬🇧 🇬🇧 🇬🇧 🇬🇧: Good use of time
🇬🇧 🇬🇧 🇬🇧 🇬🇧 🇬🇧: Must see
*Note: My Google research on the places listed below was conducted in the back of cabs when traveling between our activities. While I assume that all information is correct and verifiable, I haven’t dug too deep into doing so. Silly American.
Covent Garden
My ratings may be (slightly) biased here, but Covent Garden was my favorite area of London. Only a five-minute walk from our hotel in Leicester Square, the streets were lined with buildings boasting romantic architecture that practically sang to you as you walked by. Small alleyways with string lights, cafés, and mom-and-pop shops dotted the walk to the Piazza — which is actually the first modern square in London! Out of five, I rate this gem of a neighborhood six. I kept looking for more excuses to go back.
7 Dials 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Originally planned to be the convergence of six roads where the wealthy would romp, a seventh dial was added and (according to Google), the area quickly turned into one of the most notorious slums in London during the 19th century. Now, the (gorgeous) area is home to coffee shops, loads of retail, and very ‘grammable streets.
Neal’s Yard 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Without knowing it’s there, you’d likely walk right by. Which we did. Nearly twice. But, follow the scent of espresso and you’ll meander through the gap between two brick buildings into a burst of color and life. There’s no better description than Secret London’s, “[Neal’s Yard: A] micro-village full of independent restaurants, bars, cafés, and shops...”
Floral Street 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Instantly one of my favorite streets — Floral Street is a photographer’s dream come true, with its exposed brick, centuries-old roads, and meandering pathways. It even served as the backdrop of a selfie I posted while we were in town — and makes numerous appearances in my London video, too.
St Paul’s Church 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Our anniversary dinner was on the second-story balcony of VyTA which has an unobstructed view of the Piazza and (the once front, now back of) St Pauls. And even though it’s not as glamorous as Westminster Abbey, with its columns soaring over the gaggle of street performers, and the little imagination it takes to envision the millions that have walked past this monument since it was built in the 1630s, it’s beautiful enough to stare at with wonder and awe. Or at least it was for me!
The Embankment
This bit houses a few of the biggies and is super walkable from Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square, and Covent Garden. It’s also not a far walk from Buckingham Palace, which we learned after we got home.
London Eye 🇬🇧🇬🇧
Personally, I don’t think being trapped in a bubble for 30 minutes 44 stories above the ground (with randos) is all that fun — especially after paying $40 (after USD conversion.) That said, it is cool to see. My recommendation: skip the ride, and take in the view of the city from another vantage point.
Big Ben & Parliament 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Our good friend Ben is currently getting a facelift, so only his eye was visible this trip, but it still made our list of things to see. I mean, it’s Big Ben. Obviously, it would probably be a more memorable experience if the tower wasn’t wrapped in a cloak, but what can you do? Parliament has tours available, some even with afternoon tea (!), but we passed on the opportunity, this time.
Whitehall Gardens 🇬🇧🇬🇧
We’d walked to the area from Covent Garden (shocking) which brought us past Whitehall Gardens. This little slice of greenery was sandwiched between the Thames Waterway and a gorgeous set of buildings that were converted into a five-star hotel and wedding venue. (I can see why.) 😍 If I were nearby, and it wasn’t raining, I’d probably park on a bench and do a Headspace meditation. Fun fact: Whitehall was originally the palace used by the Tudor and Stuart monarchs, and almost burned completely in 1698.
East London
East London is the equivalent of the transfer student that moved to the suburbs from New York — cool, mysterious, with great hair, street cred, and could steal your girl if he wanted to. The vibe, while intimidating for a basic bitch like me, was intriguing. I enjoyed exploring and observing (aka people watching) in this part of the city, a lot.
Shoreditch 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Though street art, leather jackets, and cool-kid chic don’t exactly represent me, I can certainly appreciate the appeal of Shoreditch. After lunch, we strolled around, soaked up so. much. art. and found a number of vintage-feeling shops and a few interior design storefronts that would bring any home decor lover to (actual) tears. I would definitely love to spend more time in this neck of the woods next time (and maybe absorb some of that cool factor through osmosis.)
Spitalfields 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
The Spitalfields neighborhood is a shopper’s paradise. And because a shopping blog is coming soon, I’m going to leave it at that. Oh, pro tip: Avoid the loo at Spitalfield’s Market at all costs. Trust me.
Leicester Square
Casinos and Theaters ❓
We didn’t actually attend any shows or pop into any of the casinos, but they all seemed lively. And, for those interested in theatrics*, Magic Mike was playing. Cue Pony.
*I hope you read the theatrics in Moira Rose’s voice.
M&M World 🇬🇧
There are three things you need to know about this tourist trap: 1. It smells of molten chocolate. And not in a Willy Wonka kind of way. 2. Some of the merch is in fact, cute. And 3. It costs £30 for the personalized M&Ms with your face on it (that’s prominently advertised outside.)
Chinatown 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Situated a stones-throw from the Square, the little sliver of Chinatown dons what seems to be miles of paper lanterns that zig-zag just above the cobble streets. The glowing menus and slow-roasted ducks in the front of each restaurant, mixed with the sounds of chatter and clanking dishes from inside could make any foodie’s spine tingle.
Westminster
Mayfair 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
We didn’t do too much walking on Park Lane or around Mayfair, but we were driven through a number of times. Each time I was glued to the window, and I don’t know how to say this without sounding dramatic, but I felt like the sun shone a little brighter, the ivy more green, and the air more clear. Maybe because it’s full of Bentleys? Bentlies? Bentli?
Hyde Park 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
This 350-acre park, which was established hundreds of years ago as a royal hunting ground, is home to sprawling lawns, a memorial fountain to the late Princess Diana, the Serpentine (where you can swim or paddle boat in the summer), and more birds than you could count. The weather for us was a bit blustery, but I can imagine on a warmer day (or at least one without drizzle) the park would be a beautiful place to spend an afternoon.
Marble Arch 🇬🇧
Located at just outside Hyde Park, the Marble Arch is beautiful (and obviously has history), but it’s not a sight I’d add to my must-see list. There were a couple of small groups that stopped to snap photos, but most of the crowds in the area seemed to have a one-track mind like we did: shopping!
Bond Street 🇬🇧🇬🇧
Bond Street is famous for its shopping (more on that in the next blog.) Don’t believe me? Look at all the news coverage of the Louis Vuitton flagship spectacle store that recently re-opened. You can get your shop on while sipping on bougie tea all day long. Full review on Bond Street to come.
Piccadilly Circus 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Truth be told, Piccadilly wasn’t exactly as I imagined it. But, much like the Instagram v. reality meme, I suppose nothing these days really is as seen on TV. It was bright, electronic, and crowded most of the time we (hurriedly) passed through, but not in a way that made me feel the London magic, or any desire to slow down.
West London
Chelsea 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Chelsea was probably one of the more picturesque neighborhoods we visited, with oversized fountains, homes with pristine white façades and black wrought iron fences, and shops bathed in faux floral. The bakeries were marvelously tempting with fresh fruit cakes, pastries, and other goodies right out of The Great British Bake Off.
Knightsbridge 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Another large chunk of our time was spent in Knightsbridge, doing what we do best — shop. My two new instant favorites, Harrods and Harvey Nichols could easily take up an entire day on their own. And with Sloane Street right in their backyard, any luxury items you couldn’t find in these behemoth department stores were sure to be found steps away.
South London
Overall, South London had some fun things to do/see, the area overall just didn’t speak to me. It was like a mix of financial districts with some industry thrown in. We considered staying in the area for a portion of our stay, and I’m glad that we didn’t, for this reason.
Tate Modern 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
The Tate is a fairly large modern art museum, though the exhibit we saw took just about an hour to an hour and a half to walk through. The featured exhibit (which runs through January 5, 2020) was Olafur Eliasson’s In Real Life, which was actually really fucking cool, in real life. He plays with light, reflection, and a variety of media in a really cool way. One word of caution: If you are claustrophobic or have any degree of anxiety, you may want to skip the Tunnel of Fog portion (or proceed with care.) While super cool, you’re literally walking through a 150-foot hall through dense fog with a visibility of about one and a half feet.
River Thames 🇬🇧
I don’t know if the river itself is much of a destination. Actually, it’s not. However, there are a number of sights along the river to see, and from what I observed, an assortment of available boat tours to see the sights from the river. That might be a better use of time than walking…
The Shard 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
This monument of a building (which, like its namesake, stands out from the ground like a shard of glass), sits atop the London Bridge Train Station. The relatively newer addition to the skyline is 95 stories and houses the opulent Shangri-La hotel. We stopped into the hotel (to use the loo), and felt the view from the bathroom (and lobby) on the 34th floor was gorgeous enough to skip the full “View from the Shard” experience. Ratings for the bathroom: 100/10. There were even different types of phone chargers to use while you go!
Tower Bridge 🇬🇧🇬🇧
I caught my first glimpse of Tower Bridge as we flew into Heathrow. I (being a tourist) attempted to catch a photo from the air, but quickly realized that it was basically a spec from that far away. Womp womp. And while we never got close enough to truly appreciate its splendor, we did have a good view from the London Bridge. And, at the end of the day, I never felt gipped that I didn’t get to see it up close. So… 🤷🏻♂️
Last, but not least
Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey ❓
Unfortunately, due to ongoing protests (and traffic), we missed these two biggies on this trip. Though, as we were walking (in the rain) in search of a cab one day, we veered off of a main (yet quiet) road, not knowing we were less than a quarter mile from the Palace and Westminster Abbey. Fail.
But, as Mom said, we were just "leaving some of the meat on the bone” for the next trip.
Until then!
In this multi-part series, I cover the sights, shopping, and snacks we encountered in The Queen’s country. Stay tuned for London: The Shopping. Cheers!