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Day 1 – London
Well… after the longest flight of my life and over-stuffed with airplane food, my mum and I arrived at Heathrow. The luggage arrived too so immediately we were on to a winner. Our first official day didn’t really begin until the next morning. I walked out of the Leicester Square tube station into another world. LONDON! Immediately the amazing architecture hits you in the face. We went on an exploratory walk and soon realized a map is definitely a must. No street runs parallel with another street. Lane ways are at every turn and if you just keep walking you will find some famous landmark or another. I had a quick look around the British Museum and Trafalgar Square today just because we happened to pass them.
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Day 2 – London
This day was a big one. It was wet and cold but London is there to be seen. We headed to the river and saw the usual landmarks such as London Eye, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and Houses of Parliament. There was something big happening though because streets were blocked, the traffic was horrendous and police were everywhere. We were walking down a street with crowd control barriers when a police woman let us know the Queen was opening parliament today and if we stood on the other side of the park she would pass us. Well we couldn’t believe our luck and headed over to Buckingham Palace to catch a glimpse. We waited for 2 hours and but it was worth it. They pulled out all the bells and whistles so we saw Charles, Camilla, marching bands, the Royal Guard, the Horse Guard, a twenty-one gun salute and more. I think my favourite part was when the Royal Guard marching band played the Queen song ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’. And here I was thinking they were only going to stick to the British classics. They then followed it up with ‘Thriller’ and ‘Hot Stuff’ just to make my day.
We then headed to Victoria to see a matinee of WICKED. OMG!!! It was amazing! It has to be my favourite musical of all time. I got to see it from the third row and really appreciate the incredible costumes and sets.
We caught up with my cousin and his new wife for dinner and saw some more of London we hadn’t encountered yet. James took us to Soho, China Town and Piccadilly Circus. Everything was alive with lights, noise and people. It reminded me of Times Square, NY. We walked past the massive M&M store and I took careful note of its location so that I could return another day for some of its chocolaty goodness.
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Day 3 – London
We were getting a bit over walking by this stage so today we jumped on the hop on/hop off bus to explore some of the west side of London. We passed Harrods, Marble Arch, Hyde Park and got off to explore Kensington Park. I then went into Madame Tussauds while mum went off to write postcards. My main aim for going into Madame Tussauds was to have a photo with Colin Firth. No other reason. Just Colin Firth. And I got it 😊 Kinda wished they could have dressed him in his Pride and Prejudice clothing though. Women would have been bashing the door down to have a shot with Mr Darcy. It was a little different to the Madame Tussauds in New York. This one had a 4D movie, haunted house and a moving chair ride. It was super busy though so I went through every floor in record time just to get away from the crowds.
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Day 4 –London
Back onto the hop on/hop off bus we go and this time heading east. We passed Kings Cross and St Paul’s Cathedral. Drove over London Bridge and Tower Bridge and alighted at the Tower of London. The crowds were HUGE and I was beginning to feel like a human popsicle. The weather on our first day was lovely and warm, and it all went downhill from there. As my hands and feet turned blue we waited in line to see the crown jewels. They were pretty impressive. Very shiny and all that.
As we were leaving a man told us there was going to be a parade of naval officers who had just docked in London. He moved us onto a set of stairs to get the best view and we were surrounded by the press. The special occasion turned out to be the 70th anniversary of a WW2 battle. Three ships had docked in the Thames the day before in preparation for this event. We took a boat ride to Greenwich and got to see these naval ships up close. There was the HMS Illustrious – an air craft carrier which was quite impressive. We saw one of their massive helicopters fly overhead. HMS Blyth – which is a mine hunter and HMS Edinburgh – which is a destroyer. Along with the HMS Belfast which is a permanent fixture in the river there was quite a lot to see.
That night we went to Matilda - the new musical which Tim Minchin had a hand in. Mum’s verdict was it was weird. And me…. I loved it. There was some really clever choreography and staging which I have never seen anywhere else. The young girl who played Matilda was mind blowing. I never once thought of her as a normal child. She was Matilda through and through. I’m already planning a dance routine for the end of year concert using one of these songs. So much inspiration.
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Day 5 – London
It was back to Westminster Abbey but this time we headed inside. There was a lot to see so we carried our own little audio guide around with us. There were all these little chambers off the sides to explore and lovely stained glass windows. While dodging the rain we headed into Harrods next. Oh what I would have bought if I had won the lotto. I LOVED the millinery section. Amazing hats and fascinators with gorgeous feathers. Alas I left the store with nothing.
Our night entertainment was a three and a half hour dance concert. Way too long in my opinion but you couldn’t fault the venue – Royal Albert Hall. There were over 1000 dancers from across England that performed in a show called ‘Stars in the Round’. There were impressive moments, cringe worthy moments and a terrible part where a girl was spinning one girl on her shoulders while another girl hung off her feet. One let go and put the other two off balance. They flew through the air and landed with a resounding ‘oooo’ from the audience. Now that routine will forever be remembered for the wrong reasons. Oh dear.
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Day 6 – London
Hyde Park was on the agenda today. I was on a mission to find the Peter Pan statue for one ‘Martin Davis’. And find it I did. Along the way we saw the Serpentine, the Princess Diana memorial and a squirrel. Hee! Now… do you remember me mentioning the M&M store up above? We were back and buying up a storm. I could have stayed in there for hours. Mum surprised me by getting more M&M’s and souvenirs then I did.
In the afternoon we caught up with my cousin again for a boat ride along a canal and then the famous Camden markets. We got a little rained out and I didn’t think it was possible but I was getting colder. I purchased a jumper before I turned into Frosty. We then had a lovely dinner with James and Anastasia back at their place.
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Day 7 – London
I ventured out alone today to the WB Harry Potter Studio Tour. I got in early and beat the crowds. While I wandered around the props and sets I felt like I was the only person there. They played the movie music in the background and had some of the characters talk you through the exhibits. I put on some robes, flew on a broomstick, drank butterbeer and walked along the bridge to Hogwarts. Perfect morning really. When I got back to London I visited Kings Cross and found platform 9 and ¾ just to round out my ‘magical’ day.
My last night in London (at least for a little while) was another West End musical. Phantom of the Opera was of course impressive… it’s got nothing on Wicked though 😉
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hayley
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Busy Bee
Hey Amy, i loved reading your blog! Can't wait to read more