London, United Kingdom
London: Our very first stop of our grad trip and a city I completely fell in love with.
What I remembered most about London: The vibrancy of Oxford Street, the hearty English breakfasts we had every morning, daisies popping up everywhere we walked, eating our hearts out at markets, especially our favourite Borough market and exploring the quirkiness of an estate we stayed in - Hackney, a small little area that was filled with quirky shops and all kinds of street art.
(The first sight of London from the plane window!
I remember how excited I was and how surreal it felt
I couldn't stop exclaiming and pinching myself to make sure it was all real HAHA)
(Essentials for London)
(What greeted us when we stepped out of the Tube on the first day :D)
Tourist Attractions around London
Some must-visits in London: Tower Bridge, London Bridge, Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, London Eye, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square
(Kaya and I figuring our way around London by referring to our itinerary and the London map. Love this picture because it depicts what we did everyday during our grad trip..HAHA finding our way around and finding places to explore based on this set of itinerary that liting and i compiled. I remember by the end of the first week of our grad trip, the itinerary was soooo crumpled and torn already cos it had to withstand all kinds of weather with us - the itinerary is still well-kept in my grad trip diary ^^)
(Changing of guards ceremony :D I remember we were so excited seeing the changing of guards and wanted to get to the front of the marching band so badly so we could watch the entire process, the four of us held hands lest we lose each other in the crowd and ran through the crowd like crazy children HAHA so epic ><)
(Told Kaya to take a picture of me with the flowers, and he insisted on taking it this way - cant see me at all!! cos he was trying to make me look like the girl in Spring Daze - a korean drama we were watching together the last few weeks in hall before moving out HAHAHA)
Favourite Park in London: Hyde Park
(Best way to end our first day in London: chilling on the grass at Hyde Park and people-watching in front of the pond in the middle of the park)
Favourite Shop in London: Hamley's, Regent Street
(I know this sounds really silly but my favourite shop and buy in London has got to be the biggest toy store in London - Hamley's and a box of magic markers I got from the toy store! I felt like i stepped into paradise the moment i entered the toy store. I can totally imagine myself working there! All the promoters were so excited introducing their toys I told myself I must buy at least one product before leaving the store and I got myself a box of magic markers in the end :D HEHE really didnt feel like leaving the shop at all >< Hamley's reminded me of the movie, Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium!)
Favourite restaurant in London: Burger and Lobster
(Burger and Lobster was recommended to us by one of our friends and i think it was undoubtedly one of the best meals we had during our entire grad trip! just look at the size of the lobsters the four of us shared!! look at those pincers! my tummy is growling now just looking at the picture. Not forgetting the unlimited flow of fries we gorged ourselves with and the yummy salad that accompanied the meal - everything at Burger and Lobster is just, perfect. I dont know how else to describe it. It was soooo good kaya and i especially made a trip back there when we had a few hours to kill in London after returning from Madrid and before we flew back home, we just had to.)
Breakfasts in London
Favourite breakfast place: The Breakfast Club
(Okay, I'm totally a breakfast/brunch kind of person, and an especially huge fan of English breakfasts - so exploring new breakfast places every morning was what I looked forward to the most during our stay in London. My favourite out of all the breakfast places has to be The Breakfast Club - I ordered french toast with bacon and bananas, and just look at the crispiness of the bacon!! *swoons* SOOOO GOOD :D:D really loved the ambience and deco inside The Breakfast Club too! Totally didn't regret spending time to navigate and find this place! :D)
Favourite market in London: Borough Market
(Borough Market - the place we visited the most during our stay in London - I think we went there three times? I love how the four of us could click so well together because of our love for food and the things we would do for food - to be explained further when I do up the Paris post HAHA. And the last picture? We felt so guilty walking around with huge tummies around London the first few days with all the good food we had, we decided to eat 'clean' for our last meal in London and detox by buying home healthy food from Borough Market! Indoor picnic! :) ooh and a must-try in Borough Market? The beef burger with blue cheese from the shop 'The Posh Banger Boys'! We had it for our very first meal in London and it was soo good i devoured the entire burger i initially thought i couldnt finish all by myself *yum yum*)
For girls who love sweet treats: Hummingbird Bakery
Musicals in London: Phantom of the Opera
(pic credit: wayne chai)
Hackney, London
The first two days in London, we stayed at a youth hostel in London (Earl's Court) before we moved to an apartment at the suburbs, Hackney. The day we moved over to Hackney, it was pouring and we were so lost we couldn't find our apartment at all in the heavy rain. Felt a little apprehensive of the area too cos we looked so misplaced being the only Asians walking around, there was even a man who warned us about how dangerous the area was and how we should be wary of the people who approach us in Hackney..so scary! >< but i immediately fell in love with the place the next day when the skies cleared and kaya and i took a walk around the neighbourhood on our last night in london. It was a much more secluded area compared to the bustling streets in Central London but i loved the quaintness of Hackney and how people could express their feelings through street art everywhere in the suburbs. Especially loved this AMAZING street soccer court that was filled with graffiti on all four walls, i couldn't help but drag kaya there with me more than two times just to take pictures there, which explains the different clothes we were wearing in the pictures below of the street soccer court! Really really loved it soooo much, it was so pretty, if only i had a soccer ball then! would have loved to play there! :D so i'm really thankful in the end that we got to experience both the bustling city life of London and the quaintness of its suburbs too)
London, was truly amazing. I'll be back, I promise.
