The Shard, the Globe, Camden Market, Oxford Street… Can you guess where I went? Why, of course you can. I put it in the title, so you’d have to be really daft not to have guessed. So yes, you’re right: I was in London last weekend! And the best thing of all? I didn’t have a clue I was going to be.
Saturday morning, 6 a.m. It was freezing cold and very dark, and I was standing in an empty parking lot just outside of town. All I knew is that I had to be there at that time, and that I had to wear good walking shoes, a warm sweater, bring gloves and a scarf and make sure that all my stuff fit into one backpack that I could easily carry for a longer period of time.
Naturally, I was convinced we were going hiking in Germany or maybe the Ardens. It wasn’t until we got off the road near Calais and started following signs for The Tunnel that I realized we’d be going underneath the sea and on to the UK. And that’s when they finally told us our destination was London.
A Surprise trip to London! Oh, how I love that city. If it wasn’t so expensive, I would have moved there a long time ago. But it is very expensive, and I don’t like working 14 hour days just to pay the rent. So here we are. But anyways, London, you will always have a piece of my heart, and it sure felt good to walk your streets again.
I love how vibrant the city is, and that there’s so much to see and do wherever you go. And I know this might sound a bit strange seeing as how expensive everything is there, but London always feels very inclusive to me. It doesn’t matter what you do or what you’re wearing, once you’re there you’re a part of it. No questions asked.
We had so much fun, and really no plan for what we wanted to do with our to days in the city. In fact, we ticked of all my five things to do on every city trip! We saw the Tower Bridge, the Tower and the London Eye from afar, walked along Oxford Street and through many smaller ones. We did not run around like crazy, ticking off everything on a must-see list. I hate those ‘how to do London (or whichever place) in two days’ kind of itineraries. There’s no way in hell you’ll ‘see London’ in two days, so don’t try. It’s a sure way to miss out on everything, if you ask me.
We walked a lot, did some shopping, bought loads of books (it’s impossible for me to go to London without spending too much money at the Waterstones Piccadilly. It’s not even particularly quirky or cosy, and not at all what my bookstore would look like if I’d open one, but there are just so. many. books. I guess it’s not Europe’s largest bookstore for nothing), and spent time in pubs drinking beer and having a good time.
I had an absolute blast and really want to thank Didi and Robert for a perfect and thoughtful gift, this surprise trip to London. And Max too, for agreeing with me that things need not be awkward. No, we’re not together anymore, nor does us going away together mean that we are patching things up. It simply shows that we can still have fun. Loads of it in fact, as it has turned out.
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