Category: London

London is a huge city, so as a tourist, or a new resident of the city, it took me some time to figure out where the best areas to go for a night out are. Below I’ll share a few of the top areas I’ve been to, and some of the specific places in each area I recommend.

Kensington

If you want to hang out with a posh crowd, this is where to go. I kid you not, when I went out in Kensington a guy was telling me all about the ‘struggle’ of having to wait for his boat to be sailed across the Atlantic since he just used it in the Caribbean but now was going to use it in the Mediterranean… such a rough life (eye roll).

Where I recommend: Kensington Roof Gardens, The Churchill Arms, Piano Kensington, Eclipse

SoHo

SoHo in London reminds me of SoHo in NYC – there’s a ton of restaurants, pubs, bars, and clubs all around. This is a great area to go for a night out because there’s something for everyone. There’s also a good mix of tourists (SoHo is close to Picadilly Circus) and Londoners who go here.

Where I recommend: Coach & Horses, Dirty Martini, Kingly Court, Ain’t Nothing But Blues Bar

Camden

Amy Winehouse used to live in this area. It’s very hipster but has a lot of cool art and a good vibe. You’ll find a mix of Londoners and tourists here as well. There’s also a nightly bar crawl of Camden (mostly for tourists), but is a good way to go to a few bars with a group at night.

Where I recommend: The Hawley Arms, The Camden Head, Camden Comedy Club (£5 and £10 comedy nights!)

Dalston

Dalston is a rapidly gentrifying area, and hidden within there are some really cool places to go out. This is a bit off the tourist track (there aren’t really any tourist attractions in this area), but as its a fifteen minute walk from my flat I go out here quite often.

Where I recommend: Dalston Roof Park, Escudo de Cuba, Jolly Butcher, Tipsy Dalston

Shoreditch

Shoreditch is near Bank, so lots of bankers come to this area for happy hour after work, although it’s more of a hipster area overall. It has a lot of cool bars, and regular bar crawls.

Where I recommend: Zigfrid von Underbelly, Queen of Hoxton, Blueberry, Bavarian Beerhouse

Which of these areas do you think you’ll visit on your next trip to London? Hopefully all of them!

Till next time all!

Wow – I’ve been in London for six months! Even saying that feels unbelievable.

Before Moving…

Just over a year ago, moving abroad was just a dream for me. I talked about moving to England with family and friends, but it still felt so foreign, so distant, and in all honesty, I wasn’t sure if it was totally attainable.

But then I did it. After applying to dozens upon dozens of positions for several months, I was able to land a interview for a job in London. Even with a Swiss passport which lets me work in the U.K., it was still difficult to get an interview from abroad.

I was SO nervous for my interview! I loved London as a tourist, but would I also like living there? I debated this question the night before my interview. But then the interview happened and they offered me the job that day and something in me knew I had to do it.

I moved five weeks later, at the end of February.

Once I Moved…

Moving did feel hard at first; there were so many unknowns. Would I make friends? Would I be able to afford London? Should I have stayed in the U.S.? Would I like it? What if I hated it?

I also was sometimes overwhelmed with having to figure everything about how to move a new country out, by myself, while starting a very busy new job. Moving into my flat, getting utilities set up, opening a bank account, learning the lay of the land in a new city, and adapting to British culture – all were aspects I had to overcome.

 

It was also hard early on to sometimes deal with the perception of Americans that people tend to have. Trump, politics, and shootings as of late don’t help the already not-great image that many people have of the U.S. I sometimes felt very frustrated (and even upset) when I had to defend that I still love my country despite these things.

But then at one point, things started to change. After about a month, I finished getting the utilities set up in my flat and opened a bank account. I made friends and started having a social life. I met my now boyfriend, Mark. And, the main reason of why I moved in the first place, I started traveling around Europe. I also finished my Master’s, which was a huge personal accomplishment, and opened up a lot of free time.

Where I Am Now

I feel settled now in London. My flat and neighborhood feel like home. Not in the same nostalgic way I feel about my hometown, but as a ‘home for the moment’ sort of way. I have my local grocery store, restaurants, cafes, park, and pubs. I’ve figured out what neighborhoods I like to spend time in, and which I’d like to still explore.

I’ve had quite a few visitors, which has been a great way for me to see the tourist sites (and bring friends and family to my favorites!). I have been pleasantly surprised with how many people have made it to visit – Marianna and Aaron, Karen, Sara and Trey, my parents, Lauren, and Suzie have visited. My sister Angie is also coming in October.

 

I also adjusted to the work I was doing. The project with Vodafone I manage can be demanding, but at my six month review this past Monday I was given an ‘exceeding expectations’ review by my manager. My immediate team is amiable and I really try my best to make our project run as smoothly as possible.

I’m also fortunate to have a few good friends now, and have deepened those relationships. I also am very happy with Mark and glad that our relationship has progressed well.

The wander luster in me has been overjoyed since I’ve been able to travel quite a bit since moving. The majority of my trips are weekend jaunts, but from London it’s not very expensive, and I try to maximize my time in each location. Thus far I’ve made it to Norway, Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland, Belgium, Italy (Milan for a day), Spain, and Switzerland.

I’ve also visited various towns and cities in England like Cheltenham, Eastbourne, Bracknell and Newbury (for work), Reading, Oxford, and Stratford-upon-Avon.

I know that moving here has changed me for life. Probably in many ways that I won’t don’t really realize yet, and won’t really realize till I’m gone. It’s one thing to talk about moving to to another a country, but another to do it. Even when I do move back to the U.S., I doubt this will be my last time living abroad.

 

Till next time all!

This past weekend, both my parents were in town. This was the first time since I moved that my dad has been here so I was really excited to show them around.

Friday we did afternoon tea – one of my favorite things to do with visitors, followed by shopping in a shopping center not too far from my house (but that I had no idea existed!). I’m not usually a fan of shopping at all, but considering I have only gone shopping about twice since moving, I was actually really excited and bought various things for my flat.

Saturday we went to Big Ben and Parliament, and then hopped on a boat cruise from Westminster Pier to Greenwich. I had done the boat cruise before, but I think I had a renewed sense of appreciation for it now that I know what a lot of the significant buildings are and have more of a sense of the history of London. I also haven’t been far into east London where the boat ride went.

Greenwich is a really quaint area of London. It’s not in central London – it’s just outside it, so it has a unique charm that makes it feel more like a small town by the Thames. Once there we split up, my mom tackling the Queen’s House that is part of the Old Royal Naval College, while my dad, Markie, and I went to the Roger Harrison Planetarium. At the planetarium, we watched a thirty minute show on asteroids. The show was produced by National Geographic and explained what the impact has been and will be of asteroids hitting earth and why it’s so difficult for humans to get to them in outer space. I’m not even a traditionally ‘science-y’ person, and I really enjoyed it. Trying to understand space and the magnitude of it is all really mind boggling to me.

In the evening we headed to the Queen’s Walk next to the Thames and near Tower Bridge for dinner. I absolutely am loving all the al fresco dining I am doing this summer, and how it stays daylight till almost 10pm each night.

On Sunday, I said goodbye to my mom as she headed back to the U.S. My dad, Markie and I also went and spent the night near Gatwick Airport; on Monday they were off to Algeria to visit family there for just under two weeks while I headed into the office.

Until next time all!

One of the best parts of moving to London thus far has been that I get visitors! I really enjoy showing friends and family around London, especially bringing them to some of my favorite places and checking out new ones as well. My mom and Mark were in town this past weekend, so I enjoyed exploring with them and Markie. Here’s a look at what we did:

Saturday

Camden Lock Market

On Saturday Mark was in town, along with my mom, so what better way to please everyone at once than to bring them to a place with tons of food. We headed over to the Camden Lock Market, which is a huge market that has dozens of food stalls, and has a great view of Regent’s Canal. My mom and Markie enjoyed pizza, and Mark and I had a pulled pork salad and watermelon juice. I also got Markie a dessert that I had eyed a few times – Dutch pancakes with powdered sugar and Nutella. Delicious! The only downside of the market is it get SO crowded, so after a while we were tired of the excess of people and headed home.

Mini-golf & Molly Bakes

Mark is a huge mini-golf fan, so Markie, Mark and I headed to a mini-golf place that is a 15 minute walk from my flat. We enjoyed a few rounds of mini-golf, and then headed to a place that had been on my bucket list for several weeks – Molly Bakes. If anyone has seen (mostly likely on Buzzfeed or Instagram), there are places that are now serving basically jumbo/monster sized milkshakes. Molly Bakes is one of these places, so we ordered a chocolate shake that came with chocolate on the rim, a ice cream sandwich on top, along with whipped cream and a marshmellow. The three of us were able to share it – it was that big! Thank goodness we walked a lot that day to burn that sugar off.

Sunday

Museum of London & London Wall

My mom is a British history enthusiast, so on Sunday I brought her to my favorite London museum – the Museum of London. There is currently a special exhibit going on to commemorate 350 years since the 1666 Great Fire of London so we checked it out. We also enjoyed taking in the other exhibits – before London was “London”, Roman London, Victorian London, and so on. The museum is next to London Wall, which is the original wall built by the Roman Empire 1800 years ago to fortify the city, so we took a walk by that as well.

The Queen’s Walk & London Bridge City Summer Festival

After our museum visit we headed to The Queen’s Walk which is a promenade on the south bank of the Thames River. We had built up an appetite from the day and sat down at Côte Brasserie, a reasonably priced but good restaurant I had been to once before. From there we had views of HMS Belfast, Tower Bridge, and across the river of the Gherkin and of 20 Fenchurch aka the “Walkie Talkie” building.

After our dinner, we decided to walk towards Tower Bridge, and stumbled upon the London Bridge City Summer Festival. There was a outdoor colorful bar serving cocktails and food, along with DJs from Mi-Soul radio who played a mix of funk, disco, and R&B music while people danced along.

All in all it was a great weekend, and I love how London has so many places to explore, as well as places that are great to go time and time again.

 

Till next time all!

Day Trips from London

While London has a plethora of activities to do, it is sometimes nice to get out of the city and see the other towns, countryside, and seaside that England has to offer. Below I offer some of my favorite day trips I’ve taken thus far and a few that I’m hoping to get to this summer.

Eastbourne and Beachy Head

Eastbourne is a seaside resort town with Victorian-era architecture. When I visited, my friend and I walked on a beach path by the bright blue water of the English Channel and then hiked up to Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain. During the hike up to Beachy Head you also get a great view of the Eastbourne area. There’s a pub near the top of Beachy Head where we had some food and a drink before heading back.

How to get there: Eastbourne is a 1 hour 20 minute train ride from London Victoria station. Beachy Head is a four mile slightly strenuous hike from Eastbourne station, but taxis and a bus are available if you don’t want to hike.

Arundel and South Downs

Arundel is a quaint market town on the River Arun. Attractions in the town are a medieval castle and cathedral, cute pubs, and local shops. When I visited, we started in the South Downs National Park (a short walk from the town center) doing a countryside hike and then later explored the town before heading back.

How to get there: Arundel is a 1 hour 20 minute train ride from London Victoria station. From the train station, it’s a ten minute walk into town.

Oxford

Oxford is the home of the prestigious University of Oxford. The town is full of picturesque Gothic medieval churches and colleges and the city is quite vibrant thanks to the large student community. For my fellow Harry Potter fans, some of Hogwarts scenes in the movies were filmed in Oxford.

How to get there: Oxford is a 1 hour train ride from London Paddington. The Oxford train station is directly in the city center.

Hever Castle and Gardens

Hever is a country village in Kent. When I visited, we took the train into Hever station and then it was a lovely one mile country walk to Hever Castle. Hever Castle was the home of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII (the king who had six wives and started the Church of England) and is well preserved with a fair share of furniture originating from the 16th century. As well, the property boasts really beautiful gardens as well as a maze.

How to get there: Hever is a 40 minute train ride from London Bridge station. From the train station, it’s a twenty minute walk to the castle.

 

The below day trips are on my list of trips I’d like to take this summer.

Brighton

Brighton is an English seaside resort town – and is one of the most popular beach destinations for those living in London. There are several arcades, the Brighton Pier, and a boardwalk. The town has many Victorian era buildings that add to its charm.

How to get there: Brighton is a 1 hour train ride from London Victoria station. From the train station, it’s a fifteen minute walk to the beach.

Bath

Bath, appropriately named, has historic Roman period baths that date back to 2000 years ago. The town has some lovely Georgian architecture, and there’s also Pulteney Bridge which has shops that span both sides (only one of four of these type of bridges remaning in the world!). You can take boat rides from near the bridge during summer months.

How to get there: Bath is a 1 hour 30 minute train ride from London Paddington. The Bath train station is directly in the city center.

Which of these would you most like to go to?

Till next time all!