London, England

Brev had some time off around Christmas, so we were able to travel to England!

In 2018 I went to London over spring break to visit a friend studying abroad, but Brev had never been to London and it was one of his bucket list places.

It did not disappoint… in fact, Brev said this was his favorite vacation!

It was so refreshing to be able to read every sign and be surrounded by English speakers again. I was even able to get some Reese’s peanut butter eggs from their grocery store.

London

It is so easy to get around London, you just tap your credit card to enter/exit the many metros.

We saw most of the major highlights of the city and walked over 27,000+ steps!

Things we saw:

1. The London Eye: Europe’s tallest Ferris wheel and the most popular paid tourist attraction in the United Kingdom.
2. Westminster Abbey: London’s most famous and beautiful church where more than 3,300+ people are buried and commemorated. The Abbey is where every coronation since 1066 has taken place and it hosts many royal occasions (including 16 royal weddings).
3. Buckingham Palace: King Charles III’s official London residence and the focus of national and royal celebrations. This is also where the Changing the Guard ceremony occurs.
4. Houses of Parliament and Big Ben: also known as the Palace of Westminster, the Houses of Parliament is the headquarters of the British Government and Big Ben is the famous bell in the tower.  
5. St James’s Park: this park is near Buckingham palace and is the oldest Royal Park at the heart of ceremonial London.
6. Piccadilly Circus: Situated between Leicester Square (famous for its cinemas) and Regent Street (a popular shopping street), Piccadilly Circus is London’s Time Square. It’s famous for its neon signs and ornate buildings.
7. Oxford Street: This is Europe’s busiest shopping street with around 300 shops. We were very excited about the GymShark pop up shop here.
8. The Shard: also referred to as the “Shard of Glass,” is the UK’s tallest building.
9. Borough Market: a historic food market in central London, Brev and I tried so many delicious foods (we’d recommend Humble Crumble for dessert, La Tua Pasta for their truffle ravioli and Bao for their chicken bao buns).
10. Tower Bridge: This 19th century bridge across the Thames is the most famous bridge in London, known for its Gothic Revival architecture.
11. London Bridge: This has been the oldest crossing of the river Thames in one form or another for almost 2,000 years now. It was the only way to cross Thames, until the construction of Putney Bridge in 1729.

We also went to multiple pubs for fish and chips and beers to have the full London experience. We even got to watch the Liverpool vs. Leicester soccer game at a pub – so much fun!