The first thing I thought when I arrived at Gatwick airport was that everything felt familiar. It was easy to navigate with the announcements and signs in English. I was also excited to get to London town!

I took the Gatwick Express to Victoria Station then hopped on a bus to my Air BnB in Knightsbridge. I saw street names from Monopoly, red double decker buses and policemen in funny hats – iconic London!

Unlike Paris, I didn’t get the London Pass because many of the museums and galleries I wanted to visit are free to enter (donation appreciated). I admit I did feel overwhelmed at the choice of things to see and do and how many I could fit in per day. Also unlike Paris, the forecast was for glorious sunny weather the whole time I was visiting, although the locals were not impressed with the ‘heatwave’ conditions. 🤣

As fate would have it, my lack of planning meant I had some fantastic and unique experiences I couldn’t have organised if I tried.

The owner of the house on Trevor Street where I was staying was on hand to check me in. Amanda was living in Hong Kong for a number of years but had recently moved back to London due to her mother passing away. We had an instant connection and agreed to meet up again during my stay.

The next day Amanda contacted me and as it would happen we were both planning to visit the British Museum. She was meeting a friend there, so the three of us decided to meet up. Amanda gave us a a very informative talk on the history and controversy surrounding the Elgin Marbles and also on ancient Greek sculpture vs Roman reproductions. It was fascinating!

After the British Museum closed we walked through St. James Park, past Westminster Abbey and Piccadilly Circus to the opening of an art exhibition, as one of the artists was Amanda’s friend. The gallery space was sophisticated, but not eqipped with AC, so everyone was drinking their wine on the footpath!

After that I said goodbye to the ladies and walked to Southbank and the Underbelly Festival (similar to the Perth Fringe Festival) and saw an Irish comedian. I caught the tube home from Waterloo that night feeling like my first day in London was far better than anything I could have planned in advance!

The next day I went to the Victoria and Albert Museum, which was full of amazing objects. I spent a good four hours admiring them before meeting Amanda in Hyde Park.

Together we walked via the Wellington Arch, Green Park, Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, along the north bank to St. James Cathedral and then to ‘the City’, where Amanda had an appointment to curate an art collection. It was so nice to walk with someone who knows London like the back of their hand and not have to constantly refer to Google maps. Along the way Amanda shared with me information on the different landmarks and their history. It was easily one of the most memorable days of my trip so far!

The following day I took the ‘Unseen London by Bicycle‘ tour starting in Old Street, going via ‘the City’ and Tower Bridge back through Whitechapel and Brick Lane in Shoreditch to our starting point. I can’t recommend this tour enough for anyone visiting London. I saw and learnt so much that I would never have otherwise. I particularly liked learning about the street artists’ from the area and seeing their works, including the allusive Banksy!

On Saturday 30 June I met up with Laura (who was also on the Morocco tour) and her boyfriend Dan, who had travelled to London from southern England for the weekend. We barely managed to walk down Oxford and Regent Streets through the Saturday shopping crowds and eventually sought refuge in an Italian restaurant for lunch.

Afterwards we checked out the exhibition of some of the British Library’s permanent collection, which included a copy of the Magna Carta and one of Da Vinci’s notebooks.

That evening we had tickets to Aladdin on the West End. Seated in the centre of the dress circle we were all excited to see the Disney classic…

The show was late to start and eventually a man came on stage and announced that the theater had lost water supply to both back and front of house and as a result the performance had been cancelled. Needless to say everyone was stunned! After getting over our shock we found a pub in Soho to have a drink instead. I received a full refund a few days later, but it was still disappointing not to see the show.

On my final day in London I returned to full tourist mode and visited the Tower of London. Here I joined the queue to see the Crown Jewels, as well as the White Tower, Royal Chapel and torture chambers. Finishing that, I took a ferry down the Thames to Greenwhich and saw the O2 Stadium, before catching the tube back to Knightsbridge for a final time.

I was worried when I got to London that I wouldn’t get to see or do enough in the time I had. I soon realised that even if I had a month, or a year, it was not possible to do ‘enough’! It’s a city where you would struggle to ever be bored. I think the key is about quality over quanity and leaving some time unplanned so you can fit in the unpredictable.