First stop were some typical British phone booths by Westminster. We wanted to get pictures here so that Big Ben would be in the background. I think they turned out cute.
We walked in the general direction of Trafalgar Square and on the way saw 10 Downing Street with its armed guards stationed outside. I don’t know what I was expecting from Trafalgar Square but it was very impressive. I loved the fountains especially. I wanted to sit on one of the lions but it was slick due to the rain and I didn’t want to chip a tooth again.
10 Downing Street
National Gallery
Nelson's Column
It had begun to rain while we were admiring Trafalgar Square so we headed into some of the souvenir shops around that area to look for things to spend our last remaining British pounds on. You see, each of us only took out 100 pounds from the ATM when we got there and that was to cover our hostel and all our food, souvenirs, and city transportation. I have to say that we did an excellent job staying on budget. The whole trip cost only about 200 euro, including airfare but not including my Billy Elliot tickets because they were a gift. I think that is pretty darn good.
So we browsed around the souvenir shops because Brittany wanted to start a collection of shot glasses from all the places that we go throughout our stay in Europe and we had to find the perfect one to represent the UK. I want to start a collection of something but cannot decide what as shot glasses are not very me. I am considering tea cups or Christmas ornaments, although tea cups can be rather fragile and it is not a good season for Christmas ornaments (turns out Harrod’s sells everything except Christmas ornaments.) Anyway, if anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear them.
Because this was our last day in London we decided to travel back to Harrod’s and explore it further. On our way there we stopped at the Spaghettihouse and got some lunch because we were both starving and we cannot afford food at Harrod’s. The pasta was just so-so but the bruscetta was very delicious.
When we got to Harrod’s we were more than happy to pay the three pounds to check our very heavy backpacks and began exploring. The first thing we saw was another Diana and Dodi Memorial. This was a statue of them grasping hand while releasing a bird above the words “Innocent Victims.” You see, Dodi Al Fayed’s father owns Harrod’s, hence the numerous memorials. We also signed the memorial book by the statue.
Egyptian Room
Food Hall
Chandelier in Food Hall
It took us another two hours to fully discover Harrod’s. We took a walk through the fossil gallery, containing all sorts of rare stones, the Pet Kingdom which offered the classiest things for your pet, the piano section, and even searched for the bulletproof clothing. Harrod’s offers quite a selection. We eventually made our way to the Harrod’s souvenir shop where Brittany bought some Harrod’s shot glasses and I got a nice leather bookmark. Successful shopping trip.
We walked over to Piccadilly Circus again, stopping at many souvenir shops on the way because it was raining heavier now. Our other hangouts for the trip were McDonald’s. You see, sometimes you just need somewhere to sit and look at a map or use the bathroom and McDonald’s is the perfect place. We have been in Mickey D’s all across London.
We made our way to Victoria Station to get the Gatwick Express back to the Gatwick Airport. We were supposed to meet Stevie there as well but her phone died and she ended up meeting us at the airport. By the time we got to Victoria Station I was damp, cold, and tired from the day and ready to get back to my own bed in Dublin.
I have noticed that the airports in Europe are like malls. Seriously, most of the airport, as far as I can tell, was dedicated to retail. There was even a Harrod’s there (with some good deals I might add.) We spent our time before the flight journaling and just resting. The real drama came when Stevie misread her boarding pass and told us we were at Gate 8. Well we get to the entrance to that section of gates and the guy working there tells us there is no Gate 8. We all thought he was joking but turns out that there is in fact no Gate 8 and Stevie was just the eighth person to check in. No worries, we did get to our real gate on time, but what kind of airport just doesn’t have a Gate 8.
We arrived at the Dublin airport, the guy in immigration applauded me for skipping class to go to London, and boarded the AirCoach to go back to UCD ending our English adventure. What a great weekend (although I think I am still recovering)!
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