10 reasons why…

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

Oh London you beautiful thing. Thanks for giving me an amazing final month to top off an even more amazing 7 months. Here are 10 reasons why my last few weeks in London were some of the best! 


1.  Kew Gardens – if you’ve never been, you seriously need to go! Miles of beautiful gardens full of cherry blossom trees, tulips, a seriously cool palm house packed with rainforest from all over the world – and that’s just the start. Check out Kew Palace and the Prince of Wales Conservatory! 

2. The Breakfast Club – a chain of brilliant brunchy restaurants that make THE best pancakes in the world (except from maybe NYC pancakes). It’s definitely worth the guaranteed long-ass queue! 

3.  A day trip to my first London home – I visited Judith and Graham the Sunday before I left and had one of the best days I’ve ever had in London! Judith and I had a lovely walk around a very sunny Greenwich, stopping for food at the markets and visiting the Naval College. We had Sunday dinner at teatime when the rest of the family came around – don’t think I stopped laughing from start to finish! It was so nice to be surrounded by family, tummies full of food, hearts full of laughter. 


4. The Hemingway – a return trip to the Hemingway pub in Victoria Park was a must in my final weeks. Jamie, Amelia and I spent a Saturday afternoon drinking, eating and playing Jenga! The Beef Wellington still tops the list – try it next time you’re in London as well as the scotch eggs (I’ve heard it’s the local of Florence from Florence and the Machine!).


5.  Glaston Berry cocktails at Adventure Bar – a cocktail in a bucket that comes with a wristband- YES it exists and it taste amazing! 

6.  A walk along the river – there’s nothing quite as amazing as a walk along the Southbank, especially when you walk under the Embankment bridges and are greeted by Big Ben and the London Eye! Even the most seasoned of Londoners are a sucker for a River Thames view. 


7. The West End – I was lucky enough to see another two shows this year before I left London – Half a Sixpence and Dreamgirls! Both were amazing but come on it’s the West End, we can’t expect anything less than the best! I am always in awe of how talented theatre peformers are – night after night of singing and dancing must be gruelling but they make it look effortless!

8. Pizza in the park – Megan and I paid a visit to this cool little pizza place in Farringdon we’d been to a couple months ago that does the nicest pizza ever 😍 -throw in some sunshine and ice cream and it made for a very lovely lunch break on one of our last days! Plus we got some really thoughtful leaving presents from work – a personalised travel journal (of course) and a framed photo of the team ❤️. 


9.  And of course an EPIC final night out with the Travioor tribe. Cocktails and dancing in the Cuban in Camden – the finest way to end an amazing 7 months (followed by a McDonald’s on route home and a god awful hungover train journey home the next morning). 

10. I fell in love with the city again. It’s been a rollercoaster to say the least! Earlier in the year I was having a London life crisis and thought about packing up and heading home but being offered another 3 months at my dream job made it a no brainier – I had to stay and make the most of this crazy city. Luckily the past few months were fantastic, so my final farewell was a little bittersweet. Like I’ve always said, London is the lover who breaks your heart but picks up all the pieces and puts you back together again. Every single time. 


So what now? Well I’m back in Durham, I’ve got a new job (after three interviews in one day – so stressful!) and I plan on saving lots of money to travel again! 

London you have been unbelievable – I fell in love with the city, the people and loved living life in the fast lane. You were crazy, out of control, overwhelming and life-changing, so thank you. I will most certainly be back…it might be in a couple months or a couple years but I’ve left a piece of my heart in the city, so London I’ll be seeing you. ❤️

A brokenhearted city.

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

‘London lost a piece of its heart today, and it’s up to us to mend it.’

Sometimes we write to entertain, sometimes we write to share news and sometimes we write because, well…we’ve got a point to make.  But when the world hands us something we don’t quite understand, our writing becomes a search for explanation, a search for answers in which we cling onto whatever shred of truth we can get our hands on.

London was the target of a terror attack today: an armed man stabbed a police officer and mowed down pedestrians in his car, killing three people and injuring at least another ten.

We don’t know why and we never will. It’s now another smudge on the world history map, another event we’ll remember year after year and constantly ask why?

Do we notice all the evil in the world more as adults? I don’t ever remember the world being this cruel and violent when I was younger. ‘What is this world coming to?’ I hear people say (and say to myself) on a daily basis. But really, what is this world coming to?…when a man can drive down a busy London street and run people over then stab an innocent policeman who was defending his country and protecting his people. We are a country at war and we don’t even know it.

I don’t have the answers, none of us do. But over time London will heal, like NYC did, like Brussels did and like France did. We heal because tragedies unite us and remind society to say ‘No, actually this isn’t acceptable.’ Let’s not forget about the innocent people of countries like Syria where attacks like this are a daily occurrence – how do they ever heal from it? Simple answer: they don’t.

Across the last 7 months I have loved and hated London in equal measure – for every awful, sweaty tube journey there’s been an awesome night out, for every rude person pushing past me there’s been one who has told me to have a nice day and for every moment of homesickness there’s been a moment of euphoria where I can’t quite comprehend how amazing the city is. Sometimes it can be the loneliest place in the world: even when you’re stood in a busy place like the Southbank lost amongst crowds of people, it can feel like your the only person in the world.

Then horrific events like today happen and I’m reminded that London is anything but lonely. In that split second Londoners came together to help one another, save one another and stand united against one man’s heartless cry for attention. And if we can take anything from this awful situation it’s that we MUST stand united and not give into the pressures of those who want to tear the world apart. The only way to cope with tragedy is to stick together.

London lost a piece of it’s heart today, and it’s up to us to mend it.

London-life crisis.

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

“You have to take the good with the bad, smile with the sad, love what you got, and remember what you had. Always forgive, but never forget, learn from your mistakes but never regret. People change, things go wrong, but just remember life goes on.”


First things first, apologies – My London Diaries has been somewhat quiet since my post-Christmas blog. And I’m going to be truthful, I’ve been feeling a little lost (and have fallen a little out of love) with London, so I haven’t really felt like writing about it.

How is this possible I hear you ask? London has everything: the shows, the shopping, the bars, the restaurants, the celebs…yes London is pretty damn amazing but at times it is impossible.

You know you’re never going to get a seat on the tube in rush hour and that’s fine but what would be nice is to have some personal space and not be able to smell the B.O of the person towering over you.

You think the cars in London are bad then you realise the real enemy to pedestrians are the cyclists – they are a law unto themselves. They’ve clearly never learnt the definition of ‘zebra crossing’.

And the queues. Oh the queues. You want a coffee? The queue is a mile long at Pret/Starbucks/Costa. You want to go for food? That’ll be a 15 minute wait, let us take your number and we’ll call you when the table is ready. Just need to pick up a top? Sure, go join the 30-people-deep queue at the cash desks.

Oh and the expense. Heard about all the amazing pop-ups we have in London (okay mainly in Shoreditch)? Great aren’t they: £5 for a crisp sandwich, are you for real? Go to the Coop and buy a loaf of bread and a multi-pack and you can have about 20 homemade versions for the same price!  £10 to play in a ball pit that’s the size of a corridor? £16 for a ticket to the cinema in Leicester Square? I could go on.

Of course then there’s the whole thing of having my phone pinched. Yep, really..straight out of my pocket. The less that’s said about that the better.

And one final thing: TUBE STRIKES. In the words of Sadiq Khan when campaigning to be Mayor of London ‘There will be no more strikes under my watch’..really Sadiq, because I’ve lived here for six months and I reckon there’s been one EVERY SINGLE MONTH.


Wow, that feels good to get that off my chest! It’s difficult to admit it when everyone tells you how lucky you are to live in London because ultimately you feel like you’re being ungrateful and not making the most of it but my god sometimes it really tests your patience. Some mornings I want to scream at the top of my lungs “SLOW THE EFF DOWN” to commuters rushing to get on the tube when there clearly isn’t any space left. We are all in this rat race together, so please let’s help each other out (get up a little earlier then you wouldn’t have to rush around is my first piece of advice).

The lady in Tesco the other day actually thanked me and told me to have a nice day! Why should I be surprised by this? Because no one ever talks to each other! Maybe it’s just a Northern thing but it’s actually pretty great to chat to people, ask them how their day is going and just BE NICE.

Yes London has A LOT of amazing things, but one thing it’s seriously lacking in is manners.

Okay, rant over.

Despite my slight (okay big) London-life crisis, I have still had a pretty awesome February. I went to the Top Secret Comedy Club, which despite being not top secret at all (it’s in Covent Garden) was absolutely hilarious especially when you’re drinking pints from a giant jug and your brother and his girlfriend are already pissed.

I met up with a friend who I hadn’t seen since sixth form over tea at Yumchaa in Soho which was the cutest tea-shop ever. We picked up right were we left off and have plans to go to the theatre this week. I also met up with a girl I went to Uni with and we had food at Zizzi’s and it was equally as lovely. Granted I’ve spent most my weekends at home in February (for parties, engagements and a charity do) the time I have spent in London has been great too!

Work has been brilliant: we smashed through the South America destinations and FINALLY OH FINALLY I’ve written about Reykjavik (and mastered how to spell it). My latest article about Newcastle shot to the top of the most-viewed article list thanks to NewcastleGateshead sharing it on their social media! 🙂

So I guess what I’m trying to say is, you’ve got to take the bad with the good.

It’s never going to be sunshine and rainbows, it’s London for gods sake, there’s too much smog to see a bloody rainbow.

But city life does have it’s advantages: you get too meet up with old friends because chances are you’ve all moved to London for work because trying to find a decent graduate job at home is impossible; you can walk along the River Thames and see Big Ben and the London Eye whenever you want; when the tubes work (and aren’t packed) they can get you to the other side of town pretty quickly; you’ll meet every colour and nationality in the world on your commute which I think is pretty amazing; you can (if you have a money tree) see a West-End show every weekend and last but not least, you will never ever, ever ever, be bored.

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again…London is the lover who will break your heart into a million tiny pieces and then put them all back together again. It’s easy to love, easy to hate but if you ever choose to leave, you’ll look back on it with fond memories and remember it as the place where you lost and found yourself all over again.


 

Back in London town.

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

It’s been a few weeks (maybe even a month!) since I last posted, so first of all apologies! When writing is your full time job, the last thing you want to do outside of work is more writing (sometimes anyway!). However, I am back, feeling happy and healthier (more about that later) than my 2016 self.

Of course since my last post I’ve been full of Christmas pudding, chocolates, dinner, alcohol and even more chocolates across the course of my 2 and a half weeks back at home. I (somehow) managed to successfully make it back up North with a full 65L backpack, a suitcase, a laptop bag and smaller backpack in time for a big pre-Christmas family meal.

The Christmas holidays were amazing – 2 and a half weeks of food, drink and festivities. It was so good to be home, spending time with my family and relaxing for a few weeks. 


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But by the second week of January I was more than ready to get back to work – it’s no fun being off when everyone else has already gone back. Plus, I reckon I’d put on about half a stone over Christmas so it was time to get my backside off the sofa, switch the Disney movies off and get back to the gym.

Sometimes all you need is January to kick-start the healthy eating and gym routine, am I right? I know it sounds cliche but a new year really is the best time to start fresh. When I came back to London, I went straight to Tesco to stock up on meat, vegetables, wholemeal wraps and pasta, dark chocolate, green tea and all manner of healthy food. I also got back into my gym routine, even managing to wake up early to get a spin class in before work a couple of times!


I am now a Junior Copywriter at Travioor (promotion yey!) which sounds pretty damn cool if I do say so myself. Finally, I am a professional full-time writer – go me! Anyone that knows me will know I’ve always wanted to be a writer and of course travel writing couldn’t be more fitting, so it’s pretty awesome that I get to do it for a living!

Since returning to London I feel like my weeks have literally been gym, work, bed but it’s nice to be back to normal and in a little routine. Last weekend was great: I went to the Women’s March that took place in London – what an atmosphere! It was fantastic to be part of such an important day in history: woman (and men!) of every race, ethnicity and age gathered together to march for their rights. There was no violence, simply women marching and rallying together to fight for what is right: equal pay, control over our own bodies and to raise the finger to the people who think they stand a chance at keeping us quiet. I saw so many cool signs, my favourite of which read ‘Even Voldemort wasn’t this bad’. I’m not going to name names but I think we all know who that was about.


Helicopters flew above the protesters so I was later able to see how many people turned up – a lot more than expected. I overheard the police explaining that there was so many people in attendance that we’d all have to take alternative routes to reach the rally at Trafalgar Square – pretty impressive ladies, well done to us.

I met up with my Dad, Kathryn, Amelia, Jamie and Anne in the evening for a few drinks in a (very) busy Leicester Square. I know most Londoners HATE tourists spots like Chinatown, Covent Garden and Leicester Square but I do still love them. Perhaps there’s still a little tourist left in me.


Sunday was such a lovely day. Dad, Kathryn and I met up for breakfast before exploring the markets at Covent Garden where some students were playing music and a guy was walking his ferret – only in London. 


We took a stroll along the river before stopping off for coffee and cake in a little cafe near Trafalgar Square.


 After being very good all week I did treat myself to a slice of Ferrero Rocher cake – it was delicious!


Then after waving them off I headed to the gym and got myself sorted for the week ahead.

Roll on payday so I can get back out their exploring the city!

 

 

 

 

A weekend at home, London’s no.1 tour guide and so many Winter Wonderland trips.

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

“Who’d have thought, I’ve managed to make a career out of my love of travel – I’d say it’s been a good 2016!”

I haven’t posted in a while – apologies! I’ve had a pretty busy few weeks, starting with a surprise trip home for my Mams birthday. It was a fantastic (extra) long weekend full of eating, drinking, a spa day, celebrating and all things Christmas!


Since coming back to London, it’s also been non-stop! After settling back into work for a mere three days it was the weekend and Alice, Flo and I were reunited for the first time in forever! We had a packed weekend of shopping, eating and Winter Wonderland! 


Unfortunately it never stopped raining all night on our trip to WW! We stood in the queue for the Ferris wheel in the rain, ate hot dogs in the rain but thankfully found shelter in the Carousel Bar when we grabbed a pint! At 9 p.m. we watched the Cirque Berserk under an even bigger shelter – the circus tent – and finally started to dry off a little. The acts were absolutely amazing: motorbikes driving round a giant sphere, a lady juggling fire with her feet, a guy swinging chains to the beat of a drum and acrobats that stretched their bodies into all sorts of shapes! ​ ​

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We Uber’d home after that – it was so cold we couldn’t even bare to walk to and from the tube station. So Alice got to toast her birthday in with a cup of tea and cakes! We really are old before our time!

When the girls left on Sunday, Mamma Jules came to London for a few days! So with my tourist hat on we headed BACK to Winter Wonderland (yes, again!) for more Christmassy goodness which included hot apple cider and toasted marshmallows! 


We popped to Leicester Square on route home to pick up tickets to the theatre and some takeaway Chinese from Chinatown – she was getting the full London experience!


On Monday we took a trip on the Emirates Airline – another item ticked off my London bucket list – which was awesome! Even on a grey, overcast day an aerial view of London is epic! 


 We took a stroll along the River Thames afterwards, starting at London Bridge then popping into Borough Market for lunch before exploring the Christmas Markets outside the Tate Modern. We managed to sneak in a look around the South Bank Winter Festival before it started to rain, then headed home to get ready to go to the Dominion Theatre to see The Bodyguard! 

The show was AMAZING from start to finish. Unfortunately Beverley Knight was on her night off but her replacement was fantastic – what a voice! Ben Richards (of Footballers Wives and Hollyoaks fame) played Frank Farmer and absolutely nailed it, and the lady playing Rachel’s sister Nikki was equally as brilliant. Even little Fletcher gave a great performance. The highlight had to be the end where Rachel sang ‘I Will Always Love You’ on a rising podium before the entire cast fled to the stage to sing and dance to ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’. The whole audience jumped up out of their seat to join in – the atmosphere was electric!

On Tuesday we checked out the markets at Camden before heading to Muriel’s Kitchen in Soho. I had to let my Mam experience the wonder of brunch in London, especially at Muriel’s. I went for Eggs Benedict and Mamma had a full English – safe to say she was well impressed! 


The British Museum was next on the list! I was determined to find the giant library I remember seeing there years ago on one of my first trips to London, but turns out it had been to closed to the public for years.

Jules headed home on Tuesday night at six and after dropping her off at the station I went straight to bed – I was exhausted, being a tour guide is hard work!

By Wednesday I was ready to get back into my routine and felt excited to head back to work especially as we had our Christmas Party night coming up! At 3.p.m we finished working, then the Christmas music came on, the bottle tops popped off and we gathered in the meeting room to exchange our Secret Santa gifts. Everyone loved their presents – success!


After a few drinks and many games of Pictionary we went to..you guessed it, WINTER WONDERLAND. Yes, for the third time in a week I went to Hyde Park’s Christmas Party for more mulled wine, hot dogs and cheesy music because you know, I hadn’t already had enough (my Christmas food baby is growing at an alarming rate). The night was such a laugh from beginning to end – we danced, and sang and laughed and drank cider, ate hot dogs, drank some more cider, ate pretzels…

There’s some awful videos of us singing Robbie Williams, Ronan Keating, Adele and a few Christmas classics. We even jumped around enough to spill our drinks because the tables shook so much – successful night I’d say!

I’m now in my final week of my Travioor internship and I’m not sure what’s going to happen next but that’s fine because I’ve had the most amazing 4 months and have learnt so much about writing and about myself. Who’d have thought, I’ve managed to make a career out of my love of travel – I’d say it’s been a good 2016! 🙂

 

The best weekend with the fam ❤️

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

I’ve had the best weekend 😁…spending time with my nearest and dearest!


Dad and Kathryn came down for the day on Saturday. We kicked off the day with breakfast at a place near Kings Cross Station called O’Neils. Eggs Benedict and a very large glass of OJ was my order ( I was feeling a little bit delicate!)…oh and a little extra toast – carbs to soak up the previous night’s alcohol!

Anyway, we Uber’d down to Southbank – my Dad does not do the tube “By the time you get down there, then climb all the way back up..well we might as well get an Uber.” He downloaded the app especially for the trip to London and was VERY excited to use it.


Southbank Winter Festival was just opening as we arrived so we had a wander along the river, soaking up the wintry atmosphere with passers-by wrapped up in their big coats, scarfs and gloves to fend off the cold.  There was a street performer (of course) playing along to songs with his flute which was brilliant and added to the atmosphere but what wasn’t so great was when he told his audience ‘Don’t leave without giving me money, it’s like going into a supermarket and taking something off the shelf without paying for it.’ – fair enough.

We walked back along to the wooden huts next to look at the cute Christmas decorations, admire the cool candles and enjoy the smell of hot chocolate and mulled wine whilst we waited for Jamie and Amelia to arrive. 


I showed them the food area and as expected my Dad could not believe that a burger cost £7, yes Dad welcome to London. Throw in the fact that he said falafel wrong and I knew this day was going to be a good’un!

Jamie and Amelia rang to say they were close but that they’d stopped off at the carousel as David Walliams was on it with his son. I shot round as fast as I could to catch a glimpse of him but decided against taking a photograph as he was just trying to enjoy a day with his family (but it was very exciting to see him and hear him talking – I was a BIG Little Britain fan back in the day!)

We escaped from the cold when we found Jamie and Amelia, heading to All Bar One for a couple of drinks. I opted for hot chocolate then tea as the others enjoyed cocktails – I was still not feeling up for alcohol! Clare came and joined us for a catch up as well, so it was just a thoroughly lovely few hours of laughing, chatting and laughing some more. All Bar One was decked out with a big Christmas tree stood by a cosy fire, tinsel, fairy lights etc. so it made the day feel even more wintry and wonderful!


The next stop on our list was the crazy busy but equally amazing Winter Wonderland. We Uber’d up there and much to my Dad’s delight had a very chatty driver who was more than happy to discuss how he’d started out as a driver, how black cabbies hate Uber…we basically got his life story in the 25 minutes it took for us to get to Hyde Park. Kathryn and I just sat back and enjoyed the views and laughed at Big Pev as he used his posh ‘Director’ voice. 

Winter Wonderland was AMAZING. Yes it was busy – it’s London where isn’t? – but everything from the Christmas stalls to the fairground rides made you feel so Christmassy! 


We headed to the Bavarian Village first, which had stall after stall of yummy food including pretzels, bratwurst, a suckling pig and of course beer and lager on tap. We grabbed a salted pretzel to walk around with, I offered my Dad a bite (the saltiest bit) and boy did I wish I got a photograph of his face! Safe to say he didn’t ask for anymore (mission accomplished).

For the next few hours we had a wander round, passing by the rollercoasters, carousels, Ferris wheel,  fairground games where you could win a giant teddy and even more food stalls offering corn on the cob, pies, churros…you name it, they sold it. Hot apple cider and prosecco was next on our list, which we sipped as we made our way to the Angel Market.

The Angel Market was full to the brim with crafts, candles, Christmas tree ornaments ready to be personalised, scarfs, pottery bowls, jewellery, dream catchers and even a blacksmith who personalised horse shoes of all sizes. It definitely gave me a few gift ideas!


We grabbed some food soon after, which was a Turkey and stuffing sandwich for me and Dad and some sweet potato fries for Kathryn – London prices yes. By this point the sun had started to set and we could begin to see the beautiful lights draped around the stalls and the luminous glow from the fairground rides. 



The huge archway which was perched next to the carousel bars was the most impressive – purples, blues and greens that stood out against the sunset.


Our Winter Wonderland journey came to an end as we toasted marshmallows by the fire – cosy, Christmassy and the perfect end to a perfect day (let’s forget the fact we made it back to Kings Cross by the skin of our teeth shall we!)


On Sunday I met up with Amelia for a little walk around Camden before we saw OFFPEAK in action in Islington. It took place in the Old Queen’s Head, a cool pub that embraces it’s antiquities whilst radiating modern, hipster vibes that are typical of every pub in London. The mulled wine was excellent – try it.

We stood side of stage cheering them as they blew the roof off the place, having followed a few quieter acoustic acts. Safe to say Jamie’s voice and the skill and sound coming from the rest of the band wowed everyone. Job well done boys, once again!

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Finding the mundane in the madness

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

…even in the busiest of places there’s always mundaneness in the madness. It’s difficult to spot when you’re wrestling through the crowds or racing for the tube but London is full of moments like this, we just have to look for them…or create them. 

I’m going to be posting twice this week, partly because I’ve been out and about so much during the week, and also because on Monday I am FINALLY going to fulfil a life long dream and GO TO HARRY POTTER WORLD.
So I’d like to get you up to date with all of my goings-on so far this week, then after my trip to Hogwarts on Monday I’ll give you another little update.

Christmas has well and truly arrived in London town! I am still running around the city, spending hours at Christmas markets, marvelling at pretty lights in the evenings after a busy day writing all sorts of travel goodness in the Travioor office.


I had a brilliant night on Tuesday with Amelia, and was also able to tick another thing off my London bucket list. We wandered around Covent Garden to see the giant mistletoe and baubles and amazing giant Christmas tree which stood in the main square, beaming with it’s big red bow and sparkly lights. Covent Garden is magical on a normal day so when it’s all dressed up for the festive period it’s a sight to behold. The raspy voice of a talented busker and his guitar filled the market hall as twinkly eye shoppers sipped hot drinks and checked a few items off their gift list.

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We decided on Chinatown for food (tick!) and after scouring Time Out’s guide to the best Chinese restaurants, chose a place called Four Seasons on Gerrard Street. The restaurant wasn’t too busy so provided the perfect escape from the evening crowds. We shared a feast of satay chicken, crispy shredded beef, chicken curry and rice with a few prawn crackers thrown in for good measure. The food was amazing, as was the glass of wine we washed it down with and of course the company was the best!


Wednesday was a big day in Travioor HQ – we moved down a floor into our brand new, shiny office! When the desks and equipment were moved downstairs, we had to make ourselves scarce so we had a group trip to the Exmouth Arms for some good old pub grub! Slider burgers, chilli cheese fries and fish and chips were amongst the choices! A little over an hour later we headed back to the office and TAADAAA transformation complete! Well, sort of – we had to set up all the computers and laptops but that took no time at all so we were all typing away again soon enough.


Wednesday and Thursday were ‘straight out after work’ nights as I met up with a mate who I went to sixth form with (many moons ago now!) whilst he was in the city on a course with work. We had a few drinks in a pub by Farringdon station on Wednesday night, a quiet night compared to Thursday!


On Thursday, Adam and I went to see the Regent Street Christmas Lights switch-on…it was amazing! Rebecca Ferguson and Tom Odell performed before Jamie Theakston and Emma Bunton presented, later joined by Holly Willoughby who switched the lights on. The highlight for me was seeing Tom Odell perform, what a voice – spine-tingling, goosebumps on you arms, tears in your eyes kind of singing. 

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The lights themselves were spectacular, giant angels draped from building to building across the full length of Regent Street. As they were switched on, fireworks exploded from the roof of the buildings and Mariah Carey singing ‘All I Want for Christmas is You’ vibrated through the speakers.

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We headed down to Leicester Square afterwards, stopping off for a look at the cute Christmas Markets, before settling in Bella Italia for food.


 I was able to capture this beautiful moment between a couple – I had no idea I’d done it till after the shot – which reminded me that even in the busiest of places there’s always mundaneness in the madness. It’s difficult to spot when you’re wrestling through the crowds or racing for the tube but London is full of moments like this, we just have to look for them…or create them. 

When we went for food, I did my usual, going back and forth between pasta and pizza, eventually deciding on a pizza that was gone in about 5 minutes of its arrival (hey I was hungry!) Our night was rounded off perfectly when we headed back to Piccadilly Circus and stopped to watch a hilarious group of street performers as they wowed the crowds with their dance moves, illuminated by the backdrop of the giant neon signs.
On Saturday I FINALLY made it to Portobello Road Market! I’ve planned on going for about a month now but due to bad weather and cancelled tubes hadn’t made it until now. 


Well, it was certainly worth the wait! Stalls and stalls of bric-a-brac, antiques, tatty souvenirs, unique arts and crafts, fruit and veg, vintage clothing and books filled Portobello road. 


Of course it was manic, but that was part of the appeal. Navigating through the crowds to discover a first edition Bronte novel, a rusty old telescope, a faded globe, a broken typewriter, a classic Adidas t-shirt or a beer bottle shaped into a clock. 


And of course there was a tonne of food stalls as well selling Spanish croquettas and omelettes, paella, burgers, Polish pastries, Indian curries, so much food I couldn’t even begin to list it all.

I picked up a few Christmas gifts on my way back through and even got told off for taking photographs from one stall owner! (oops!) Before heading home I stopped off at the Lonely Planet pop-up photography exhibition at Boxpark I’d been meaning to go and perused the amazing shots that made it into The Travel Book. I also entered a competition to win some LP books – we had to name the place in an anonoymous photo which lucky for me was a castle that had been written about in a Travioor article!


I’ll be back on Tuesday with part 2 of my fun-filled week! Now where did I put that broomstick…🤓

Christmas lights, Christmas markets and Christmas shopping.

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

Now that Bonfire night is over and done with we are allowed to bring out the mulled wine, start our shopping and ponder how on earth we’re going to buy a decent Secret Santa present with only £5.00 to spend, yes?

Well I’ve been feeling festive all week thanks to a shopping trip to Oxford Street with Amelia mid-week, where we saw the beautiful Christmas lights hanging between the shops, with more charming displays tucked down each side street.


And on Friday after work I decided to head down to my favourite place, Southbank, to see what the Winter Festival had to offer.

Walking across the bridge from Embankment station always gives me that euphoric feeling of ‘YES I LOVE YOU LONDON YOU ABSOLUTE BEAUT.’ It’s the sight of the river, bridge and buildings lit up that makes me feel so grateful to be living here. 


And that is the image I like to keep in mind when I’m on the central line at 8.30 a.m. trying not to inhale the stench of the man I’m squished up against whilst trying to ignore the fact that someone else is permanently pushed up against my arse.  Anyhow, as I was saying….
Southbank in the summer is like being on holiday: everyone is happy, sitting outside in the sunshine, drinking cider, catching a show at the Udderbelly, snapping pictures along the Thames and just all round loving life. But Southbank in the winter is even more magical. Fairy lights are draped across the top of the restaurants next to a giant Christmas tree which carefully watches over the many wooden market stalls that sell food from around the world, quirky crafts and warming drinks. 


There were vendors from places such as Italy, France and Poland selling local delicacies, which you could then wash down nicely with a drink from the Rekorderlig Cider Lounge. You can buy fairy lights, cakes and sweet treats, hot apple cider, cool signs and even fake snow from the other stalls that were perched beneath the bridge.



The braver visitors tried their hand (or rather their feet) at rollerskating in the BUMP roller disco tent, which also had the coolest disco ball bar outside. I did not even attempt to skate and instead wandered around the stalls then grabbed a hot apple cider and had a little moment gazing out at Big Ben and the London Eye.



It rained all day Saturday so I had a lazy day watching First Dates whilst writing this blog post. In the evening I met up with Amelia, Jamie and co. in Clapham for a few chilled drinks in All Bar One 🙂 (YES, I had a McDonalds on the way back but only because I didn’t eat before I came out, promise).

The weather today (Sunday) was so much better so I put my tourist hat on and headed out into the city. My first stop was the Museum of London – which I didn’t even know about until I googled free things to do in London this morning. So off I went to learn about the history of the city with exhibitions from as early as the Roman times and as recent as the 2012 Olympics on display. As an experienced traveller I have seen my fair share of museums (especially the free ones!) and I have to see the Museum of London is up there with the best. 


There were cabinets and cabinets full of interesting artefacts, clothing, shoes, documents and weapons that all told a story about London and how it has come to be the city it is today. I watched a video on the Black Death and the Great Fire of London, photographed my way along the Victorian walk (my favourite era) and even saw the iconic Selfridges lift. If you love history and want something fun and free on your next trip to London, this museum is a must!

I headed towards Covent Garden next, walking past St Paul’s (and the First dates  restaurant on route!) but ended up stopping off at Somerset House, a place I didn’t even know was open to the public! 


The ice rink that lands in the centre every winter was open for business, as where the Fortnum and Mason pop up shops that filled the west wing of the building.


 I loved getting lost in all the Christmas madness with rooms that were labelled ‘For Him, ‘For Her’, ‘Confectionery’, ‘Tearoom’ and ‘Bookshop’ to keep me entertained for an hour or so. As you can see from the photos, F&M are a luxury brand who really know how to do Christmas. I felt like I’d walked into a Christmas movie – Christmas trees in every room, garlands decorating the fireplaces and Christmas decorations that seemed almost too delicate to touch – I was in my element!


After admiring all the wonderful gifts and decorations that I could definitely not afford, I headed towards Trafalgar Square, walking part way up Charing Cross Road before dropping back into Covent Garden. I managed to squeeze my way into Sass and Belle to see if there were any cool gift ideas to inspire my gift list, but unfortunately spent so much time trying to dodge other people and make sure my backpack didn’t catch anything, I left empty handed.


Nevertheless, I am feeling well and truly in the Christmas spirit now, especially with plans of Christmas parties, Winter Wonderland and even more markets planned in the coming weeks! Is it too early to put the tree up?

Tapas, fireworks, mulled wine and books.

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

“Well, I want to make my own mind up on something before I’m told what to think or feel or believe. Does that make sense? Filmmakers will give you their vision of the story, which whether you agree with it or not, will never be as authentic and real to you if you had read the novel itself.”

This past weekend has been everything an autumn/winter weekend in London should be – full of food, drink, fireworks and of course cosying up with a book (more on that later).

After a very productive week at work, I met up with an old Uni friend (Emma) for tapas and sangria at Iberica right by Farringdon station, for a much needed catch up. 


We hadn’t been in touch since Uni, so reconnecting was a very welcomed surprise! We chatted over plates of bread and oil, chorizo and cheese before delving into the menu and selecting ‘Ham Croquettas’, ‘Chorizo Lollipops’ (we both really like chorizo) and ‘Patatas Bravas’ which in my opinion should be compulsory with any tapas order. Turns out Emma had been travelling as well, and like me had been to Australia and New Zealand so we had A LOT of travel notes to compare. We talked about our jobs and future plans over a desert of churros and cheesecake before having a quick cocktail in Bar Smith then heading home at 10ish (Fridays are reserved for going out, Saturdays are for going out out). Isn’t it lovely when you haven’t seen someone in ages (3 years to be exact!) and you can pick up where you left off? 🙂

Saturday was very much a lazy day. I had a lovely lie in, did a quick Metafit workout in the flat (which my glutes are still paying for) then took my time to get ready for the Battersea Park fireworks. Now, since going back to blonde my hair (as expected) has become pretty dry, especially in this cold weather. So I tried out the Toni and Guy Damage Repair mask I’d bought at Boots earlier in the week and thankfully it worked a treat! For the first time in ages my hair felt healthy (er) and straightened so much better than it has in forever – so yes I’d recommend it!

The fireworks at Battersea Park were A-M-A-Z-I-N-G – I had the best night with Lou from work.We headed straight for a mulled wine as soon as we reached the event area, which we then happily sipped as the bonfire was lit and the flame throwing acrobats started. Grabbing a bite to eat was next on the list before the display started so we headed to a burger van (obviously) and waited for about 45 minutes to be served. Now, perhaps we’ve just been in London too long or we just had a lot to chat about but neither of us batted an eyelid at the length of the wait and before we knew it we had a burger in one hand and some chips in the other. We even managed to sneak in another mulled wine before shuffling forward for a good view of the display.


The music started and off it went…firework after firework lighting up the dark sky with flashes of gold, purple, red, blue and green. And best of all, the explosions coincided with the rhythm and lyrics of the songs. When Bon Jovi’s Living on a Prayer blasted out of the speakers everyone joined in, singing along as the fireworks went off at the exact right moment – it was incredible! 

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The atmosphere made you forget how cold it was and it was so easy to then get out of the park afterwards – well done to the organisers, they really pulled this one-off.  I’d definitely recommend Battersea Park Fireworks if you’re ever planning  a trip to the Big Smoke for Bonfire night. Afterwards, we snuck in a few drinks at a pub in Victoria, aptly named The Victoria, before heading home at 11ish.

I indulged my inner book nerd on Sunday afternoon (after an amazing brunch of bacon and egg sandwiches of course) by exploring the charming bookshops hidden in the streets of Central London. I headed to the London Review Bookshop in Holborn after reading about it on Time Out. On route I stumbled across a cute little stamp shop that lived next door which, as a former Paperchase girl, was my idea of heaven. They had so many cool, quirky stamps and a tonne of other crafting materials I had to fight the urge to buy stuff, knowing very well that I have a load of craft stuff at home that hasn’t been touched in months.


The London Review Bookshop was everything you’d want from a booksellers – cosy, quiet and packed with stories from every corner of the globe, stories from the past, the present and the future, some that told you of heartbreak, some that told you of triumph and somewhere amongst all of them would be the one that would become your new favourite.


As an English Literature graduate I could never fall out of love with books. Even as a little girl, the library was heaven. Spending hours deciding what to read next, what world to enter and which characters to become attached to is probably the reason I studied English Literature and continue to love reading now.
Just watch the film some people say. If I know there is a film version of a book that is set to be released soon, I wouldn’t think about seeing it until I read the book. Why? Well, I want to make my own mind up on something before I’m told what to think or feel or believe. Does that make sense? Filmmakers will give you their vision of the story, which whether you agree with it or not, will never be as authentic and real to you if you had read the novel itself. That’s why, after then spending the next hour in Waterstones weighing up my options I went for The Light Between Oceans by M.L Stedman, a novel that is set to be released as a movie in the next few weeks.

Of course that was my plan anyway. What I hadn’t factored in was the fact that I would get chatting to the lady at the till and as a result leave the book on the till counter. Fast forward two hours and I arrived home, emptied my bag and was utterly heartbroken (I’m not even exaggerating) at the fact that it wasn’t at the bottom, hiding under my food shopping, as I thought it would be. I quickly emailed the Waterstones TCR store, even sending them a tweet, as I was desperate to find out if I’d left it in store or misplaced it in Sainsburys. Thankfully, on Monday afternoon, the lovely staff got in touch to say I had in fact left it at the till and that they’d put it to one side for me to collect. I was absolutely buzzing at work when I read the tweet/email. Unless you are a book nerd like me this whole scenario will seem pretty ridiculous I know, but when you spend hours choosing a story that you think will have some profound effect on your life, you will do anything you can to make sure you read it. So today, after work, I will be heading back to Waterstones TCR to collect said book and will most likely dive straight into it on the tube journey home. Any other Londoner will confirm that, when travelling on the underground, it is 100% necessary to temporarily occupy your mind in an alternate universe, as this is the only thing that will make that half hour journey seem like five minutes.

And finally, to end my perfect winter weekend I saw some more fireworks (it was free entry so why not) at Victoria Park with my flatmates. With a hotdog in one hand, which I’m ashamed to say was £6 and a hot chocolate in the other (only £2 thank goodness) we watched the display. It was equally as wonderful as the Battersea display, although it did feature a strangely scary poem to commemorate the Great Fire of London on its 350 year anniversary.

Now that Bonfire night is over there is only one big event left…yes you guessed it, Christmas! And I have to say, although the build up has only just begun with light switch on’s and the occasional glimpse of mince pies in the Coop, I already know that December in London is going to be one to remember. And I can’t bloody wait! 

Borough, burgers and bed.

Posted on by mylondondiariesblog

After a bit of a crazy week (two nights out!) and a mad Halloween party the VE bar on Friday, food and bed were my main priorities this weekend! 

HalloVEEN was great fun and everyone went all out with costumes. I went for a sugar skull/ Day of the dead look which in theory seemed straightforward but actually took about 2 hours to do! The face stickers were a little fidgety to say the least but I persevered and this was the result… 


..I added a little hair chalk and some glitter then taaaddaaa. There were also witches, vampires, one girl with a spider crawling out of her eye (scary!), some Pulp Fiction characters and a whole lot of bloody covered, white faced demons. 

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​The red around my eyes was actually lipstick so you can imagine the struggle I had trying to take it all off later that night. I woke up the next day with red stained eyes and bed head like no other! Luckily a 20 minute shower washed away the chalk and the rest of the red!

I spent Saturday exploring Borough Market. Now heading there on a Saturday was not my best decision (tourist central!) but I still had fun navigating around the sea of people to see the amazing food stalls. 


There were blocks of cheese twice the size of my head, giant meringues, mountains of fresh pastries and the mother of all burgers. 



The Borough burger was worth the 20 minute wait! I had to find a seat on the edge of a kerb somewhere because the place was so busy but the burger was worth looking like a loser on my own. 

I also stumbled across the Cross Bone Gardens, a remembrance garden marked by the hundreds of ribbons and photos tied to the gate. 


I had a stroll along the river afterwards and came across street performers, a little love lock bridge, a book stall and a giant bubble blower. London has it all. Something weird and wonderful round every corner. 

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On the way home I even saw two big red double decker buses carrying a wedding party! What a way to travel on your wedding day! 


And today I am chilling in bed! I haven’t had a day where I’ve done nothing since I’ve moved so it’s much needed!