Our adventures in London didn’t start there. This adventure started in Ireland. I was there for work and we had the best time! If you remember those posts, you’ll also remember my mom and sister were along for the ride. As you might have gathered by my previous posts (& in pictures below), I unapologetically geek out as a tourist. 🤓 You can spot me a mile away. Haha!

We booked the cutest boutique hotel in London near the attractions we planned to visit. Mostly because it had 3 twin beds, a rare find in that part of the world! Who wants to share a bed anyway?! Not me. It was nice but very tiny. We were crawling all over each other. Good thing we spent most of our time out exploring.

Day 1

While I was working with a local sales rep, my sister and mom adventured around London. They had some trouble navigating the city and it led to much confusion and a lot of walking. It’s easy to get turned around in a city you are unfamiliar with.

Travel Tip: Be sure to set up your navigation system to the measurements you are used to. Example: Miles vs Kilometers. Note: the UK uses miles.

Westminster Abbey

Once I was done with work we met up for a late lunch at an amazing pizza place (Pizza Express), which we ended up having a meal each day we were there! You might be surprised to learn that it is a chain restaurant and nothing special according to locals. 😅

After lunch, we regrouped and figured out how to get to Westminster Abbey. What a gem! Incredible. With over a thousand years of history.

London Cabaret

That evening we had tickets to the London Cabaret. All I can say is “WOW”. Our only regret is not having dressy clothes to wear! The champagne was flowing and we had the best time. It was like a girl’s night out while on vacation. Quite an elegant yet raunchy experience, one I’ll never forget.

Day 2

Buckingham Palace

No rest for the weary (or hungover). On this day we chose to get around town with a popular Hop-on-hop-off tour package that included some of the most popular London stops. It also included a boat ride on the River Thames. Our first destination was Buckingham Palace. Unfortunately, there was no Changing of the Guard that day. Bright side — it wasn’t very crowded! It was still an amazing destination and we were able to just sit and admire it for a while.

Tower of London

Next up was the Tower of London and Tower Bridge! I thought it was the London Bridge but I was wrong. 🤪 Did you know the London Bridge is pretty ordinary looking? The Tower of London is described as a secure fortress, royal palace and infamous prison where you can explore 1000 years of history. It also contains the crown jewels! 👑 Very rich in history and fun to tour.

Royal Wedding

Don’t get your hopes up…we weren’t at the wedding site but it was neat to be in London on the day that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle got hitched. We wouldn’t waste precious touristy time on the royal wedding. It was a completely accidental coincidence.

Travel Woes

Once we returned from our busy and tiring day of exploring London, we found all of our things in plastic garbage bags in the lobby of our cute boutique hotel. Oops! Looks like I didn’t book the hotel with the correct check-out date! While we were surprised and dismayed by the hotel situation, we found a way to make it a memorable joke. Earlier that month I saw a meme that said “Plot Twist!” and it made for a perfect saying when this happened. We all burst with laughter! And then found another hotel for the night. 😉

Travel Tip: Double or even triple check your booking dates. Or have someone else look them over. I hope I’ve learned my lesson!

Travel Tip: Find the humor in difficult situations. They are bound to happen.

Final Thoughts

Our adventures in London were incredible. We enjoyed it so much together. Trip of a lifetime and memories we will cherish for years to come.

This wraps up my Travel Series – Abroad edition. I hope you enjoyed it! It was so much fun to share it with you. For more travel tips, see my post on Traveling Abroad. Follow me for more whimsical heart stories.