I'm Seeing Double... Decker Busses #10

(Personal Excursion)

This post is a little bit late, but a couple of weeks ago a few of us hopped on a plane and went across the English Channel and spent the weekend in the UK. When I was younger, I wanted to go to London more than anywhere else in the world. I think it had something to do with the Mary-Kate and Ashley movie "Winning London", but either way it was on the top of my to do list. This was the first trip that we took on our own without teachers or chaperones or just a way to get from point A to point B easily. Lets just say that it made it a little more interesting that way.

Our first tube ride!

Fish and Chips!

Big Ben!

While booking the trip, there were a lot of things that we were sure about. Where we were staying, what we for sure wanted to see, and that we were going to take the London Underground (tube) everywhere we went. When we got there the first thing we weren't sure about was where we were staying. I was the one who booked the hostel and online the reviews were great and we made special requests for what time we got there and we were 100% confident in where we were staying. That completely flipped and when we got there, we discovered that it was also a pub and there was no one in the building. Not only that, but it was a good 45 minute train ride and walk out of our way. All of us had stayed in the airport the night before that and with little to no sleep, we were stressed, scared and tired. We went back to the train station and a nice concierge man was able to help us figure sleeping accommodations for that night. We accidentally upgraded to a four star hotel and we were more than happy with that.

Our Upgrade!

Buckingham Palace!

After the hostel fiasco, we were on our way to see what London had to offer. We went to the tower bridge and walked downtown from there to Big Ben, the London Eye, and Buckingham Palace. For lunch we had to stop for fish and chips and a beer to go along with it. We really felt like true tourists after we did that. We got a really good deal with the London Eye and got our tickets before hand and also with that ticket we got to go on a river boat cruise at night to get to know London more. With there being so much history and things to see in London, it is like we barely scratched the surface of that beautiful city. Things weren't as close together as we thought they were and we did A LOT of walking.
This trip really taught me how it is to plan a trip by myself and to get to know a city in under 48 hours. I really appreciate all of the planning and things that our teachers and even my parents have done for me in the past. I had a blast in London and I would go back in a heartbeat. Maybe with a little more planning next time, but none the less it was one of my favorite cities that was nothing like I expected it to be and of course it was very impressive.

STATS OF THE TRIP: 

• Miles walked: 14.8
• Hours slept: 7/36
• Times ripped off: 4
• Lessons Learned: 5
• Laughs: 1 million