Gert Lush London

Now that was a great adventure.

Dave knocked on my door promptly at 6:30am with a cup of tea, and we were on the road by half-seven as they say in England.

Driver's seat on the right say whaaa??

I ate my first sausage and ketchup breakfast sandwich on the two-hour road trip and had managed to spill coffee all over myself by 9. We arrived in London around 10:30 but were stuck in nearly standstill traffic for almost an hour. Poor Dave our chauffeur suffered the most since he carries the infamous Y-chromosome characterized by traffic-induced impatience. So naturally by 11 in the morning, after finally parking in a gare-ahge, we were having our first and much needed half-pint of cider. Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" was playing in the background at the pub. Thus proving you don't have to be in college to have an experience like this. It was an exceptional moment.

First stop on the list was Platform 9 and 3/4, naturally, so we head underground for my maiden voyage on the Tube.

Little did we know it would be ages before we saw that Covent Garden sign again.

Once we arrived at King's Cross Station, we made a beeline for Platforms 9 & 10, only to discover that there's actually nothing there. Because of the volume of traffic, they have relocated the "platform" to the outside of the station. We had to ask about three separate station employees how to get there, which made me wonder if that's the most frequent question they are asked. I'm gonna go with yes. Because there was a 50-person line in front of us to take pictures by the time we found the darn thing. Unfortunately they were doing construction on or around the area so the trolley halfway through the wall had a little hut built around it, which affected the illusion a tiny bit. But given the choice between getting a good enough picture underneath the safety of a roof or being killed attempting to fulfill my childhood dream of visiting Platform 9 and 3/4, I think I'll choose life and use my computer's cropping tool. Didn't turn out to shabby now did it:

My second family. Cute innit?

After a hectic morning we were all ready for a good cornish pasty (pronounced past-ee). And boy did West Cornwall deliver. A pasty is like a really proper way of saying Hot Pocket (or Lean Pocket if that's your fancy), except instead of pizza it's filled with meat, potatoes, and veggies. It's the perfect on the go meal. Dave told me coal miners used to eat these but since they had dirty hands they'd eat everything inside and chuck the pasty shell. Such a shame... that's the best part. 

Feasting on pasties at King's Cross while looking for the line to the nearest pub.

By noon we had finished off our second half-pint and were ready to embark on the double decker bus tour. Not that I needed it because I was in the presence of the best tour guides in the U.K.

We totally knew where we were going.

That's why Dave was always a block ahead of us.

The next six hours were a whirlwind of sightseeing. I didn't think it was possible to see everything in London in a day, but we did it. Which explains the blisters on my toes and the tender spots still in my heels. But it was completely worth it. Here are some highlights:

St. Paul's Cathedral. I would totally be there every Sunday if this is what my church looked like.

I had an epiphany realizing the origin of the childhood song. Thankfully it wasn't falling down that day.

The Tower of London. Apparently there are 26 total towers on the premises, but after our 7th one I think Dave spoke for all of us when he said, "I think we get the jist."

Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. Although it's a replica and 200m away from where the original stood. Fraud.

But it was worth getting off the bus for Dave to take my picture wearing a St. Paul's Cathedral hat.

We drove past Trafalgar Square so many times that by the time we actually passed it on foot we were too sick of seeing it to get a close up picture.

Really excited to be at the gates to Buckingham Palace. 

The flag was flying which meant the Queen was there! Legit. Dave wanted to leave at this point, but I gave him the puppy dog face so he gave in and we carried on. I couldn't come all the way to London without seeing Big Ben up close now could I?

 Palace of Westminster aka the Houses of Parliament. The most gorgeous building I've ever seen in my life.

Thar he blows. The very best clock out of the hundreds we saw that day. Apparently the British like to be prompt. I wonder what that's like.

Westminster Abbey, for those of you who live in a cave and missed the Royal Wedding. (Guilty... Rachel had to point it out to me.)

By the time we got here (we had walked all the way from Buckingham Palace) all of our feet were dying. So we popped on over to The Nag's Head so Dave and I could get an IV drip of cider. On the way in however I got carded for the first time in Europe. Apparently I didn't look 18. And when I pulled out my Illinois driver's license the bouncer dude stared at me perplexedly and asked, "What's this?" After a couple minutes of convincing him that it was a legitimate form of identification he let me in. We then realized we hadn't had anything to eat since the pasties that morning, but the kitchen was closed so we hopped on the Tube back to Covent Garden (finally) and ate at the sweetest little restaurant called Bella Italia for dinner. I'm proud to say I matched Dave cider for cider that day and then calzone for calzone at dinner. 

Don't be fooled by my small stature, I have a stomach as deep as Mary Poppins' carpet bag.

I think I passed out within five minutes of settling down in the car on our way back home: part food coma, part loss of sensation in my legs. Dave says I snored, but I refuse to believe it. 

There are so many more memories made and laughs shared that I can't really put into words, but I think this is sufficient for blog purposes. It was such an exhausting day trip, but it was honestly a day I will remember forever because I spent it amongst the best company. I had such a blast the entire weekend that I forgot all about buying souvenirs, but I managed to snag these two in the airport on the way out, both of which I feel are appropriate given the circumstances:

I flew to Bristol on Thursday nervous and alone and departed Sunday afternoon already missing my second family. England hasn't see the last of me, that I know for sure.