Knowing how close we were to London, we had to go.
We bought our train tickets and planned the day accordingly.
Packed a quick bag full of cameras and an umbrella, since I knew there would be a chance of rain.
Our day started off as any other would when traveling.
Getting up early, rushing to the train station, getting breakfast on the train, and taking a short nap.
When we got off of the bus in London we quickly jumped on our tour and started around town.
The weather was chilly and I was glad that I packed a small jacket.
Walking around was easy enough with the bus that we were on and where we were dropped off at.
If you have a day in London like we did, I would highly suggest taking a Hop-On-Hop-Off Tour.
The tickets are worth the price to see everything and get to know the city.
We started off at the Marble Arch. This white Marble Arch was to be the state entrance of Buckingham Palace, but this was relocated some years later.
Only those that are members of the Royal Family, King's Troop, an Royal Horse Artillery are permitted to pass through. This still happens, but only in a ceremonial procession.
Once we left the Marble Arch we were off to Buckingham Palace.
Everyone knows what this place is. Ever since I was a little girl I wondered what it would be like to stand out front of this massive headquarters.
The day that we were there the Queen was not. There was also not change of the guard.
This did not make any difference to us, but the people around were upset.
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| The crowd was impressive. Make sure that you kept bags next to you. |
Buckingham Palace was everything and more than I hoped that it would be.
The guards out front, the gates, the roads, the architecture, and the statues.
Everything was a dream come true.
If you wish to go inside, make sure that you buy tickets in advance as the queue can be hours long.
After walking around getting the normal touristy photos, we jumped back onto the bus and off we went to our next location that we wanted to see.
Westminster Abbey.
Parliament.
Big Ben.
When I hear these three places all I can think of is National Lampoons European Vacation.
Where they get stuck in a roundabout and he keeps saying
Until I visited that same location, I had no idea how hard it was to actual get to the left.
The location of all three are easily walk-able.
You can see all of the main "attractions" in one day.
I would highly recommend writing down what you would want to see and make sure get you get on the right buses.
This will allow you to see everything that you want in a short amount of time.
One of the best views that we saw in London was on the Westminster Bridge.
The day that we were in London the Great River Race was going on.
The race drew a rather large crowd that covered the bridge.
People were bumping into each other and pictures were being taken.
It was a wonderful experience that I can honestly say was a surprise to us.
The one thing about standing outside in the cool weather and watching races you work up an appetite.
Our quick trip to get food turned into a two hour long pub stay.
I will get more into what happened with that, but the food was worth it in the end.
Walking around London felt almost surreal,
You see pictures all of the time and wonder if it really looks like that.
You hear the weather is always rainy.
That people just sit in pubs all of the time.
What I found to be true was that it does look like the pictures, it did rain, and we did just sit in a pub.
We even threw in a quick trip to the Sherlock Holmes Museum.
The walk to get to this was worth the soaking wet pants from the rain.
The Sherlock Holmes Museum is off of the beaten path of the normal tourist attractions.
If you want to go into the Museum itself, the cost is 15 pounds for an adult and 10 pounds for those 16 and under.
To get your tickets go into the gift shop and talk to the cashier.
The address, as any Sherlock Holmes fan knows, is
221B. Baker Street.
One of the more interesting sites that we saw was the Great Fire of London City Replica.
The replica was built to signify the burning of London 350 years ago.
The fire left 80 percent of the walled part of the city burnt.
Over 13,000 homes were destroyed, 87 parish churches, and St. Paul's Cathedral.
70,000 of the 80,000 population had to be moved.
Despite all of the devastation there were only six confirmed deaths.
A man named Robert Hubert confessed to starting the fire and was hung, but
it turned out that he was at sea when the blaze started.
London has too many small charms to honestly see in one day, but I am glad that we made the trip.
If you are looking at making the trip, I would stay for a week just in this city.
Even with that week you still will not see everything, but you will get the idea of what you would like to see on a return trip.
Personally, I can't wait to get back to this wonderful little slice of heaven!
These photos are my favorite of the main sites to see.
For more photos follow me on Instagram!
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