Days 6 & 7
It took us a while to crawl out of bed (especially Grant and I after four mornings of EMH!) however around lunch time we headed over to Borough Market. My dad works nearby and often pops down to get some lunch, so he was very excited about showing us everything.
Our first stop was for mulled wine - we'd been able to smell it for ages and couldn't resist when we finally found it being sold. We then wondered around taking in all of the sights and smells, stopping briefly to buy a big bag of Turkish delight. When we came out the other side we crossed London Bridge and got some photos.
The afternoon was spent wondering around Knightsbridge and Harrods. We stopped for lunch at Patisserie Valerie, and by the the time we came out it was dark. Having heard all of the hype, we headed over to the Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park by foot.
The Winter Wonderland was heaving, and compared to our quiet week at DLP it was quite overwhelming. Grant and I kept sarcastically despairing over the fairground rides painted up with ripped off Disney characters, and in particular two rides called 'Pirates of The Caribbean' and 'The Mad Hatter's Tea Cups'. Admittedly they looked good for fairground rides, but compared to their Disney namesakes they were pretty laughable. None of us were too enthused about standing in massive queues for below-par rides, so instead we caught a cab over to Covent Garden where we hoped the crowds would be quieter.
Covent Garden was lovely; busy, but nothing compared to the Winter Wonderland. We loved the decorations (they definitely lived up to what we'd come to expect at DLP) and there was a far more relaxed atmosphere. We bought a few treats from the market stalls and my sister and I visited our favourite shop - Ladurée!
Back at the flat we relaxed with some wine and snacks. I uploaded the second load of DLP photos to my laptop, and my sister and I got started on our Ladurée macaroons.
The next morning we made an effort to get up earlier and did a bit of classic London sightseeing.
We decided to make the main attraction of the day 'Ripley's Believe It Or Not'. My little sister loves the books and nags us to go every time we visit London. It was fairly expensive to get in, however after our initial financial resentment it actually turned out to be a great place. There was something for everyone, a really nice little cafe, and we had great fun trying out the mirror maze and laser challenge.
We headed over to Covent Garden again in the evening. I managed to sneak in a visit to my favourite shop, Urban Outfitters, and we came across some great street performers. We had dinner at Canteen, which is a nice little undercover restaurant. Since we were technically outside there were gas heaters either side of our table, and the giant bauble decorations were hanging above us. We all had great classic British dishes like winter stew, sausage and mash and pie; it was all simple but very well done.
On the way back to the flat we stopped off at the O2 for drinks. We needed to go somewhere where my little brother and sister could sit without any issues, and ended up at the bar in TGI Friday's.
We had an array of cocktails (which were far cheaper than those w'd indulged in at DLP!) and finally headed back to the flat at gone ten feeling a little light headed. However none of us were so far gone that we could pass up a photo with the Coca Cola Christmas lorry!
Back at the flat we had a couple of games of pool before we all went to bed. We had to be up early in the morning to get everything packed and get heading on our way back to Cornwall.
It had been an amazing, life changing week! My ring went off to be a resized a couple of days after we returned to Cornwall, and is now back and perfect size. We had an idyllic Christmas and New Year with my family, and we're now in the process of finding a flat together in Bath and planning our next trip to
Disneyland Paris!
A Christmas trip will definitely be on the cards once we're back, we intended to go November of last year but the prices were just too high, you've sealed it for me to try again soon though!
