LONDON IN 24 HOURS
I really ought to be doing my essay right now guys. The call to write about the features of spastic dysarthria is a-ringing, as is my deadline a-looming, but I've turned a blind eye, it's fallen on deaf ears. And that's firstly because one of my aims this year is to chill the heck out and stop stressing myself out, and secondly because I really, really, really want to show you guys the photographs I took (of which there were precisely 346) when I went to London yesterday. We went down yesterday, myself, my ma and my sis, to watch the magnificent musical Kinky Boots as part of my sister's Christmas present. It was all done on the cheap, and on a bit of a whim too, with the resulting trip being a truly whistlestop tour of London, great capital city of our fine nation. I'm very, very lucky in that as a family, we often take trips down to the capital regularly throughout the year. Therefore I'm blessed in that I've grown to know the city of London quite well over the years, something I adore as it's such a cracking, electric place to be. But out of all the many trips I've taken, experiencing London within the space of literally 24 hours was definitely a first. Due to numerous factors, my Ma could only find that one 24 hour window for us to take our trip in, and so she decided to go for it all guns ablaze.
We didn't plan what we were going to do when we got to London. Our only definite was heading to the West End in the evening, so we decided to make the most of our 24 hours by simply winging it. We walked everywhere, which was made all the better by the lovely crisp, sunny weather, and took in all the sights we saw along the way (of which there were many). We had a look in some of the shops, and hung around the St Paul's area, in particular making numerous trips up to the sixth floor of the swanky One New Change shopping centre directly opposite. It's a well known secret that if you take the lift up to the centre rooftop, you're treated to the most gorgeous, beautiful view of the London skyline, stretching out as far as the eye can see, and best of all is it's free. If you haven't been before, or you're looking for something fun and free to do on your next trip to London, I would highly recommend it. It's hands down one of the best things I've ever experienced.
The day seemed to whizz by so quickly, akin to the speed of light, but it felt like we were getting the very most out of it, even if that meant being kind of tired today as a result. It was crazy, random, fun, magical, and I loved every single minute of it. Before we went, I'd been feeling a little bit hung up for some reason, dwelling on silly things, but going away on this whistlestop adventure was exactly what I needed to cure me of my melancholy. Escaping everything just for 24 hours, having fun, living life, doing things that make you glad to be alive, having time to put things into perspective, enjoying yourself, being busy, impulsive, it was all the perfect remedy, and now I find that I feel so much more invigorated, focused, happier, at peace. And it's a damn good way to feel. So with that, I would love to present you with my itinerary of London in 24 hours, as well as some of the photographs I took, for you to enjoy!
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-Itinerary-
09:50-10:30 Train to Birmingham New Street (we went down the cheap way innit)
10:30-11:30 Explored the new Grand Central Station in Birmingham (it's breathtaking, and very big)
11:30- 1:00 Train from Birmingham New Street to London Euston
1:00-1:45 Walked to the Hotel Meridiana near St Pancras Station and checked in
1:45-2:30 Walked to One New Change near St Paul's Cathedral, via Grays Inn Road and Holborn
2:30-3:30 Walked around the outside of St Paul's Cathedral and then headed up to the sixth floor rooftop of the One New Change shopping centre directly opposite to marvel at the gorgeous view of the central London skyline.
03:30- 6:00 Had a quick cuppa, a look around the shops, went back up to the sixth floor to see the skyline twinkling at night time, and had tea at the wonderful Mexican eatery Wahaca!
06:00-10:00 We walked down from St Paul's through to Charing Cross Road, pausing at Somerset House to marvel at the amazing lights, to go watch the fabulous, joyful, dazzling Kinky Boots at the Adelphi Theatre
10:00-11:30 Walked back via Trafalgar Square and Leicester Square, stopped off for a late night cuppa at a cafe and walked the rest of the way to the hotel.
11:30-07:00 Attempted to sleep but couldn't due to Mum's incessant snoring.
07:00-10:00am Woke up, packed, got breakfast at the station and caught the train back home to Derby!
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