{adventures abroad} london calling

in january we found out that A would be going on a business trip to london{!} and leeds{!} the week of valentine's day. naturally, we bought a guide book and devised a plan in which i would be tagging along.

{adventures abroad} london: day one - we have arrived

we arrived in london on the morning of sunday, february 13. we took the tube from heathrow airport all the way to kilburn park station, dropped off our bags and met A's boss for lunch at a local pub. after lunch we went back to our hotel for a cup of free fancy coffee {hello, executive lounge!} to try and overcome the jet lag.
then A and i went out for our traditional day one walkabout - it was cold and gray and drizzly, but we headed down maida vale, admiring the sweet little houses, and wandered around st. john's wood in search of abbey road. when we found it, of course, it was crawling with tourists taking cheesy photos, but i suppose that's to be expected.

needing a break from the cold, we ducked into the nearest tube station and took it to waterloo and the london eye, which was all lit up in red for valentine's day! the long line went mercifully fast and suddenly we were up in the giant ferris wheel awestruck by the amazing views of the city below.

after our little joyride, the rain started coming down a little harder and a lot colder. we'd forgotten our umbrella and so we were forced to buy one from a tacky souvenir shop next to the eye. then we headed across the bridge toward the parliament building. on said bridge we saw this:

identical to the one that we had just purchased for five pounds at the tacky souvenir shop. not exactly a huge vote of confidence for our new umbrella. oh well.
we wandered around central london for a bit, oohing and ahhing at big ben, parliament, and westminster abbey. when we got hungry we stopped into a cute little pub with yummy fish and chips and the prettiest wallpaper ever {more important to me than to my husband i think}.

after our delicious dinner, we caught the closest tube back to kilburn park and fell fast asleep.

{adventures abroad} london: day two - valentine's day

our first full day in london just happened to be valentine's day.
of course, A had to work, so i took the tube to covent garden to explore the open-air antique market there.

there were so many lovely things to look at, but i somehow escaped without buying a single thing. i ambled along a little street behind the market in what i hoped was the direction of trafalgar square. along the way i discovered the sweetest little shop on earth where {once again} i wanted to buy everything i saw.

after spending perhaps just a little bit too much time in that shop, i continued on my way and finally found myself in bustling trafalgar square on what might have been the most beautiful day london has ever seen. i took a leisurely tour of the national gallery {rembrandt, van gogh, velazquez, turner, etc.} and bought a sandwich from the museum cafe, which i ate on the steps in front of the square. the view and the people-watching were phenomenal {i particularly enjoyed the gentleman walking his ferrets}.

 re-energized by my sandwich, i wandered some more, headed for piccadilly circus. there's not much to say about piccadilly circus - it's london's answer to times square. busy, loud, dirty, crowded. there were, however, some very thoughtfully placed valentine's day decorations.

i took the tube from piccadilly to oxford circus to do a little bit more shopping. first stop: top shop. overwhelming. far too many pretty things. including a cupcake shop in the middle of the store! joy of joys!

after top shop i went to h&m, but my shopping adventure was interrupted by A, who was finished with work for the day! we left oxford street for south kensington and the inner-child appeal of the natural history and science museums. space and time exploration, dinosaur and dodo bones, creepy crawlies, all for free and in the most beautiful old building right across from the v&a!

we were starving by the time the museum closed, so we went in search of food, which we found on selwood terrace at the anglesea arms. after our tempura scallops, truffle mushroom cheese pate, and a few snakebites, we wandered back to the tube station, where my lovely husband bought me a valentine's day rose...i do believe i am quite the lucky lady!

{adventures abroad} london: day three - pretty things

it was gray and gloomy when we woke up on day three of our trip and all i wanted to do was stay in bed all morning. when i finally got up and going, i headed back to south kensington to spend the day at the victoria and albert museum {A was working and i figured he wouldn't mind too much if he missed out on this incredible collection of decorative arts}. sadly for me, the fashion wing was closed, but there was more than enough amazingness to keep me busy!

after several hours at the v&a, i headed over to harrod's for even more impossibly gorgeous eye candy. from the egyptian escalator and the extensive children's floor to the designer dog boutique and the lavish cafeteria, it was overwhelming to say the least! 

thankfully, when i finally reached my breaking point, it was time to meet A and his boss for dinner.  we found a sweet little tapas restaurant around the corner from our hotel and enjoyed a quiet {and delicious} dinner before heading home in the rain.

{adventures abroad} london: day four - wolves and leeds

on day four of our trip, A had a very fancy meeting in leeds. i had other plans: a little side trip to see H, one of my roommates from college, who lives in wolverhampton with her husband and two beautiful sons! it'd been years since i'd seen them and i simply couldn't stand the idea of traveling all that way and not visiting with them {even if it was only for a few hours}. i took a mid-morning train through some really lovely country and her husband picked me up at the station and took me to their home. i got to hold her brand new baby boy while we chatted and caught up. it was beyond wonderful to see them! they treated me to fish and chips with mashed peas {and plenty of ketchup} for lunch and chocolate eclairs and coffee for dessert. i had to leave way too soon to hop back on the train headed for leeds.

* * * *

i made it to leeds just in time to freshen up and have a drink with A at the hotel bar. we were meeting our friend M {our friend's cousin whom we met in november when she came to the states} for dinner and drinks! we ate at the living room {so yummy and so pretty!} and went to a silly pub or two, but i was worn out {i would find out later that i had mono - awesome} so we went to bed a little earlier than expected.

{cheers!}