Personal Photos: London

I finally went to Europe! I’ve wanted to go for a long time but never actually planned the trip and boarded the plane. For this trip, we decided to spend a week in London, then a week in Paris. Although we wanted to visit a long list of countries, we decided to spend enough time to really enjoy the individual cities and get into the groove of local life. It was great. Here is London from my viewpoint.

The Churchill War Rooms. I wasn’t really looking forward to this, (there are just parts of history that make me sad). But the information and displays were really interesting and made me quite curious about that time in England’s history. Fascinating too that the whole series of rooms was kept a secret.  It just so happened that one of our favorite artists, Ryan Adams, was playing a show in London while we were there. It’s been awhile since we’ve seen him play live, so we were thrilled. Free museum entry? Yes, please!

Of course I had to go fabric shopping, that has become my souvenirs of travel. We spend part of a day visiting the Walthamstow Market, which I only knew about from some of the sewing bloggers I follow.  Subway system… can I actually sing your praises? So great (both in London and Paris) and easy to navigate. Too bad the cities near me don’t have quite such a robust system.  Everything was so narrow! This was the staircase to the flat we stayed in. My main thought was – how do they move furniture in and out? The streets are all very narrow as well and walking on cobblestones was a step back in time.  A few spots left a real impression on me – one was St. Dunstan-in-the-East. It’s a bombed out church that was never rebuilt and allowed to be overrun by plant life. It’s breathtaking, peaceful and a holy spot somehow. Go there and sit awhile if you are able.
Ah, the White Tower aka The Tower of London – so much (disturbing) history took place here. I’m fascinated by the Tudor History in England, so this was a treat to visit. But, also very strange, because a lot of pain and suffering was enacted within these walls. While we were there, the ‘Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red‘ was being installed. So breathtaking and a beautiful way to honor lives lost at war. 
We spent a day visiting the Cutty Sark, guided by a very knowledgable friend of my husband’s. Also a very interesting point in England’s history, during the tea trade. A collection of retired ship mastheads. Lucky us, we found a great local pub that was our hangout/chill time/drink all the local brews/eat some food spot, The Lyric Soho. Both my husband and I are beer drinkers, but I am also a huge fan of hard cider. England did not disappoint.