London

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xoxo

London 〰️ xoxo

Traveling alone to another country!

Over Spring Break, I traveled to London to visit my friend studying abroad, and this was my first time flying alone out of the country! I learned so much through this experience and highly recommend solo travel and adventures for self growth and to get out of one’s comfort zone. During my week in London, I had a hefty list of recommendations I had been collecting over the past few years, since my last visit in 2015. Because my friend was still in school while I was visiting, I would go out on various adventures during her classes and I covered so much ground on my own, seeing almost every area in London that was on my list! London was super easy to navigate, and I walked or took the tube everywhere. I discovered some of my favorite areas and went back to them multiple times, and compiled some fun activities that you can do alone or with friends.

Travel is such an incredible experience and I am so fortunate to have been able to go on this trip! I love learning more about other places in the world and testing out “living” in new cities… London I’ll be back soon ;).

Fun activities, areas to hang out and explore:

Shoreditch/Spitalfields/Brick Lane- This is the neighborhood where my friends live, and it is actually such an incredible and lively area! Located in East London, there is no shortage of places to check out and if you’re not staying in East London I would definitely say to spend a day here! Spitalfields Market is filled with tons of amazing food stalls (over the week I went back several times for delicious dumplings, pizza, bahn mi sandwich, and yummy sweets). Shoreditch and Brick Lane are filled with vintage and curated secondhand stores, which can be expensive but I loved walking around browsing and getting inspiration! Also great people watching there… definitely one of the coolest fashion scenes.

Soho- full of shopping and incredible restaurants (and clubs!!!). Some favorite stores I hit in this area included the classic European brands like Bershka, Mango, Monki, Weekday, Dover Street Market, boutiques on Carnaby Street, & Other Stories, Ganni, Arket, Fiorucci, and more. I somehow ended up walking and shopping in Soho multiple days during my London trip…

Also, London has the most amazing department stores. Selfridges, Harrods, Liberty, Harvey Nichols, and Flannels were some that I checked out, and I could have spent hours inside each one! The attention to detail of every in-store display makes for a great shopping experience.

Covent Garden- I loved coming to this area for shops and food, fav stores include Charlotte Tilbury and the Glossier store. Also many cute cafes in Covent Garden and Seven Dials food market.

Notting Hill- Grab a matcha at Daylesford, walk around surrounding neighborhoods and Kensington (hello cute pastel houses!), stop into Reformation, Anya Hindmarch, The Hirst Collection jewelry shop, COS, Astrid Miyu jewelry.

Hyde Park- so peaceful, fun for walks, renting bikes, picnics in Green Park on the weekend.

Tate Modern Museum- I went here on a rainy day and was amazed by the size and collection of works here! Most of the exhibits inside are free, and definitely worth visiting.

Cafes and coffee shops I tried throughout the week:

Jenki Matcha- in Spitalfields, supposed to be the “Cha Cha Matcha” of London, and did not disappoint!

Daylesford Organic- a market in Notting Hill, and the cafe inside served one of the top 5 hot matcha lattes I have ever consumed in my life…

Cafe Kitsune- a chic Japanese cafe with another location in Paris, the matcha was a 10/10 and this is a great spot to sit and people watch! Afterward, walk over to Hyde Park through the Rose Garden. Perfect afternoon activity.

Ottolenghi Bakery- in a hidden corner in Spitalfields, we came here the last morning and WOW. Seriously the most incredible pastries. Tried the almond pain au chocolat, pain au chocolat, and Brazil nut banana loaf. If I had discovered this sooner I would have gone daily.

Ralph’s Coffee- located inside the Ralph Lauren flagship store on Bond Street. Fun to visit after having tried Ralph’s in NYC! Delish hot cocoa too.

Pret a Manger- a classic with many locations throughout London, perfect for on-the-go lunch or quick snacks.

Gail’s Bakery- another London chain for quick breakfast.

Fortnum and Mason- for the people watching, luxury teas and cookies, nice for little gifts to take home.

Favorite dinner:

Circolo Populare- I highly recommend any Big Mamma group restaurant for the atmosphere and absolutely incredible food, also fun drinks. Big Mamma has a couple of restaurants in both London and Paris, and I have been wanting to come for years now. Need to order: truffle mushroom pasta and the carbonara which they mix inside of a cheese wheel tableside. Also the lemon meringue cake is insane and 10 inches tall, absolutely delicious. I will definitely be back to Pink Mamma when I go to Paris this summer–yay!!!

Other things I noticed in LDN:

London is expensive! Especially tricky when things don’t seem like a lot but when you calculate the conversion from pounds to 1.3 in USD it can be a shock…
When you arrive, stop at an ATM to always have some cash on you in case of credit card issues etc.
Taking the tube and Heathrow express are much less expensive than ubering to/from central London and the LHR Airport, and takes about the same amount of time.
The London clubbing scene is super fun, going out there is very different from the US with a lot more young people because of different regulations!
People don’t really wear activewear/sweats/leggings out during the day, and almost all people I saw were fully dressed even for simple errands.

P.S. Fashion in London blog post coming soon!!!

Love you London <3

xoxo,

Josie

London in March