Before I was obsessed with cooking, yoga, coffee, and music, I was obsessed with Queen Elizabeth I– the one from the 1500’s.

This interest began in third grade– sparked by the historical fiction The Royal Diaries: Elizabeth I, Red Rose of the House of Tudor. I spent hours devouring history websites about Elizabeth and her family, the Tudors.

And so my obsession began.

Harry Potter. Downton Abbey. The Crown.

Home to a map of London and three giant pictures of the queen, my room is an eclectic mess of English memorabilia. My music library is primarily UK artists– Ed Sheeran, The Beetles, Ellie Goulding, Gabrielle Aplin– and my podcast library is only British.

London was the magical experience I waited my whole life for, my Disney World. I will be eternally grateful for this trip.

My mom, dad, and I left for London at the beginning of June 2019. We arrived in London on a Thursday morning, a full 24 hours after we left from OKC the previous day.

From Heathrow, a thickly=accented English taxi driver gave us some pointer on where to go and what to do before we arrived at Earl’s Court where our white-painted hotel was waiting.

The Highlights

Walks around Earl’s Court

I wake up early no matter what.

The sunshine let me wake up a little before my parents and I walked around the area surrounding our hotel by myself in the mornings. I start my days, no matter where I am, with a cup of coffee, so I’d grab a cappuccino from Caffe Nero and stroll around for a bit.

Short,morning walks may be one of my favorite parts about life and a new city makes my walk a bit sweeter.

When traveling, find a little alone time in the morning to think, wonder, and explore.

Shows

London is home to one of the best theater districts in the world and shows run cheaper than in New York. We saw three different shows.

The first was Hamilton, which if you haven’t heard all about it by now, what are you doing?

The next show was a play. In stark contrast to the hip-hop musical, Sweat is set in an American factory town and details struggle to escape the paycheck to paycheck, daily grind of a sweatshop. I’d never heard of it before, but I think any play in a major London theatre is bound to be at the very least good and at best fantastic. Sweat was a dark exposé of the brutality in a factory town. If you go to London, try and see a cheaper show that’s obscure.

The third show we saw was the cheapest and I recommend everyone go see it. Agatha Christie, the famous who-dun-it mystery author, wrote the longest-running play in London, and I finished reading one of her novels on the plane, so I convinced my parents to go see Mousetrap. To keep with tradition, I can’t say much about the play– other than to see it.

Walks (and naps) in Hyde Park

There’s so much in London that we didn’t even touch the surface of all the places to see. We stayed around the more central area and didn’t run out of things to see, but I’d love to go back (live there) and do some more exploring!

Museum of London

Located in the City of London is my favorite museum. The Museum of London traces London’s history from original Roman walls to medieval monarchs to the present day. The donation entry museum is the museum you don’t want to miss. A bit less touristy and not quite as big as the British Museum, the history was linear and comprehensive.

Perfect for those that get a bit lost in a museum and have a shorter attention span.

Notting Hill and Portobello Market

Our last day will always be my favorite. Maybe because I knew it was the last day or maybe because Portobello Market in Notting Hill is the most perfect place I’ve ever visited.

Colorful houses, lines of fresh produce, and vintage clothes, the Portobello market will give you a true sense of being a Londoner.

Walk around, smell the fresh flowers, and enjoy the little things

Just be sure to check times on the market, they aren’t open all day every day!

St. Paul’s

Absolutly worth attending a little bit of a service to get a feel for the Anglican Church.

Note: I am, if you didn’t notice above, a bit of a history geek. Queen Elizabeth I’s father created the Anglican Church when the Catholic church wouldn’t let him divorce his first wife, Catherine of Aragon (who also has her own Royal Diaries book)

Anyhow, St, Paul’s is a magnificent cathedral with elegant, ethereal ceilings and angelic choir. The visit was a serene escape from London’s loud side.

Kensington Palace

A great area to check out is Kensington Palace, a museum that tells the story of Queen Victoria and is home to Prince William and Kate.

Kensington Gardens are also a beautiful area to walk around with lots of little statues to see. Royal Albert Hall is located in the garden as well.

Our favorite areas/districts

• Covent Gardens: Super cute, lots of restaurants and shops
• SoHo: The hip, up-and-coming district
• City of Westminister: Think Westminister Abbey and Big Ben.
• River Thames: Great way to see the bridges and the London Eye
• South Kensington: Kensington Gardens, Royal Albert Hall, and a great walking area!

We didn’t make it to Camden. but that is top on my list and would put it on yours.

Notable Mentions

Harolds: Honestly, one of my favorite stops and makes NYC’s Macy’s look small. It’s on Oxford Street, the best street for shopping!

Changing of the guard: Worth seeing once, but its rather long and crowded.

London Eye: Maybe not worth the price depending on who you are?

British museum: Go see the Rosetta Stone. And if you’re into the rest of it, you could plan a whole trip just at the British Museum. If you go, know what you want to see beforehand or you might get lost. I think the Museum of London is a better museum to understand British history, but the British museum is absolutely gorgeous

Picadilly Circus: The times square of London is certainly worth looking at, but it is crowded and touristy.

Eating in London

We started off with an English breakfast at a British Pub and I can’t lie, it was pretty subpar. I was worried that maybe all the other American travelers were right. Maybe English food isn’t that good.

They were very, very wrong.

Caffe Nero

Yes, we have to talk about coffee first. I have a t-shirt that says “but first coffee” which is super basic, but also super important if you want me to be nice. You think London and tea, and tea is cool, but coffee is necessary.

One option is always Pret-A-Manger; however, Pret is semi-established even in the US, so Caffe Nero is more interesting (and arguably better).

It’s a little Italian style coffee shop that pops up all over London, and, while a bit pricer than Pret, the cappuccino’s and pastry were perfect starts to the day or afternoon pick me ups.

Caffe Nero is a perfect coffee grab for those who need a caffeine fix (me).

However, if you just want a plain brewed coffee, Caffe Nero is a typical Italian coffeeshop and does not serve brewed coffee (which my Italian teacher says is coffee from the devil), so make sure you want an espresso beverage.

Dishoom

Many people associate London with fish and chips, but I associate London with curry. Dating back to the early 19th century, Indian food remains one of the most popular cuisines in London. Up until the 1940s, the British monarch was also the Emperor or Empress of India so ties are close and the cuisine crosses in London

Dishoom offers a wide selection of mouthwatering, spicy dishes served with delicate, fresh naan bread. Living in Oklahoma, I don’t get close to this level of Indian food.

If you want to try food that’s a bit different from the typical, this is the place, but be aware this a popular restaurant without reservation lists so going a little early never hurts.

Books For Cooks

Of everything in London– everything we ate, everything we saw– this will forever be my favorite and most memorable.

Books for Cooks is located in Notting Hill by the Portobello Markets and is a little bookshop. Every day, they serve a pre-chosen menu at 12 with recipes from one of the cookbooks.

We were served a sublime pea soup, grilled aubergine (eggplant), and a dessert that you get to choose. At the end of the meal, we paid around 7 pounds (about 10 USD) per person. Not only was this our best tasting meal but our cheapest.

The chef/owner has been at Books for Cooks for nearly three decades and has created a very wonderful and unique experience inside a little, delicious bookstore.

However, seating is very limited, so if they don’t have room, they don’t have room and it’s first come first serve.

Sketch

This one will need reservations.

Sketch is famous for its eclectic rooms. To create a new experience each time you go, each eye-catching room serves a different meal. We had our breakfast at Sketch in the Parlour.

While I don’t remember exactly what I ate, I embraced a weird mix of royalty and grunge rock whenever I ate it. And its the feeling that count– atmosphere is everything.

After breakfast, Sketch is located right next to fantastic shopping and places to walk around. London is home to several ally’s that always have something interesting down them.

You can also play a fancy little online game to explore every room and dining experience at sketch!

Poppies

Ah yes, fish and chips

Classic.

Don’t just go to any old tavern-looking-thing because Poppies is the best. Yes, I’m judging solely on the chips. Poppies has the best chips (fries if you aren’t cultured).

And if your feeling super cultured: mashed peas. Yes scary, yes delicious.

Notice when in London: they put malt vinegar on the table. This is your new ketchup. If you want to eat fish and chips like you’re a native Londoner (like I obviously am?) salt + malt vinegar.

Poppies has several locations and should allow reservations from their website!

SAID