European Adventure Part VIII - Days One & Two

Oh, it’s going to be an adventure all right!

DAY ONE

Much of my time during the pandemic was about letting go. Letting go of how things had been before in my work and in my life and letting go of the idea that I can actually make plans for the future. One of those plans was an amazing trip in April 2020 back to London with a side trip to Madrid. I tried to take heart when the trip was cancelled, but I can admit now that it was a pretty big emotional hit. So when I found myself sitting once again in Dulles airport waiting for my flight it was incredibly surreal. It was extremely familiar, and yet so freaking strange. There are about 12 steps you have to go through to even leave the country, and I meticulously checked off every single one. I soon found myself relaxing with a glass of celebratory champagne, so excited for what this extended trip to one of my favorite places in the world would bring.

HELLO LONDON!

When you arrive in Heathrow Terminal 5 and are headed to Border Control, there’s this massive vinyl sign hanging that spans the long escalator that goes down to the tram. It’s a huge welcome sign with an astronaut on it. I usually look at this sign with very bleary eyes, jet lagged from the plane ride, but this year I was grinning at that sign like a fool. The welcome sign definitely made me forget that the plane ride over had an incredible amount of turbulence that kept me up for most of the night.

Heathrow Terminal 5 was empty compared to what I’ve seen in the past. It was a little disconcerting. I’d arrived in the country right when the US had lifted the ban on travel for non-US citizens to the country. I had a feeling that it was the quiet before the storm. One of the requirements by the UK government to gain access to the country is to book a COVID test within the first two days of arrival. Instead of trying to track down a testing center in Central London, I decided to just pay the extra money and take a test at the airport. Everything was over pretty quickly, and I was soon on my way into London.

ON THE THAMES

I decided to stay in a part of town that I’d never stayed in before, Bankside! This is in South London, south of the river. I’ve always stayed either in West or East London in the past. I found a delightful aparthotel a five minute walk away from the Borough Market, and steps away from the river. I was able to check in right away which was a relief because I was starting to feel a little tired. I took a shower and changed into to some comfortable clothes and headed out.

The aparthotel wasn’t close too any Tube station, so I decided to take the London Clipper (the river boat) around. I hopped on, and was soon at the Embankement station. I took the Tube to Piccadilly. A theme of this trip is something feeling so familiar, and yet at the same thing feeling so strange. It was the same with the Tube. I knew where I was going, but it had been so long, there were subtle things that were different that made it weird. I will say that I was surprised that so many people weren’t wearing masks when there were signs everywhere stating that masks were required.

I got off the Tube at Piccadilly Circus and made a beeline for the Fortnums. I know I’m tea obsessed, but I’m still surprised that my very first stop in London was a massive tea shop. I definitely lost my mind a bit. I replenished tea that I was out of at home, picked out some new ones, and also picked up some for the tea kits. Fortnums was crowded. Since Thanksgiving isn’t celebrated in the UK (but Black Friday is???), the Christmas decorations and sales starts pretty early compared to home. It was early November and the placed was decked out!

Naturally, since it’s only a few doors down, I next went to Waterstones to hunt out some new books. My Waterstones card still had 12 pounds (about 15ish dollars) on it, so using it every 1-2 years does have its uses!

MY FAVORITE WALK

One of my favorite walks in London is going across the Golden Jubilee bridge from Embankment. Walking across this bridge in 2011 was the first time I ever saw the Thames, and in seeing that view I realized that I was really in London. Sometimes when things are stressful, and I need for my mind to wander, I picture myself standing on the bridge, soaking in London in such perfect peace.

There was a lovely surprise on the other side of the bridge. Under it there was this beautiful Christmas Market. The smells were amazing. I was starting to get so hungry and couldn’t decide what to get. I ended up with a pulled duck burger, and I also got some mulled wine with a shot a amaretto. I then sat by the river to enjoy. It had been dark for awhile, but the weather was mild, and I was happy slowly enjoy my food and drink.

Soon, I moved on and walked along the Thames to my flat, where I enjoyed the rest of the evening. It was a wonderful day of easing back into being in London.

DAY TWO

It might surprise you to know that I plan out my vacations the same way that I plan out wedding days - minute-to-minute. I found when working on this trip this year that I really struggled to be able to do that. Perhaps it’s because we had so many weddings before I left, but I was seriously planned out. As I found from being stuck in my house for nearly a year, there are some great things that can come from being flexible and open to whatever happens. Just typing that gives me low grade anxiety - but it served me so well on this trip.

BREAKFAST FOR ONE

Back in 2018, I was able to go to the Coppa Club at Tower Bridge and enjoy breakfast with a friend in one of their igloos. I’d been determined to do so again, but hadn’t been able to. I was able to snag a breakfast reservation for 11:15am. I started the morning so slowly and deliciously lazy. I read one of the books that I’d picked up at Waterstones by one of my favorite modern British writers, Talia Hibbert. No jumping up and trying to maximize the day for me.

I took the Clipper across to Tower Bridge, and had a wonderful breakfast in my own private igloo. I drank some tasty coffee (yes! coffee, I know!) with some avocado toast and journaled. Fortified with some caffeine and food, I was ready for the rest of the day. It was drizzling out, but there wasn’t much that could have ruined my mood that morning. I felt free, open and grateful.

NOTTING HILL & JANE’S SCARVES

I hopped on the Tube at Tower Bridge and headed West to Notting Hill Gate. I was on my way to the first of very many markets that I’d venture through on this trip. On Friday, the Portobello Road Market has antiques, and I was excited to take a look at the wares. I stopped and picked up some new rings, and then stumbled upon this stall that was selling scarves. I decided to quickly scan the options and ended up staying for about 45 minutes chatting with the owner, Jane, who was from New Zealand about everything from the weather to how the US is being run under Biden. I ended up with a summer scarf and this beautiful burnt orange herringbone patterned scarf from Ireland. I’m wearing it as a write to you now, and you see it in so many pictures for the rest of the pictures. I’d really need it’s warmth so I’m glad that I picked it up.

I took a leisurely walk around Notting Hill, then hopped on the bus over to Camden Market. I was coming back to this market in the trip with my family, but I wanted to go to my favorite vintage clothing store and see what they had. The market was so crowded. I still wasn’t used to being crowds! I wandered around the store, but sadly wasn’t able to find anything I liked. My plan was then to stop by this Jamaican restaurant in the market and pick up some dinner - but the kitchen was closed. I was 0:2. I decided to head back to Bankside.

A FOOD CRAVING TAKES ME BACK ACROSS TOWN

I was in that horrible situation where I was starving but didn’t know what I wanted to eat. I wandered around Borough Market hoping something would catch my fancy, but nothing did. Then I realized that I wanted Chinese food, but astoundingly, there weren’t any places close by that looked good, so even though I was five minutes from my flat, and my feet hurt, I got back on the Tube and went back across the city to Chinatown. Then I had too many options. A girl couldn’t win this day. I finally made a choice, and then took the Clipper back to my flat. Across the Clipper dock was the London Eye, and it was lit up so beautifully. I took the boat back to my flat and settled in with my Chinese food - which had been worth the trip -and watched British dating shows.

Another wonderful day.

UP NEXT: A weekend catching up with a good friend

Blog, European Adventure, TravelJessica PinkstonDecember 10, 2021