The travel part did not go as smoothly as hoped – try a 12 hr layover in Mexico City, subsequently missed shuttle to the hotel, then a foray through the underground with far too much luggage due to the closest station to our hotel being closed for renovation. Good thing my mom and I looked our best (post 36+ hrs of travel) so chivalrous british men would help carry our three 50+ pound bags up the numerous stairways between tube stops. Regardless, we finally arrived to our hotel in London late Monday night – travel weary and bleary eyed – ready for a shower, room service and a good sleep in a normal bed.
After our rest, we set off to experience London and we have been busy from then on.
The short:
Tuesday: Run in Hyde Park, lunch with Lorraine – mom’s friend from San Diego, being a tourist with Freddie – my friend from USC, Book of Mormon in Camden (sorry to my Mormon friends), delicious pan-asian food for dinner.
Wednesday: typical English breakfast, Warner Brothers Harry Potter Tour – truly an all day event, Dinner in Shepard’s Market
Thursday: Harrods, Tea at Fortnum & Mason, SAS pub crawl
The Details:
Our hotel is right by Hyde Park – London’s fancier & smaller version of Central Park complete with rose gardens, statues, and a small lake. We met Lorraine that afternoon and she showed us the backstreets of Westminster, renewing my love of Europe and its twisting, cobbled side streets once again. I rendezvoused with Freddie after that and we made an attempt to be touristy by visiting Trafalgar Square, the national galleries and walking down by the Thames. It was great to see a familiar face and explore the sites of London. Freddie is originally from here and will be attending University of Edinburgh this year. Here’s a shot of us over the Thames by our new friend Ben
After that, I rushed back to the hotel to change and head out to see the Book of Mormon with my mother. We Ubered there – so excited to see this app exists here! Much to the disenchantment of the Hotel Valet man who wanted to call us a regular taxi… sorry! My mother and I laughed our heads off and we were pleasantly surprised by a number of the British actors’ American accents. Disclaimer: the play is quite offensive to most parties, but still, downright hilarious. By the time the show finished, around 10, we had developed quite an appetite and hopped in a cab requesting to be taken somewhere with good food near our hotel. Luckily, the cabbie was more than happy to oblige and dropped us off at a small Pan-Asian restaurant by Oxford Street. Surprisingly delicious – see here.
Wednesday morning we shopped around Oxford Street and enjoyed delicious breakfast at a small cafe down the road from our hotel. 
We caught our bus out to the WB lot around 2:00 and stepped into the magical world of Harry Potter, seeing the sets, the costumes, the props from all of the films. I had forgotten how much this series dominated my childhood and how much I still wished I’d received my letter to Hogwarts at age 11. We marveled at the sheer attention to detail and amount of effort put into every single piece used in the movies and we gave Butterbeer the good old college try. As I have quite a tolerance for sweets, I loved the sugary butterscotch concoction, but mom was not such a fan. We walked through Diagon Alley, Number 4 Privet Drive, most of Hogwarts and even found a piece of Wizard’s Chess fighting on! Pic later!
After hours walking around, we took a bus back to Piccadilly and stopped in Shepard’s Market for a drink and some dinner. PSA: if you are a female – expect to be a minority. We also felt quite underdressed compared to the vast numbers of suited men crowded outside every pub for a Post-Wednesday Drink. According to our waiter, in England they celebrate hump day by drinking at pubs. I think the American version of this is called “wine Wednesday” 🙂 – but that remains to be confirmed.
Thursday was another marathon day, comprised predominately of eating. We took the tube to Harrods and taste tested a number of scrumptious delicacies – see this amazing Zebra doughnut: layers of chocolate and plain pastry, filled with chocolate mouse, covered in sugar and coated with chocolate fudge and dusted with chocolate flakes – SO GOOD. Pics to come later.
Then we hoofed it to Fortnum & Mason for our High Tea, which far exceeded already high expectations. The mint décor, assorted mini sandwiches, crisp champagne, wide array of tea selections, and our smiling Spanish server made it an afternoon to remember – mom & Paige’s last meal. After that my mother and I split up, me heading off to a pub-crawl with a group of Semester at Sea students and she joining Lorraine for a nice dinner. I had an excellent time at the pub-crawl and I really appreciated finally meeting some of the people I’ll be spending the next semester with! Our excitement seemed to be contagious, because everywhere we visited with our 30/40-person group became even more lively and raucous. I’ll spare the details of our 5-stop crawl and just share my piece of knowledge from the night: the tube in London closes at midnight and the bus really only gets you halfway back from Camden toward Hyde Park. Regardless, the night got me even more excited to get on the ship and start the adventure of a lifetime!
— posting 2 days late due to spotty ship wifi, more on embarkation day later! —
paige gets around [the world] 