1 day in London

Almost everyone that has heard I was spending only 24 hours in London looked at me like I'm crazy, and to be fair, they may be right. By no means is twenty four hours enough time to see a city like London, but for me it's enough to get through the highlights again since I've been once before.

The reason I chose to come back to London having already been there was because I thought it would be a good ice breaker and help to ease me in. The idea of starting off in an English speaking city, one that I had even a tiny bit of familiarity with really seemed like the best place to start. Having a cousin to meet up with didn’t hurt either.

My flight was only about 5 hours, midnight in St John’s to 8:30am in London. It was generally uneventful but also didn’t allow me to sleep. I was awake over 24 hours by the time I arrived but surprisingly still able to run on excitement without any over-tired tantrums.

I was so grateful to find clear directional signs and Wi-Fi at the airport so I could be on my way to the hostel quickly. The trains connect directly to the airport terminal and it was only 1 transfer and about 2 minutes of walking before I arrived. Thankfully I would only have to wait 45 minutes before I could check-in and shower.

Just kidding.

When I went up to check-in and get my key they didn’t have a reservation for me! I pulled out my copy of the reservation that I had brought with me for just such an occasion and I was quickly informed that I was in the wrong hostel… Fortunately for me the place I was meant to be was only across the street and unfortunately for me I wasn’t able to check-in there for 4 more hours. All I could do was leave my bags in the locker room and continue my day in the same clothes.

My cousin met me at the hostel and we got walking. London would be my first of many really long walking days at just under 20km.

We started out in Hyde Park and exited specifically to find a place called Churchill Arms. I had no intention of going inside, especially considering I had no idea what was even in there, but I really wanted to see the flowered façade that has been all over my Instagram feed.

As we continued on it started to rain, in true English fashion. We managed to stay pretty dry during the first downpour by hiding under the canopy of a large tree and as it let up we decided to try getting somewhere else before it started again. With the Millennium Bridge right near us we opted to cross over and wait out the rain inside the Tate Modern. I can’t say I’m overly excited by modern art but I was promised an excellent view from the covered rooftop café, which didn’t disappoint.

I didn’t take too much time at any one place but I did see most of the big sites. Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, The London Eye, parliament, Big Ben, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar square, Piccadilly circus, Oxford circus, Regent street, Carnaby street..

Eventually my feet wouldn’t carry me anymore and my back felt like it would give out at any moment so we found a restaurant with a free table and ordered snacks to share. Fish and chips, because I was in the UK, halloumi and eggplant, and hummus with naan.

Alannah pointed me in the right direction to get back to my hostel, we said good-bye and I made the short journey on the tube.

At the hostel I finally checked in, got set in my 24-bed dorm room and went to bed, ready for an early morning and a train to Paris.