London Revisited

Eight years and one month ago, I arrived in London to start my first European adventure. This past weekend I returned with my husband, excited to show him around the city I once called home. It is rare that I get to play tour guide in a European city, but I was more than ready to assume the role. 

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One of the first things we did (after drinking a pint in a pub of course) was to go for a ride on the London Eye, taking in magnificent views of the city and getting a lay of the land.

Then I made my man take a picture in a red telephone booth. He wasn't so excited about this part, but I managed to get a pretty good shot regardless.

We visited North Row, the street where my dorm was located, and peeked inside the Marlborough Head pub, the place where I enjoyed fish and chips with a pint on my first night all those years ago.

I glanced at the place where my former dorm once stood, where a Zara stands now, and gave thanks that the Zara wasn't there before, or I likely would have spent much more during that semester abroad than I did.

We walked through St. James Park, from the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace, enjoying the nature and intermittent sunshine.

And gazed in awe at St. Paul's Cathedral.

We watched two plays in the West End, including Agatha Christie's Mousetrap, the longest-running show in history, and Once, the stage adaptation of one of my favorite films.

We strolled through the the colorful streets of Notting Hill,

admired the sometimes delicious, always amusing offerings of the Portobello Road Market,

and spent time in Holland Park where this peacock put on a display.

We even stopped for a little kiss outside the park's walls.

All in all, we had a splendid trip. Though I must say some of the fun of this trip was returning home. No, not the part where they charged me and extra £45 to check my luggage, the part when we arrived in Amsterdam and, for the first time, I really did feel like I was home.