In April, I took a trip to Glasgow (more on that later), saw Prince Harry at the London Marathon, wrote a few papers and planned a trip to Paris.
However, the highlight of the month was having my parents come visit. It was so much fun to see them and show them around the city that's so dear to me.
We managed to fit a lot into a week...
The first full day was spent at Kew Gardens, just outside the city. It's one of my favorite spots and was recently placed at number 2 on a list of the world's top 10 gardens (second only to Versailles).
It's also home to Kew Palace, a relatively-modest former royal retreat (bottom right).
Another highlight was the Sky Garden--yet another one of my favorite escapes. It makes up the 35-38th floors of the Walkie Talkie Building, making it the highest public garden in London. It's also home to a cafe, bar and restaurant. However, it's not a popular tourist attraction, simply because not many people know about it.
It offers free (have to book tickets online at least 3 days in advance) 360 degree views of the city. You look down on the Thames, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, Parliament, and the two most common viewpoints--St. Paul's and the London Eye. While most opt for the half hour turn round the Eye or climbing up the spiral staircase in St. Paul's, the Sky Garden offers better views.
Oh, and it's about $30 cheaper.
As a family of museum/history geeks, we hit both the British Museum and the Victoria & Albert. Both incredible places where you could easily spend an entire week!
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| British Museum |
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| V&A |
As the week progressed, the weather got warmer and warmer, which meant more time outside!
We walked from the neighborhood where I live past Buckingham Palace,
through St. James's Park,
to Horse Guards Parade.
On the warmest day of the week (it was 80, yes 80, degrees), we hit the Tower of London--an attraction I hadn't been to yet.
We ended the day with a late lunch in the shadow of Tower Bridge, where several yummy food trucks live.
While everything was absolutely amazing, we all had the same favorite at the end of the week--Hampton Court Palace. Just over an hour outside the city is this magnificent palace, famous for being one of Henry VIII's homes.
The most fascinating part was the vast kitchen. Mum even got a chance to add 16th century cooking to her resume.
What truly took my breath away was the gardens. Even now, I'm struggling to think of a way to describe them.
The pictures will have to speak for themselves, though they don't even begin to capture the grandeur and life of the grounds.
We managed to fit in the normal (but absolutely necessary) tourist stuff too.
While I don't think a week has ever gone as quickly as this one did, we certainly capitalized on every moment. It was, without question, my favorite week I've spent in London.
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