Monday 28 October 2013

London Love!

 
Well Hello......long time no see!
 
We got back from our London Adventure late on Saturday night, and I must say we had a BLAST!!!!
We loved every moment, had a fabulous time! The sight of St Paul's Cathedral as we walked over the Millennium Bridge just blew me away, it didn't look real, I felt like I could just reach out and touch the top of the dome!
 
We walked along the embankment, as some of you suggested, soaking in the atmosphere, marvelling at the skyline. Past the London Eye, now that's some structure.......over Westminster Bridge.
 
The houses of Parliament were magnificent and we sat and waited for Big Ben to strike. All familiar. Seen many, many times on the TV!
 
 
 
 
 
 
Then it was on to Trafalgar Square, before walking along the Mall to Buckingham Palace, sadly no tea with the Queen this time, but who knows what the future may bring!
 
 
 
We stayed out late into the evenings, enjoying the City Lights, loving Covent Garden, Leicester Square and the sparkle and glamour of the West End theatres. We might not have been able to afford a show, but that didn't seem to matter!
 
I loved the mix of the old and the new, so many exciting things to see. Eldest Bea loved the Underground with its predictability and order, she said she would have spent the whole time riding the trains!
 
 
But me, well I fell head over heels in love with the Museums.....I was speechless, not only about the beautiful artefacts, but the amazing buildings in which they were housed!
 
 
 
The Victoria and Albert was my absolute favourite, so many beautiful things to see. Little Bea loved the National Galleries, and seeing the magnificent art has inspired her even more to become an artist. To be allowed to stand so close to such paintings, felt like such a privilege. And all for FREE, yes every museum we went in was free!
 
 
We went into Liberty, Harrods, F and M, and whilst I could have filled a basket (or two!) in the Liberty Haberdashery Floor, I am more than happy with my little London souvenir.......
 
 
And did we do London On Budget? Well yes, I think so.
 
Three jam-packed days, two sparkly nights, great meals out, fabulous sights, all for under £360. We think we could have come under £300 if we had planned a bit more, and maybe saved some on London transport, got Oyster cards, but they looked so confusing!
 
 
And so we are now planning our next little London Trip, hopefully next spring.....I've a spare change bottle on the go as we speak! There's £6.28 in there to be precise! I'd love to go and have a rummage around some of the vintage markets next time!
 
 
 
 
And since we got back there's been lots of resting, reading, and a little bit of hooky!
 
 
 
 
I will try and pop over to your blogs over the next few days, and be back later in the week.........with a little yarny giveaway!
 
 
Bye for now,
 
 
 
Ada :) xxx
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

46 comments:

  1. Crikey Ada can't believe you did much in three days! I hope you are putting your feet up now and enjoying some restful hooky x Jane

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  2. I love London too and will be popping in to say hello tomorrow (only a tube ride for me though).

    I once spent hours in the V & A with my Aunty and we found a room full of vintage textiles that are in pull out shelves - it was a room hidden away upstairs, some of the fabrics were 2000 years old - happy memories.

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  3. So glad you had a wonderful time - your pics are fab - makes me pine to visit it again soon. The Natural History Museum is one of my favourites. Lovely crochet work :-) x

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  4. Makes me want to visit London again after seeing it through your eyes! Lovely X

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  5. Oh I'm so glad you all had fun! I love just walking around London, it is an amazing city. I love that you included the Chihuly chandelier from the V&A - I went to the exhibit when that was installed years ago! So your happy memories have brought back my happy memories! Thank you for sharing your wonderful break, Chrissie x

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  6. So glad that you had a great time, looks as though it was great fun for all of you! Like Chrissy, I love the Chihuly chandelier, he does some amazing work. You must have loved it if you are saving to go back already. Liberty's is amazing isn't it, you could easily spend a small fortune in there I always think. Glad to have you home again! xx

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  7. Oooo! My turn for a trip to London on Wednesday!! Can't wait! Liberty's is on my list too, and I am having tea in Fortnums!! Woohoo!!!

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  8. Sounds like you did have a blast. I love London. I have been back in NZ for 5 years but still miss it. Thank you for sharing your adventures xo

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  9. Hello lovely
    So nice to see that you really did pack so much sight seeing into your big city trip. Gosh you must have all been happily exhausted by the end of it all :o) The architecture is amazing and I always have to remind myself to look up beyond street level. I love that there is almost a bit of history on every corner of this old city. Alice and I are going up for the day on Wednesday and I want to take her to the National portrait gallery as she has a love of all the previous kings and queens and it has a spectacular view from their restaurant. I hope all the railways are ok after this storm as many trains have been cancelled.
    Liberty's and the V & A are such a spectacular to behold, just love them. Really pleased you enjoyed them too Ada. Enjoy the rest of this week and stay cosy with your crochet xox Penny

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  10. I'm glad you all had such a wonderful time on your trip to London and are already planning your next one. There is so much to see isn't there! When the children were younger we manged to get cheap train tickets to London and showed them many of the sights, They now visit London on their own but those earlier visits helped them to make London more familiar.
    Sarah x

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  11. Oh how I love London ... you packed so much into your stay ... I bet you can't wait to go again ... so glad you had a great time ... Bee xx

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  12. So glad you all had a great time in London! Sounds like you managed to pack so much in, and did it for such a good price.
    The museums and galleries are wonderful arent they? I last went to the V & A a couple of years ago for a Quilt exhibition and had forgotten what an incredible place it is.
    Enjoy relaxing and re-living those wonderful days - the memories will stay with you all for a long long time. Makes me want to go up and visit soon!
    Gill xx

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  13. I am also just back from London. It is like a shot in the arm! Loved it. Many years ago we did a house exchange and had a week in London for £100! It is great that so many things are still free.

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  14. Good for you, it sounds like a wonderful trip and very budget-conscious. I'm glad you're already planning another one!

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  15. OOO HOW LOVELY!! you did almost the identical same thing that we did with the kids! x

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  16. You got some amazing shots. I adore London - lived there for four years - and will be there on Wednesday. Yay!

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  17. Glad you had a fantastic time in London...you packed a lot in! Sounds like a great trip. G and I got engaged in London so it will always be a special place for us.
    Marianne x

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  18. Wow! What a whirlwind! Glad to see you saw all my favourite sights! Your photos are amazing -better than postcards!

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  19. I love London, too!!! Since the first time I visited this city, that was in 1983!!!!!!
    lovely pics, Ada!!!
    xxxx Ale

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  20. oh how lovely!! we spent a week in London last week and I fell in love with the place. Already hoping to go back one day for much longer!! oxxo

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  21. I love London! One of my favourite little spots is the Geffrye Museum in East London, it's free entry and here is their brief description: "The Geffrye Museum is devoted to the history of the home, showing how homes and gardens reflect changes in society, behaviour, style and taste over the past 400 years." It's small and fascinating. Something to add to the list for next time!

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  22. Sounds like a lovely break with so much crammed in. Can't wait to see your latest projects

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  23. Great photos. Sounds like you had a great visit. I love the V& A too.x

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  24. London is a great place to visit, have a lovely time x

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  25. Someone said 'if you're tired if London you're tired of life' or something like that... I think you've proved that's true. There's endless places to discover - we're still discovering new ones!
    I can recommend looking at the Open Suares or Open Houses web sites to find places you didn't know existed, but which open to the public at times.
    C xx

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  26. I love the V&A I used to go virtually every Saturday when I was in my late teens, I must know that museum off by heart!
    Julie xxxxxxxx

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  27. Your London photos are wonderful, and you managed to fit so much in to your visit! I love the V & A too and have used it for research since my student days....a real treasure trove. So glad you had a fantastic time, Ada!
    Helen x

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  28. Just wonderful! Such a beautiful City. So glad you all had such a great time :-) Mel x

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  29. Thanks for sharing all the joys of your days in London. And what fun to start saving up for another trip!

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  30. On my list of places to visit.....some day!

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  31. Looks like you had a good time...

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  32. Ooh glad you had a jolly time....We go next Monday! Covent garden here we come....hehe! Hugs Maria x

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  33. Dear Ada,

    I am so thrilled you had such a great time. A break with the family does so much good, doesn't it? I love London and I agree with you about the V&A! My parents spent the first two years of their married life in a little flat, a stone's throw away form Saint Paul's. It has long since been demolished that little love nest of theirs but their memories are fond ones of the cathedral bells shaking their floors!

    Stephanie

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  34. I am so pleased you enjoyed your visit. I am privileged to live a 30min train journey from this wonderful City. Consequently I go frequently and never tire of the wonderful free stuff on offer.

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  35. I'm glad to see you had a great time. We lost power yesterday morning - around 5am, and it has only just come back. So having collected our very tired teenager from the airport on Monday, I've had 8 days worth of rugby kit hanging around waiting to be washed! :( Enjoy your restful crochet. s

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  36. What a great treat to be able to visit London ENGLAND for three days ;) I wish!! Looks like an amazing whirlwind adventure ... I love museums & art galleries too, and we usually find one or the other when we're visiting other cities. Welcome back! Wendy x

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  37. what a wonderful trip, so glad you got to see the V & A I could spend days there but have only been once! Travel is so expensive but see you walked a great deal. When I was down to see Chris de Burgh at the Royal Albert Hall I made my daughter use the buses as being a pensioner they are free to me! Of course it took a lot longer but she saw things she would not have seen on the underground

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  38. I love visiting London too, you'd never run out of things to do. Wouldn't want to live there though.

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  39. So glad you had such a great time. The V&A is fabulous and also the South Bank, you did so many interesting things in a short time! I visited London last week too, on a sunshiney day and marvelled at the sights. It was tiring but somehow refreshing too.

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  40. So glad you had a lovely time - sounds like you packed a lot in!! I reckon you'd love the Brick Lane area - lots of lovely vintage shops to rummage in - and Pop Boutique in Monmouth St (same road as Orla Kiely) has lots of lovely vintage goodies :) I'm busy resting and catching up too - rather exhausted myself on our lovely USA trip - so it's take it easy time now! xx

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  41. Ooh, it really sounds like you squeezed every drop of fun and possibility out of your three days. Bet you can't wait to go again!

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  42. You certainly made the most of your trip - it sounds like you had a great time!

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  43. I live in London , thank for the post it was made me very proud of all things London .I too love the v&A museum and because of your post I'm going to visit it again. so once again thank you

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  44. I'm so glad you got a little getaway. Wow, you saw so much! I think it is the best city in the world, and feel so lucky that it is just a train-ride away.

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  45. Glad you had such a nice getaway. Enjoyed traveling vicariously through you post.

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