London Christmas

Well, what can we say, we love this city. One of my favorite memories from study abroad was walking the streets around the Christmas season. Honestly, London is hard to beat. The Christmas lights, the department store windows, the ambiance--it rocks.

I flew in a day before Andy so I could spend some time with Sarah, one of my dear friends and mission companions! From Gatwick, I took the train in, got myself a tube pass (it does feel nice to speak English again) and we met up by her work. It was so good to see her!!!!She is one of my favorite people, and it is so fun to catch up and talk about everything. We did our catching up over some Nando's (a really good chain here in London--great spicy chicken!) and then she had to head back to work for a few hours. I have no trouble filling my time here. Since Andrew isn't a huge fan of the shopping scene, I headed straight for Oxford Street to get my fill of window shopping. First stop--Selfridge's!

Oxford Street

The famous centennial plaque!

the words suspended in the air is Selfridge's version of Twas the Night Before Christmas. Very shopper-themed and clever! (ps--aren't the moldings and pillars stunning? pure class!)

Selfridge's isn't the oldest department store in London, but it has quite a bit of notoriety. It's classy, lovely, and magical during Christmastime. If you are ever in London in December, be sure not to miss the toy store and Christmas shop upstairs!

Looking down from the top floor. Love the checkered tile and Christmas decor

Now, I am the ultimate window shopper. I don't really buy much at all--I am all about looky. Sometimes it is a blessing to be so indecisive, you save a lot of mulah. Oxford Street goes on forever and you get the all around shopping experience. And you can't go wrong with the lit baubles strung all the way down. With the double-decker buses, it just gets you in an urban mood. After having my fill and buying 2 pairs of maternity leggings for 4 pounds each, I decided my feet had had enough and I hopped on a bus towards Victoria Station.  I love getting on the buses and customizing my own tour. I didn't even mind the traffic so much.

Oxford Street in its brilliance!

After arriving at the station, I took the tube to meet up with Sarah. We headed to the Hyde Park Chapel, where I met some of her friends from Institute. We then decided to go to Trafalgar Square to see the Christmas tree and to get some din din. We went to a restaurant called Tortilla, which is a lot like Chipotle. It is nice to get my cheap Mexican fill here! We were there for a few hours, just talking and laughing. The only problem is that we get to talking and laughing so much that we forget to document our good time with pictures! Darn, no pictures this time. Sorry Sarah!

We then headed to her place in Forest Hill. She rents a room in a really cool flat owned by this older couple. The flat has a lot of character in the architecture, which was fun. I got to meet Sarah's now-fiance via Skype. Her man lives in Utah, so skyping is a nightly thing for them. It was really fun to meet and talk with them. Very excited for their upcoming wedding this summer!

We stayed up pretty late, but rested well and she made me a killer breakfast the next morning. We then had to part ways--she went off to work and I headed to the hotel to meet my man! Always a good time with Sarah!

Andy flew in safe and sound! We were going to spend the rest of our trip with our friends Aaron and Kristyn, who were already at the hotel in Soho. Aaron was in a meeting, so we met up with Kristyn and walked around Piccidilly Circus for a bit until he was done. Once we all met up together, we headed to Chipotle! It is nice to have an inexpensive meal out on the town!

We decided to head towards some of the historical sights, and we came across a sweet surprise! Hummingbird Bakery had opened up a branch in Soho!!!! Hummingbird Bakery was my first introduction to good cupcakes. And even better news? They make gluten-free cupcakes now! So the four of us each got a little treat for the road!

The lovely cakes of Hummingbird!

Gluten-free Red Velvet? Happy day

Kristyn and Me

We had a good time walking around Whitehall and Parliment, and we decided to hit up the Churchill Cabinet War Rooms. This is one of our favorite historical sights in London. It is this network of rooms underground where Churchill and his cabinet hid and did their top secret operations during the Blitz. It is pretty fascinating, and they have kept the rooms the same as they were during the war.  There is also a compelling exhibit on Winston Churchill at the end of the tour.

Andy on the tour. Real men hold their wives' purses when they get tired;)

Trafalgar Square--The National Gallery and St. Martin's in the Fields

Iconic red phone booths and Big Ben in the Background!

After our tour, we headed towards another must-see during Christmas--Harrods Baby!!!!! Last time we were here, we did a quick walk through, but we actually were here for over 3 hours! There is so much to see, especially this time of year!

The Sweet Shop

One thing we hadn't done was the Godiva Chocolate Cafe. We got a table for 4 and each ordered a yummy treat to hold us over for awhile. I got a dark chocolate shake--unregrettable and unforgettable!

my luscious shake

Andy wants some

Andy's brownie sundae. Stop it.

kind of an awkward pic of Aaron and Andy

After our chocolate overdose, we hit up the Christmas shop, the Bookshop (spent lots of time in the Bookshop, and the toy shop. If only our feet hadn't given out on us, we probably could have stayed there longer! They just know how to make everything look so pretty! Andy and I got a few books and we had to drag Aaron out;)

One way to do an advent calendar!

Kind of am obsessed with this elevator

Outside Harrods at night

We then headed more towards our hotel. We actually spent a little bit of time on Oxford Street! Not much, but we got a pic!

Me and my Honey

We found ourselves back in Soho and get a reservation for a famous Vietnamese restaurant, Pho. We had never really tried Vietnamese food, which is when we are grateful for cultured friends who can lead us to the right spots. This place was delicious! They have amazing noodle dishes, all of which are infused with fresh herbs and flavors! We got a papaya salad to share, then I got the Pho soup with steak, and Kristyn, Aaron and Andy got different noodle dishes.

Aaron having fun with his ginger tea

Never fail to disappoint!

Needless to say, we were all pretty wiped, so we called it a night!

The next morning, we enjoyed a yummy breakfast and set off to enjoy ourselves some Piccadilly.  Aaron and Kristyn had a few errands to run, so Andy and I strolled down the Piccadilly Arcade and tried to act upper class. If you think Harrod's is fancy, then you ain't seen nothing!

The lovely Arcade

Zoolander?

Need to get Andy a manly robe

After our little stroll, we came across Fortnum and Mason. Don't ask me why I had never really been here--it is supposed to be famous! But I think this is my favorite store. Maybe even more than Liberty's and Harrods. Fortnum and Mason started out as a tea and canned foods store back in the 1700's, and has gradually evolved into a department store that sells fine foods, tea, perfumes, kitchenware, gifts, and other pleasures. It is gorgeous!  Andy, who isn't all that fond of shopping, LOVED it.  We had a little bit of Christmas shopping to do, so we both had fun picking out some fun things to give. We also went up to their Christmas shop, which was by far my favorite! We found a gorgeous wooden advent calendar with the Fortnum and Mason storefront printed on it.  Let's just say we bought a little gift for ourselves.....

I liked this silver taxi cab

some of the many delicacies at F&M

Love the turquoise gift boxes

candy counter?

Isn't this store stunning?

Christmas window display

After having a lot of fun at F&M, Aaron and Kristyn were the ones who had to drag us out of there!

We dropped off our stuff at the hotel and made our way across town, down the strand and across Waterloo Bridge.  Andy and I remembered all the food stands down at Southbank, so we decided to get some early dinner there.

beginning our stroll down the Strand

going across the bridge

Southbank was SO CROWDED!!!!! Apparently everyone else had had the same idea. This place also hosts a Christmas Market, so it is basically crowds on steroids. But we got some good street food!

Southbank Christmas Market

Smiling, but thinking to ourselves how much we hate crowds!

After having our fill, we headed back across the bridge towards Covent Garden. Got some nice pics.

Houses of Parliment lit up!

Kristyn and Aaron

Lovely view:)

Kristyn and Me

Along the Thames. I love this pic of Big Ben

So....something else to see in London at Christmastime. Santacon. Oh boy folks, this is quite the scene! This is done back in the States too, but London tends to attract a bit of a different crowd! Santacon is basically everyone dressing up in a full on santa suit, and parading the streets of the city. I had read about this, but never seen it before. Sure enough, as soon as we cross the bridge, we see tons of people dressed in red! After enjoying the thrill of being surrounded by a bunch of santas, we quickly realized that this is an excuse for all participants to get together and get drunk! Drunk Santas, quite the sight! One of them did give us candy canes though;)

Santacon!!!!

Andy and Aaron both have dads named Byron. Had to shoot a pic in front of Byron Burger!

dorks

We all made it to Covent Garden, one of my favorite spots. Once again though, huge crowds--which made it hard to enjoy. But it was still lovely!

One of the pavillions of Covent Garden

Um....Maggie Smith back in the day!

It was bound to happen in a crowded place, but we got separated from Aaron and Kristyn. We had a gameplan to meet at the hotel later, so Andy and I walked around a bit and decided to get ourselves some gelato. It is probably a better idea to eat gelato in warmer weather, but it was really nice to put our feet up and enjoy a little treat.

I don't know why he is frowning, but I do think my hubby has the most adorable puppy dog eyes!

After our treat, we ended up close to Piccadilly. We finished up some last shopping, and then headed towards our hotel. We actually ran into Aaron right on Piccadilly--crazy!

a little Home Alone happiness;)

We all met up, and ended our trip with Miss Saigon  (had some beautiful music, but all kind of wish we had seen a different show. Live and learn.) But we can't end a good trip without food!  a yummy dinner at Byron Burger was our place of choice!

We almost missed our flight the next morning.  Definitely the closest call yet, but we all safely made it!

Merry Christmas London!