A London Return

It's funny that this blog started as a way to keep my family and friends updated on my life while living and teaching abroad in London, way back in 2010. Now this cyclical traveller is back in SE23, South East London. :) I love this city. This part of my travels will be 60% nostalgia satiation and 40% new things.

To kick off the nostalgia, I'm staying with my friends Martin and Louisa, whom I met through my old flatmate Allen. I visited them in 2017 for their wedding, and they've since had a new addition to the family, a little girl named Ruby. They still live in Lewisham, but in a different neighborhood near Dulwich. Martin kindly picked me up from Heathrow at night, and we started the next day with breakfast at The Teapot café. We had a wander through Peckham Rye Park trying to find a three-year-old's birthday party that Ruby was invited to. We were unsuccessful in our search for said party and had a pint from the park cafe instead. 

My hosts for the weekend

The Southwark Walk

One of my favourite areas of London to recommend to tourists is Southwark. Move over Trafalger Square or Buckingham Palace - this is my favourite spot in London to tour. I love strolling along the Thames, and the Wrigley family joined me for this favorite walk.

Tourist Susan

We started at Southwark station, taking in views of St. Paul's and the Millennium Bridge (which I always refer to as the bridge that the Death Eaters destroyed in Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince movie). I separated from the group for a quick tour of the Tate Modern, my favorite free art gallery. 

Some Tate pieces I enjoyed

After taking in so many wonderful pieces of art and continuing on our wander (passing by the Globe theatre, Winchester Palace, the Golden Hinde, and Borough Market -- which was WAY too insane on a Saturday to stay long at) -- we had a quick refueling stop at Leon's (a new-to-me fast food chain where I had an absolutely smashing Halloumi wrap). Louisa and Ruby left, and Martin and I met up with Allen, reuniting with my former roommate and his daughter (the last time I "saw" her, she was in his wife's belly when Sarah was pregnant!) 

We continued our stroll, finding a touristy spot selling Pimm's near Tower Bridge. We enjoyed this classic British cocktail (on my bucket list of things to eat/drink while I was here) which is a cocktail containing Pimm's gin-based liquor, lemonade (sprite), mint, cucumbers and strawberries. It's fantastic and I have not had a proper Pimm's cup recreated ever in Toronto.

It's Pimm's O'Clock

We then walked past the touristy area to the Angel Pub for another pint. The pub had a no-cell-phone policy, but it had a great view of the Thames and a classic British pub atmosphere (but you'll just have to take my word for it since I couldn't take any photos inside - lest some grumpy old British bartender scold me). We ended the evening with some amazing take-away pizza and my (surprisingly) inaugural viewing of Point Break at Martin and Louisa's house. 

The V & A, Swiftie Madness & Sunday Roast

I embarked on my own touristy adventure on Sunday, heading to South Kensington to visit the Victoria and Albert Museum. While the Tate is my favorite free art gallery, the V&A is my favorite free museum in London (or perhaps tied with the Natural History Museum next door). The building itself is stunning, and the artifacts inside are diverse and interesting. 

Entrance to the V & A

Coincidentally, Taylor Swift was in London at the same time as I, and I hoped to score a last-minute ticket to her show the following night (unfortunately, resale prices kept rising so spoilers: I did not go). However, the V&A had a cool exhibit celebrating Taylor's time in London - a 'songbook trail' featuring costumes from her previous tours, album covers, and music videos. The museum was bustling with Swifties (recognizable by their Era's T-shirts and friendship bracelets), making this probably the busiest museum in London that day.

Top: Speak Now Album cover dress & uke from that tour, Red Album cover hat and music video dress, shirt dress from the AMAs. Bottom: Cardigan from same titled music video, Bejewelled music video dress, Willow music video dress, costume from Reputation studio tour.

After my Taylor fix, I met up with the Wrigley family for a classic Sunday Roast Dinner at the Great Exhibition. Fun fact that confused me the first time I lived here: In England, dinner is lunch and supper is dinner. I was eager for some Yorkshire pudding and enjoyed it with my veggie Wellington and potatoes.

Sunday Roast

After a bit of a respite, Martin and I headed to Peckham Rye for Sunday night drinks. When I lived here 14 years ago, Peckham Rye was NOT the place I'd ever consider going out in. But time and gentrification has transformed Peckham into a cool mix of urban and hipster culture. after wandering through some back alleys and climbing the sketchy stairs of an old warehouse, we had some cocktails at the Bussey Rooftop Bar. Sunday night is not the most hopping of nights normally, but we stumbled upon a free open mic drag show at John the Unicorn, featuring a performance by Jess Queen and some beginners. What a delightful surprise!

Night Life in Peckham Rye

Tower Bridge & the Moulin Rouge (not the one in Paris)

Martin and Louisa took Monday off work to tour me around. We took the 185 Lewisham bus (MEMORIES) from their place to Lewisham Station, passing through my old neighborhood in Ladywell. I squealed at the Felday Rd sign, lamented the loss of Kebabalicious (Lewisham Best Kebabs doesn't have the same ring), and nodded solemnly at Lewisham Hospital for taking great care of me when I was sick. We ate breakfast at Maggie's Café near the DLR station and I enjoyed jacket potatoes with cheese and sweetcorn (another British staple checked off!). 

Afterward, we wandered around Greenwich, shopping for souvenirs in the market and taking the Thames Clipper boat back to the Tower Bridge area. Since none of us had ever done the Tower Bridge Experience, we headed there. It was cool to learn historical facts about the bridge, like its eight-year construction and the use of divers to lay the foundation. King Edward VII (then the Prince of Wales) laid the final stone in 1886. When it opened, Tower Bridge was considered the 'technical marvel of its age' and still functions as a moveable bridge today. We climbed across the top, stood on the glass ceiling, and witnessed the bridge rising to let a warship pass through.

Tower Bridge Experience

As I wasn't able to get tickets to Taylor Swift, I treated myself to an amazing seat at the Moulin Rouge! musical that evening at the Picadilly Theatre. I picked it since the original Baz Lurham film is one of my favorites (I saw it twice in theaters!). It was a fantastic choice, as sitting in the second row allowed all my senses to be overwhelmed in the best way possible for this energetic jukebox musical. I bonded with another solo traveler sitting beside me over our enthrallment with this spectacular production (🎶 Spectacular, Spectacular...No words in the vernacular can describe this great event. You'll be dumb with wonderment 🎶 ...ok, I'll stop)!"

You can-can-can!

Shopping & Goodbyes

On my last morning in London, I did some solo shopping around Oxford Street, starting with a pre-fueling stop at my favorite coffee spot, Pret-a-Manger (another British treat checked off!). Instagram Reels had alerted me to a unique shop called the "Poetry Pharmacy," which sold small bottles of "pills" (capsules with poems) for various ailments and needs (e.g., hope, sadness, vice, and social media detoxes). I purchased one called "S.A.D. Remedy" to help me cope with the gray, wintry months in Canada. I also hit up my favorite London store, Primark, for some cheap deals where I can always say, "Hey, it's from Europe!"

In the afternoon, I left London for a quick evening stopover in Dublin before my flight home to Toronto the next day. This three-week Euro trip, through Dublin ➡️ Vilnius ➡️ Riga ➡️ Tallinn ➡️ Helsinki ➡️ London, has been wonderful.  I had forgotten how much I enjoy traveling in Europe and was glad to explore the Baltics, an area I knew little about. Growth is only achieved when you're out of your comfort zone, and hopefully, you have some fun along the way. I know I did.