Cheerio!

We heard the graffiti at Leake Street was decent so we checked it out one morning.

We also continued with seeing the most famous sights in the city, including Westminster and Big Ben...

...as well as Buckingham Palace and St. James Park.

After some window shopping in Mayfair, we had a leisurely afternoon tea at the British Museum.

The museum was crazy busy so we didn't stay too long. Buddy liked this moai from Easter Island.

He also found the sculptures from Greece to be impressive.

The London food scene was extremely diverse. We had Burmese food on our last night. It was delicious.

And before we heading back home the next morning, we had a great Indian brunch at Dishoom.

Our trip to London was quick yet fun! We arrived back in Toronto in time to ring in the New Year with B's parents. We hope everyone's 2023 is off to an awesome start!

Walking Through London

Buddy was keen to walk around town. For our first few days, we were taking the Tube since it was rainy. We walked across the London Bridge to view the Tower Bridge...

...we ate sausage rolls in Borough Market...

...we walked by Shakespeare's Theatre...

...we saw some cool art at the Tate Modern...

...such as this Jackson Pollock...

...we had cocktails on top of the Gherkin...

...and an over the top dinner at Gloria.

Buddy had a great sleep that night since we packed in so much in one day. 

Arriving in London Town

Buddy ended 2022 on a high note with a trip across the pond. B upgraded us to business class. Lying flat to sleep was fantastic.

Our flight was delayed so we didn't get in much sightseeing on our first day. We saw the play, Life of Pi, that evening. It won five Oliver Awards. I can see why, especially for the animal puppets.

We had a late dinner after the play at Duck and Waffle. The view 40 storeys up was great. The restaurant was quite busy since it is open 24 hours.

The next day we had brunch at my cousin's house. Buddy enjoyed meeting her friends. The love for plushies runs strong in my family.

Buddy was pretty jet lagged so he stayed in at our hotel while we had dinner and drinks with B's cousin.

Spitafields Market was a neat place to visit. We checked out a bunch of stalls and bought a few snacks, including this matcha wheel cake.

No trip to London would be complete with some good old fashion fish and chips. These were pretty good. The portions were large.

One of the places we reserved in advance for dinner was Noble Rot. I have read their magazine before so was curious what their restaurant would be like. The food did not disappoint. We left a little hungry though.

More Buddy in London pics to come! Gotta catch up on some posts.

Royal Wedding

Maggie, Clem, and I slept over at my parents place so we can watch the royal wedding together. We had to wake up very early but it was worth it. My mom prepared scones which was a nice touch. Three cheers for the happy couple!

Academia: Cambridge

After a longer than expected MegaBus ride (I really shouldn't complain...it only cost 1.50 GBP!), Q and I made it to Cambridge. King's College Chapel was impressive, especially the stained glass windows.

Q in front of the Mathematical Bridge.

My friend, Enid, was an excellent tour guide. It was a wee bit chilly, but we decided to go punting, and I'm so glad we did! Q had the best seat on the boat!

Q checking for fishies.

Does the bridge look familar? It's modelled, and named after, the Bridge of Sighs in Venice.

Q and his new friend, Stitch.

The next day I met my friend, Philipp, to catch up over lattes (we did an internship at the UN a few summers ago). Q looked longingly out of the window. I think he wanted to go punting again!

Well that's it, folks! It took us several posts, but that was our trip in a nutshell. We hoped you enjoyed it!

Academia: Oxford

On the last leg of our trip, Q and I headed off to Oxford via train. We grabbed a quick bite to eat and walked all over the city during the afternoon. I loved the oldness and history of all of the buildings. The Sheldonian Theatre behind Q was one of my favs.

I climbed 124 steps with Q in tow to see the city views on top of the University Church of St. Mary. We were not disappointed!

Q and I also visited a few colleges, including Magdalen College (pronounced Mawd-lin).

I would say Magdalen College has some of the most beautiful buildings in Oxford, many which are adorned with an array of interesting stone-carved characters. Famous members of the college include Cardinal Woosley, William Tyndale, Thomas Hobbes, Oscar Wilde, and C.S. Lewis.

Q travelled in style (in Longchamp)!

After several hours of walking around, meeting friends over two (yes two) dinners, and grabbing a few pints, Q and I were happy to crash in our room at St. Hugh's.

Stonehenge & Bath

On a fine sunny day, Q and I ventured off to the English countryside to visit...

...Stonehenge! And...

...Bath!

Bath is probably most famous for the Roman Baths.

Here's Q in front of the Great Bath. It's hard to see, but the water was steamy!

Bath Abbey used to be a monestary, but now it's an Anglican church.

The City of Bath is quite lovely. It would be nice to come back in the summer for a weekend trip.

These townhouses (the Circus) were built in the mid-1700s.

When we returned to London, Q and I went for an evening stroll in Victoria and along the Strand. Q was excited when we found his favourite store, Build-A-Bear!

South Kensington

No trip to London is complete without a visit to Harrods!

At the top of the fabulous Egyptian staircase.

Q pondering over what treats to get in the Food Hall.

Q trying out the iconic Harrods bag. I ended up buying a different one.

Q in the Victoria and Albert Museum. This museum was excellent! And, it was another freebie in the city. The collection was a bit random, but the sheer volume of it was really impressive.

Inside the courtyard.

Q taking a breather in the Renaissance Gallery.

We then ventured to the Natural History Museum, which was just down the road from the V and A.

Q at the dinosaurs exhibit.

Q checking out the elephants on display.

Q being attacked by a hippo!!! Don't worry, he escaped safely.

The building itself, especially the Central Hall, was quite beautiful. I snapped a bunch of photos of the architecture before heading to dinner with a friend.