Friday 1/6
Today I walked to the Tate Art Museum and looked around. This was based on my friend Robert’s suggestion, even though I didn’t see the exhibit he suggested. But it’s free entry and a really cool experience! A lovely way to spend a morning. Then I walked to Shakespeare’s Globe Theater to have a tour, which was also lovely. It has an interesting backstory about how it came to be here. It’s not the original location and has been rebuilt. But it’s worth a tour, imho. I ate lunch at an awesome Greek restaurant right on the Thames River. I had a pork gyro but should’ve gotten halloumi cheese. Then I walked up to the Tower Bridge and took a tour of it. That was pretty cool to be able to walk to the top of it and learn more about the history and construction of it. It cost about $13, or 11 pounds. This was a big day of walking again. I actually did take the Tube from Victoria Station back to Southwark station, which is a big thing for me. First time successfully navigating the Tube! (even if it was just for one stop). It is much cheaper than getting an Uber.
The Tate Modern
The Globe Theater
Tower Bridge and the walk to it
In the evening, I went to see a new musical called Mandela at the Young Vic Theater. Super cool! There was no acting in this. It was just a readthrough, but holy cow…the music was amazing. And the content was great – of course it was about Nelson Mandela’s life and how his family was impacted by what happened to him. What a moving story with several deeply moving musical numbers. It was 48 pounds to see the musical. I HIGHLY recommend this and I hope it makes it to the mainstream theaters.
Mandela Musical at the Young Vic
Saturday 1/7
Today I packed up my stuff… I’m transferring to my new place today, which is in Bromley, about 50 minutes outside of the city of London. But before I left, I did some more touristy things. I did a walking tour of Covent Garden first. It is full of awesome little side streets, and interesting bars and restaurants. I ate a crêpe at the main dining hall area near, I think St. Paul’s Church or maybe it was St. Mark’s. I don’t remember. Also I had a beer flight at a cool bar called the Nell Gwynn. I wandered around the city for a while longer before I left.
By the time I was trying to leave London to go to my new place, it was like 5 PM and raining. And apparently the trains had stopped going for the day. So the app I have been using to learn how to get from point A to B was only giving me the option of taking multiple buses down to Bromley. I was just not in the right headspace for that so I ordered an Uber. Unfortunately, almost every Uber would not take my ride since it was a bit too long of a ride for them to really make money from. So, I was begrudgingly on my way to get on the bus and try to figure that out, when finally one Uber driver decided to take my ride. It was 41 pounds (about $50), whereas a bus ride would have been about 7 pounds. At this point it is still worth it to me to pay for peace of mind. But I am slowly but surely learning the transportation system. I will take public transit next time I go to London, when I am more comfortable with it.
When I finally made it to my new Airbnb, I could not find the apartment. It was like the guy just dropped me off in the middle of a parking lot – quite unnerving. After walking around the building I thought it was in, finally I found it. When I got to my destination, I was so happy to meet Elinea, who was very warm and welcoming. And my room was ready and waiting for me. I arrived around eight and basically relaxed and watched TV until I went to bed. Unfortunately, I am developing a cold, so I also didn’t feel great. But what a long evening of bad weather and stress about travel! So glad my Airbnb is comfortable!
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