Farewell London

Yes you heard me, country #1 blog post is here! Three months of living 4,000 miles away from Chicago was a nice little getaway. My guide to London is here and I am so thankful and privileged to have called this place my home for three months. As I write this blog, I cannot describe how bittersweet I am feeling. The feeling of accomplishing seeing 17 cities and 8 countries in just three months, the feeling of saying good-bye (see you later) to some wonderful friends I made, and the feeling of excitement I am to see my friends and family as I type up this blog in my empty dorm room, all packed up to leave for home in the morning. Well, here it is everyone!

WHAT TO DO IN LONDON:

THINGS TO DO:

• Hop-on hop-off tours: These tours take you to the all historically site seeing places you HAVE to see while you are in London. Unfortunately, Big Ben is under construction until the end of next year but the city of London is so beautiful that it makes up for it. These tours cost around £25: make sure to do them through the Big Bus Tours!

• Notting Hill: The colorful streets and homes of notting hill are everything you have dreamed of. Adorable shops, markets, and coffee/tea shops. Picture perfect places that belong on a post card

• Camden Market: My absolute favorite place to go for awesome street food and endless streets of unique stores. this is the best neighborhood to buy souvenirs, from corny cliche gifts to the most unique and hand crafted artists work. Camden is definitely worth the trip

• Oxford Street: Miles and miles of shopping from fast fashion stores to designer brands. While being in London, they definitely went all out with decorations for the holiday season

• Bus tour to Stonehenge and Bath in England: We had found a £30 all day tour to drive all the way west of England. Stopping first at Stonehenge (one of the Wonders of the World) and then another hour, to go to Bath, England to visit the historic building of the old Roman baths of England. The entire day was worth the £30 (6 hours of travel time total)

  WHERE TO EAT:

• Coppa Club: Stumbled upon the most adorable cafe with a family friend. We were in for a surprise as soon as we walked around and got off at the Tower Hill stop from the underground. The most unique restaurant with the coolest scenery and view of the Tower Bridge!

• VQ: 24 hour restaurant! Best place to go to after a late night out. Cute restaurant to get drinks and munch on delicious finger foods!

• Sketch: A very pricey restaurant but was worth every penny. Yes this is the place everyone goes to with the cool bathrooms. I ended up getting my last meal with my girls the last week of school to treat ourselves to a job “well done” this semester. Make sure to book a reservation online a month in advance! We ended up eating in their most popular room, The Gallery!

  FAVORITE CLOTHING STORES:

  Pull & Bear 
  Missguided
  Berksha
  New Look

  XX LONDON

  I cannot believe I am closing my last blog post from overseas. Today marks an end of another chapter. If you know me well, you probably know that this was my biggest move away from home and my longest time apart from my friends and family.

  I cannot even put into words how amazing this entire experience was and how bittersweet I feel at the moment to say farewell to this beautiful city/country I got to call home for three months. I am forever thankful for this opportunity to travel, immerse myself into other cultures, find some sort of peace with myself, and create new friendships that will always have a special place in my heart.

  I cannot emphasize enough how traveling felt so good for the soul. From meeting new friends at a hostel in Italy to exploring the streets of France with my best friends, I will always treasure these memories and take them as life goes on. No experience will ever top the ending of a year, 2017 you were so good to me. Until next time, London. Cheers loves ✨

  xoxo — Bree