London

Given that London is the capital city of England, it's no surprise that I kept passing through. In fact I ended up spending time in London on three separate occasions.

I had been in London before when I was studying abroad in my Junior year of college, but I was visiting a friend then and we both had work to do, so I didn't get to see many of the touristy places. This time around, I decided every time I was in London I would be a complete tourist and see as much as I could. It felt justified because I was doing project-related things in all of my other stops.

The first time I went was to kill time between Scotland and Plymouth. I only had one full day, but I visited quite a few places. On that list includes the Tower of London, Tower Bridge, Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, the National Gallery, Burlington House where the Geological Society is located, and shops like Harrods and Fortnum and Mason.

I will say my first time in London was rather overwhelming because there was so much I could see and I had no plan. I was coming from a big city, but nothing prepares you for the amount of people (especially in August) and the distance between each destination. By the end of my 48 hours, I felt like an expert on the bus system.

My last day was spent at the British Library in a course provided by the Oral History Society. However, walking out of it, I wished I had taken the course sooner. I learned so much about how to interview people, collect and store data, and deal with the legal side of oral histories. I also got to meet some cool people in the process conducting a wide range of research.

The second time I went to London was for longer, but still only three full days. This time I went in with a plan and felt way more successful. One of my favorite parts of London is the food scene, so I tried to take advantage of as much as I could. The difficulty with traveling solo, though, is that I am limited in the amount I can order.

One of the more notable experiences was trying steamed buns for the first time at Bun House. There was constantly a line out the door and when you first walk in there are stacks of wooden steamer baskets full of buns. You could either eat in or get a box of buns to go. It was super cute and I really enjoyed my meal. Below the first two pictures are what I got at Bun House. The picture on the far right is my dessert from Mamasons, which was bilog, a Filipino toasted milk bun filled with ice cream.

Here are two more meals I got in London:

When I wasn't eating, I visited Spitalfields Market and Covent Gardens, the Royal Opera House, the Tate Modern Museum, and walked around Kensington & Chelsea and Islington. I also spent a lot of time walking through the Natural History Museum. They have a huge hall of minerals in display cases that was really cool to see. One night I was walking from my hostel toward the Thames and caught the bridge at sunset. I think this is one of my favorite pictures I've taken.

Of course, I couldn't go to London and not see a show. Before arriving, I bought tickets to see Moulin Rouge, and when I was there I decided to get a ticket to see As You Like It at Shakespeare's Globe because it was only $6. 

Moulin Rouge was fantastic. I ended up with great seats and thought the production quality was amazing. I had seen the film version before going, but this was something else. It was probably one of the best shows I've seen.

I haven't really enjoyed plays in the past and Shakespeare has always just been confusing to me. I can confidently say I was impressed with As You Like It and could follow the story, even if I had no idea what was being said. I purchased a standing room ticket, but arrived early so I could get a spot against a ledge in the back of the standing circle. I think it was one of the best view points, at least in my section.

By my third visit to London, I was getting tired of the tourist lifestyle. This ended up being okay though because I spent most of my time with my friend from high school who was starting his Master's at the London School of Economics.

On the first night back, I went and saw Stephen Sondhiem's Old Friends. Never in my life did I expect to see Bernadette Peters and Lea Salong live, but there they were. The cast is full of stars including Bradley Jaden who I had seen in Les Miserables two years prior and really enjoyed. The show was created to celebrate the life and songs of Sondheim and that it did. I was surprised to hear new songs, given that I studied Sondhiem for a few weeks in a class I took in college, but I think that made it more enjoyable.

The rest of my weekend was spent walking around Camden Market, The Regent's Park, and Soho with my friend. I was surprised by how big Camden Market is and wish I had more time to eat at all of the food stands. There was so much to see and it was getting a bit overwhelming, so we headed to the park. We caught the end of a rugby match and saw a bunch of people out in paddle boats on the lake. When it was time for dinner we decided to walk to Kanada-Ya for ramen in Soho. I knew it would be good when I saw the line out the door, and it didn't disappoint.

My visit ended the next day when I took a bus to the airport and flew out to Peru!

Margate

My last official stop in the UK was Margate. It's a small coastal town in Kent and reminded me a lot of Ilfracombe. When I wasn't walking the beach or talking to people, I was getting work done in various cafes. There were quite a few shops and galleries in the town, but my favorite part of every day was finding a new place to eat. If I ever go back to England, I will be making a stop to Margate to try more of the restaurants.

Notable meals:

• Peter's Fish Factory

• Sargasso

• Cliffs

• Skinny Dip Coffee (where both pictures below are from)

• The Grain Grocer

• The George & Heart House

Day Trips: White Cliffs of Dover/Canterbury

When I was planning my England trip, I knew I had to get to this part of the coast to see the White Cliffs of Dover. On a day where it looked like I would have nice weather, I hopped on the bus and made my way to Dover. It was a rather long ride, but I got a spot in the first row of the top of the double decker bus, so had a nice view of the countryside. After leaving the bus in the center of town, I walked for about 30 minutes up to the visitors center....all uphill.

I took a minute to look around the center, and catch by breath, before starting the walk to the end of the cliffs. It was about 2 miles and really beautiful the whole time. The only slightly disappointing part was that there are only a few places you can see the cliffs.

At the end of the path is the South Foreland Lighthouse. It's pretty popular because it was the first lighthouse to use an electric light, but I went for the teahouse inside. It only felt right to get a scone with clotted cream and jam. I took advantage of the beautiful weather and sat outside in the sun to eat my snack and read. The walk back was just as interesting because I got to see everything from a new point of view. This was one of the landmarks I'm glad I went to.

To get back to Margate I had to transfer buses in Canterbury. After seeing a giant cathedral and doing some minimal research, I found there was an evensong service that night and I had timed my return perfectly. 

This ended up being my favorite choir. Also, at this point I pretty much knew what I was doing throughout the service. It must have been obvious to the giant group of German students who were there because I could tell they were watching me to see when to sit or stand. Though I don't consider myself to be associated with one religion, going to these evensongs was always a nice way to wind down my day. They gave me time to reflect and express gratitude for all I have done and will do this year.

There was something so peaceful and homely about this part of England. Kent is definitely somewhere I will return to and it would be fun to explore more of the coast one day.