Finally getting to my next London blog post... I was lucky enough to go back to London for six days in November, where I got to visit Shae and revisit my favorite city. I ran from classes to the airport and took a late night flight, arriving in London early the next day. We had the rest of the day ahead of us, so we had plenty of time for brunch, my favorite bookstore, not one but two museums, and a long, meandering walk through the decorated streets.
After Shae met me at the airport and we dropped my suitcase off at her flat, we immediately hopped on a bus and went to get brunch. The cafe was around the corner from my old dorm, which is also a short walk from our next stop, Persephone Books. On our way to Sir John Soane's Museum, we stopped across the street, where the sun was setting on Lincoln's Inn Fields.
A stop in Neals Yard, which I had passed by a million times and yet had never taken a turn to actually walk down the sidewalk to the somewhat hidden spot.
And a necessary stop for hot chocolate at Hotel Chocolat in Seven Dials, where they go by my life motto of "it's all about the cocoa," have a "school of chocolate" (I'm definitely transferring), and make really good hot chocolate.
It wouldn't have been a trip back to London without returning to the National Gallery. Naturally, I was walking inside again within hours of getting back to London. I missed this museum, having spent so much of my time there, so I had to spend some time in those familiar halls with Shae.
We started the walk home, eventually heading up Regent Street because of the lights. London really knows how to do Christmas - I loved all of the lights and decorations already up all over the city. These angels above Regent Street were my favorite.
Oxford Street, with the well-known holiday lights strung across the street and lit up. The street was as crowded as you would expect, but at least there were lights everywhere, hanging above and decorating the many stores that line the street.