Day 2 in London - November 7th
My second (and last) day in London started a bit late since I had to pack everything up to be put into storage for the day, take care of bed linens, and lock my important stuff in a locker. Oh, and eat toast and drink tea; which is the standard free breakfast fare - toast, cereal, jams, tea/coffee, and crappy orange juice. Thursday needed to begin with energy since the first thing on my list was Christmas shopping at Harrods!
For those of you who have never been to or are unaware of Harrods, allow me to explain. Harrods, located off the Knightsbridge stop in the borough of Chelsea, London (very nice, indeed) is a 7 floored, 4.5 acre "department" store that is an immaculate wonderland for kids and adults. It has toy displays easily outpacing NY's beloved FAO Schwartz, posh collections for ANYTHING you can think of - electronics, furniture, design and decor, dishes, random knick-knacks, Christmas! Not to mention floors of food - confectioneries, a proper tea room (which Mum and I have utilized), cafes, restaurants (including a caviar bar), butcher....et cetera. The coolest thing from this visit - Harry Potter, Batman, AND the Hobbit displays. Talk about being tempted to spend all your money in one place. I almost came out wielding three different HP character wands (Ginny, Draco, and Snape...of course) along with the One Ring.
The outside of Harrods (not my photo). Speaking from a couple of experiences, its nearly impossible to know where you are insi Harrods until you get there.
This is the Egyptian escalator. I think there are two main escalators plus a few lift areas. That sphinx is not small and there is a lot of green marble!
Thankfully just about all Christmas things are done with; all that remains is to arrive in Italy, ship it via APO to Mum who gets to unpack and wrap everything! (hey, thanks!)
The rest of my day was spent making sure my travel ducks were in a line, warming up inside, and getting ready for my big date!!!
I met Rachael at the Holborn tube stop where she had scouted a good-looking place for us to eat. She found a great semi-upscale place off Kingsway Street called, ironically (for me, though very few of you will understand why), Bill's. I met Rachael when she was barely 18 and on her gap year in a tiny Grecian village called Papigo. That may sound familiar to you and if doesn't, it certainly will in a month or so. We had a very pleasant meal - complete with wine, dessert, love and life catching up, and reminiscing. We had planned on going out for Greek (you know, to pay homage to all the silly things that happened there) but in the end the atmosphere, food, and very kind waiter (Elliot) at Bill's was perfect. We also wanted to say that we miss Blake and Bel tremendously.
We came to the conclusion that we both look exactly the same, that I'm still more picky about my wine, and that one day I'll get married in Papigo. OK, visit the US next, Rachael!
This was the main staple of my lunch today - similar to a Naked juice (but smaller). This one was limes, kiwis, and apples. So tasty. They came with tiny little knit hats to help raise money for Age UK that aids older people in keeping warm, being well fed, and even does some social gatherings. I kept the hat cause its adorable. it keeps my cell phone warm and dry.
To show you just how posh the South Kensington and Chelsea neighborhoods are, here is a Michelin tire store. Marble, stained glass, multiple floors of a professional drivers wet dream...complete with large Michelin man inside.
A nice shopping area all ready for the holidays located between the Holborn and Covent Garden tube stops.
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