A few weeks ago, Jim and I were finally in London for vacation. Let me tell, you, missing out on vacations because of COVID sucks. This vacation, however, was unlike any other I’ve taken as an adult. Going back to London for the fourth time, and knowing that we’ll be back again, removed all pressures to see and do everything.
Instead of my typical approach of planning something each day, we made plans for every other day. The extra time in the evenings and “off” days let us really relax.
British Museum
The British Museum was our first scheduled activity. The architecture was surprisingly contrasting, and the sections we walked through were fascinating.
Jim and I outside the museum. 
The entrance to the museum. 
The interior of the museum.
It had a surprisingly awesome afternoon tea themed after the Hokusai: The Great Picture Book of Everything. (Check out the cool menu!) I loved the tea so much I asked what they used and where I could get it. For those interested, it was Newby Earl Grey.
My tea (foreground) and Jim’s coffee. 
The top (dessert) level of our tea service. 
The middle (scone) level of our tea service 
The bottom (sandwich) level of our tea service 
Clotted cream. Yum
We walked around the museum some more after tea (lunch) and found the Japanese section, which happened to have some fabulous examples of urushi art.
I wish I could remember what this is. But the urushi work is fantastic. 
A close up of the grapes and leaves. 
The floral motif is phenomenal, and the use of raden is breathtaking 
I can’t remember if this snake and leaves is decorated using urushi, but it’s gorgeous 
Look at the detail on that snake
Covent Garden
Around our activities, we managed to find a bunch of awesome food. The Ivy Market Grill in Covent Garden had an amazing rabbit and langoustine pie and an even better dessert, the Chocolate Bombe. It also had the fanciest bathroom I’ve EVER seen.
Hanging out at Covent Garden 
The rabbit and langoustine pie. So yummy. 
The chocolate bombe. Words cannot do this dessert justice. 
Walking into the bathroom 
A little vanity area 
The wall next to the sinks.
Choosing Keeping
I’d heard a lot about Choosing Keeping from members of the DC Metro Pen Crew. We made it over there this time, and they definitely had some interesting things to see.
How cute is that inkwell sign 
These mugs are great, and I wanted that one in the center back, but it was £270! 
Pastels… I think 
Loose pigments in tubes. 
I honestly don’t remember what these are. 
Colored pencils 
More loose pigments in tubes. 
Watercolors.
The Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A)
We found more items to spark our interest at the V&A, our second scheduled activity, than we did at the British Museum. They had several examples micro mosaics that held my attention as I stared at all of the amazing detail.
The jeweled boxes were awe inspiring as well, if for no other reason than because of the amount of money someone has to have at their disposal to commission such an ornate snuff box.
This metal swan captivated me for the level of detail.
And, of course, the jewelry exhibit had a lot to catch the eye.
A spiral of gemstone rings 
I love how colorful this set is. 
Queen Victoria’s bracelet 
Queen Victoria’s tiara. 
Not Queen Victoria’s. 
This is so pretty with all the different colors. 
Also colorful. Also pretty. 
The spiral staircase was really cool and futuristic.
Kensington Palace
After having seen Hampton Court last time we went to London, Kensington Palace, our final scheduled activity, was a little bit of a disappointment. It wasn’t anywhere near as fascinating as Hampton Court. However, what it lacked in size and décor, it somewhat made up for in history. I won’t bore you with details you can find on Google, but something that really stuck out to me is that I got to stand in the same room that Sir Isaac Newton would have displayed crystals to explain about light refraction. How cool is that?
Kokoshnik-style fringe tiara that can also be worn as a necklace. 
Queen Victoria’s emerald and diamond jewelry set. 
The Fife tiara, gifted to Queen Victoria’s granddaughter Princess Louise on her wedding day. 
Victoria, Duchess of Kent with Princess Victoria in 1821 by Sir William Beechey. 
Queen Victoria as a child. 
Prince Albert. 
Paper toiles — AKA muslins — of Georgian court dress. 
King George II 
Queen Caroline 
Thought to be the bed in which James Edward Stuart, son of King James II was born.
The current temporary exhibit is Royal Style in the Making. They had some really interesting items, including Princess Diana’s wedding gown.
Toiles designed by conservators at Kensington Palace. 
The toile for The Queen Mother’s coronation dress. 
The back of the toile for The Queen Mother’s coronation dress. 
Princess Diana’s wedding dress 
Princess Diana’s wedding dress train 
Leftover bits from making Princess Diana’s wedding dress 
One of Princess Diana’s outfits. 
Design sketches for some of Princess Diana’s famous outfits. 
Evening dress designed by Sir Norman Hartnell, worn by The Queen Mother 
Georgian-inspired dress worn by Princess Margaret.
General Sightseeing
We had fun visiting different areas around London, and got very lucky finding amazing food and snacks. A Greek restaurant near our hotel, Nostimo, had an excellent Mixed Platter and a phenomenal dessert called Ekmek Kataifi (I was so intent on eating it, I forgot to take a picture). The Chai Guys in Seven Dials Market had several types of chai unlike any I’d ever tried, and some great pastries. Jim made sure we went to SAID dal 1923 for their drinking chocolate, which is basically a melted bar of chocolate. I also took some time to admire the architecture, especially the older buildings which are so different than our own.
A random building near our hotel 
Same building, different angle. 
A cinnamon roll and chai tea from the Chai Guys. 
Drinking chocolate from SAID dal 1923. 
A gelato rose from Amorino. 
Outside Russell Square park.
By sheer dumb luck, our visit coincided with several London boroughs’ Christmas light hanging. So we got to see the decorations go up in multiple areas.
Picadilly Circus lights. 
Picadilly Circus lights. 
A cool alley with lights. 
Oxford street lights near Selfridges. 
Oxford street lights near Selfridges.
I look forward to planning other vacations in a similar manner. For the first time, I didn’t feel as though I needed a vacation to recover from vacation. I was able to slide right back into normal life, well-relaxed and satisfied with my time off. It was great!
How do you plan your vacations? Do you fill them with activities, or leave lots of time for relaxation? Have you been to London? Do you enjoy it? Let me know in the comments.
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Wow!!! Que maravilla, felicidades y bendiciones ❤️
Muchisimas gracias, tia!
Thanks for sharing your travel pictures! What a great adventure.
I know I’m weird in this regard, but I miss the era when people got together for vacation slide shows. I actually have three vintage Kodak Carousels…
These days it would be projector and PPT show. 😁