After a much needed sleep in, the five of us departed Wombats hostel with Abby and Shayna checking out and headed to the Royal National Hotel where we met with some of our remaining friends from the Contiki for brunch. Unfortunately due to our sleep in, we got to brunch late and they had just finished eating their meal, except for one of the guys from tour Adam, so the five of us plus Adam ate brunch together and everyone (except for myself) was pleased to find Avocado smash on the menu whilst i opted for steak which was what I was missing the most from home.
After brunch we said farewell to Shayna (as she headed to Heathrow) and a see you later to Abby (who went to meet up with her brother). The four of us who were left decided we would go explore some of the things we had not yet seen in London before as most of us had done the usual tourist things. First stop was platform 9 and 3/4 (from Harry Potter) which is located at Kings Cross station. Much to our disappointment, the line for a photo at the platform was over an hour long so we instead just took a photo of the platform without us on it. At this point, it was raining fairly heavily outside and Hannah and Josh decided they would go back to the hostel for an afternoon nap. Adam and I decided against the nap and instead went to M&M World which is near Piccadilly Circus, then wandered through Trafalgar Square before getting lunch in a pub called "Sherlock Holmes pub" and then calling it a day as the rain was too much.
I forgot to mention that my good friend Jenny that I went to uni with was in London this same day so we decided to meet up and see a musical together. So in the morning after brunch I went and bought tickets for myself, Jenny and Hannah to see Thriller Live, a concert celebrating the music of Michael Jackson. I was excited to see the show as I had seen a brief excerpt at West End Live when I was in London before the tour. Once I got back to the hostel, Hannah and I got ready to go to the show, whilst Josh got ready to meet a group of the remaining Contiki travellers. Hannah and I planned to meet up with them again after the show. On the way to the show, Hannah and I had a brief traumatic experience where Hannah jumped on the tube and the doors closed straight behind her before I could get on. We both looked at each other in panic as Hannah had no idea where to go as I was the one who had the mobile data and directions. We both banged on the doors and thankfully they opened so I could jump on. We then gave each other a massive hug in relief and all of the passengers on the tube who had witnessed the event started cheering and clapping. For the rest of the night we boarded each tube holding hands so as to not lose each other.
We met Jenny at the show on the West End and it was incredible! The singing and dancing was phenomenon and the whole atmosphere of the theatre was vibrant and fun. The singers encouraged (although it didn't take much encouragement) the audience to get up out of their seats and dance and clap to the songs.
After the show, the three of us went across the road to a pub for a couple of drinks to catch up with Jenny. We saw a number of the dancers and singers from the show at the pub and we let them know how much we enjoyed the show, they seemed to really appreciate our comments. Hannah and I then said goodbye to Jenny and headed to a club called 'Ballie Ballerson' where the Contiki crew were waiting for us. Ballie Ballerson was a fun and interesting club as it had a giant ballpit. We felt like kids again jumping around in the ballpit and pegging balls at each other. This was my final night in London so I enjoyed my final drinks with the remaining group of friends and after the club we ventured into the pouring rain and found a kebab truck across the road were we sought shelter and food. The ladies at the kebab shop were thrilled to have customers in the pouring rain and even more excited when they found out we were from Australia. Within minutes they had taken photos of us devouring their kebabs and these photos have since been posted onto their Facebook page.
The next day was the final day of my trip. Hannah and I paid a bit extra at the hostel for late check out so we could sleep in. After a good sleep and packing up our stuff, we checked out and had brunch around the corner of the hostel. We then walked to the tube station with Josh where I said my final farewell to a Contiki family member. Hannah and I then headed to Shepard's Bush Market where Abby's brother lives. We dropped our suitcases at Abby's brothers place then Hannah, Abby and I headed to London's largest Westfield which was a 5minute bus ride from the house. There we had exactly one hour to try to find a birthday outfit for me as I really wanted to buy one whilst in Europe. Unbelievably we did find the perfect dress and earrings to match within about half an hour of frantic looking.
Feeling very successful, we treated ourselves to an ice cream before going back to Abby's brothers place. My suitcase at this point in the trip was literally on its last wheels as it had struggled with me yanking it through the uneven streets of London so I decided it would be easiest to get an uber to the airport. Also, Shepard's Bush Market is far west London so the uber was not too expensive. I said see you later to Abby and Hannah and headed to the airport with mixed feelings of sadness that the trip was over but excitement to come back home and share with everyone the amazing time I had on my trip.
Steak with egg, tomatoes and fries for brunch
After brunch we said farewell to Shayna (as she headed to Heathrow) and a see you later to Abby (who went to meet up with her brother). The four of us who were left decided we would go explore some of the things we had not yet seen in London before as most of us had done the usual tourist things. First stop was platform 9 and 3/4 (from Harry Potter) which is located at Kings Cross station. Much to our disappointment, the line for a photo at the platform was over an hour long so we instead just took a photo of the platform without us on it. At this point, it was raining fairly heavily outside and Hannah and Josh decided they would go back to the hostel for an afternoon nap. Adam and I decided against the nap and instead went to M&M World which is near Piccadilly Circus, then wandered through Trafalgar Square before getting lunch in a pub called "Sherlock Holmes pub" and then calling it a day as the rain was too much.
M&M world
I forgot to mention that my good friend Jenny that I went to uni with was in London this same day so we decided to meet up and see a musical together. So in the morning after brunch I went and bought tickets for myself, Jenny and Hannah to see Thriller Live, a concert celebrating the music of Michael Jackson. I was excited to see the show as I had seen a brief excerpt at West End Live when I was in London before the tour. Once I got back to the hostel, Hannah and I got ready to go to the show, whilst Josh got ready to meet a group of the remaining Contiki travellers. Hannah and I planned to meet up with them again after the show. On the way to the show, Hannah and I had a brief traumatic experience where Hannah jumped on the tube and the doors closed straight behind her before I could get on. We both looked at each other in panic as Hannah had no idea where to go as I was the one who had the mobile data and directions. We both banged on the doors and thankfully they opened so I could jump on. We then gave each other a massive hug in relief and all of the passengers on the tube who had witnessed the event started cheering and clapping. For the rest of the night we boarded each tube holding hands so as to not lose each other.
We met Jenny at the show on the West End and it was incredible! The singing and dancing was phenomenon and the whole atmosphere of the theatre was vibrant and fun. The singers encouraged (although it didn't take much encouragement) the audience to get up out of their seats and dance and clap to the songs.
We had really good seats at Thriller Live
The sign outside Thriller Live
After the show, the three of us went across the road to a pub for a couple of drinks to catch up with Jenny. We saw a number of the dancers and singers from the show at the pub and we let them know how much we enjoyed the show, they seemed to really appreciate our comments. Hannah and I then said goodbye to Jenny and headed to a club called 'Ballie Ballerson' where the Contiki crew were waiting for us. Ballie Ballerson was a fun and interesting club as it had a giant ballpit. We felt like kids again jumping around in the ballpit and pegging balls at each other. This was my final night in London so I enjoyed my final drinks with the remaining group of friends and after the club we ventured into the pouring rain and found a kebab truck across the road were we sought shelter and food. The ladies at the kebab shop were thrilled to have customers in the pouring rain and even more excited when they found out we were from Australia. Within minutes they had taken photos of us devouring their kebabs and these photos have since been posted onto their Facebook page.
Buried in the ballpit
The remaining group of Contiki travellers
The Facebook post from the kebab shop, for some reason they thought we were all from QLD...
The next day was the final day of my trip. Hannah and I paid a bit extra at the hostel for late check out so we could sleep in. After a good sleep and packing up our stuff, we checked out and had brunch around the corner of the hostel. We then walked to the tube station with Josh where I said my final farewell to a Contiki family member. Hannah and I then headed to Shepard's Bush Market where Abby's brother lives. We dropped our suitcases at Abby's brothers place then Hannah, Abby and I headed to London's largest Westfield which was a 5minute bus ride from the house. There we had exactly one hour to try to find a birthday outfit for me as I really wanted to buy one whilst in Europe. Unbelievably we did find the perfect dress and earrings to match within about half an hour of frantic looking.
Feeling very successful, we treated ourselves to an ice cream before going back to Abby's brothers place. My suitcase at this point in the trip was literally on its last wheels as it had struggled with me yanking it through the uneven streets of London so I decided it would be easiest to get an uber to the airport. Also, Shepard's Bush Market is far west London so the uber was not too expensive. I said see you later to Abby and Hannah and headed to the airport with mixed feelings of sadness that the trip was over but excitement to come back home and share with everyone the amazing time I had on my trip.
First A380 I have flown on
No comments:
Post a Comment