London, England
The last stop on my grand tour of Europe was London. While I did in fact try to keep an open mind, I found several stereotypes to be true indeed. There was a lot of rain, a lot of fish and chips, a lot of drinking tea, and their accents were charming. I stayed in Holland Park, which is just west of the Kensington Gardens and the famous and sprawling Hyde Park. On my first day, I took the metro out to where Big Ben and the London Eye were and walked my way back to my hostel meandering past Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace and through Hyde Park. A very relaxed, sunny day with some fantastic views.
That was the only completely sunny day. As the weather turned worse, I did not slow down. I ventured out to Abbey Road Studios, most well-known for the Beatles album, and attempted to walk the walk. However, traffic still drives regularly through this street so I almost got hit by a car several times. That same day I also did a walk-around looking at several of the major skyscrapers. The unusually-shaped, environmentally-friendly Gherkin was of particular interest to me, given it's double skin that serves to passively ventilate the tower.
My final day in London consisted of a tour to Windsor Palace, Salisbury Cathedral, Stonehenge and the City of Bath. I did not know what to expect with the cathedral and I was blown away by the interior when I entered. The vaults were absolutely gorgeous; I only wish the tour had given us more time to sit and fully enjoy the cathedral. The most charming part of my stay in London though was the City of Bath. I found that wandering the narrow streets and aged buildings on such a quiet evening created a quaint atmosphere with ordinary yet captivating views.
That was the only completely sunny day. As the weather turned worse, I did not slow down. I ventured out to Abbey Road Studios, most well-known for the Beatles album, and attempted to walk the walk. However, traffic still drives regularly through this street so I almost got hit by a car several times. That same day I also did a walk-around looking at several of the major skyscrapers. The unusually-shaped, environmentally-friendly Gherkin was of particular interest to me, given it's double skin that serves to passively ventilate the tower.
My final day in London consisted of a tour to Windsor Palace, Salisbury Cathedral, Stonehenge and the City of Bath. I did not know what to expect with the cathedral and I was blown away by the interior when I entered. The vaults were absolutely gorgeous; I only wish the tour had given us more time to sit and fully enjoy the cathedral. The most charming part of my stay in London though was the City of Bath. I found that wandering the narrow streets and aged buildings on such a quiet evening created a quaint atmosphere with ordinary yet captivating views.