London - June 2024

We flew to London from Sydney on a very long flight via Kuala Lumpur - thankfully we were in business class so were able to sleep some which helped with jet lag once we arrived.  We took the train from the airport to the hotel which worked out OK except when we had to carry all of our luggage up some of the stairs in the station! We were in London for the weekend before heading up to Scotland to meet up with Keith's family for a two week trip in the UK.

We stayed at the Premier Inn in Leicester Square. While not a fancy place, it was modern, clean and conveniently located.  Our room (we got a Premier Plus Room) was also a pretty decent size for London standard and it was quite affordable! We were able to check in early so that we can drop off our luggage and shower.

While in London, we did the following:

• Went for a long walk - walked down to the river to Parliament, through St James Park to Buckingham Palace where we saw the changing of the guards, through Green Park and then up to Hyde Park, all the way up to Kensington Palace.  Shawna was amazed at the crowds that were at Buckingham to see the changing of the guards - she kept asking there must be more going on!! At one point, it poured rain and so we ducked into a cafe for a hot cocoa and then walked back once it stopped.  

Buckingham Palace

• Had dinner at a Michelin star Indian restaurant, Veeraswamy.  The restaurant is a bit fancy in the decor (which is not our usual style) but the food was amazing.  We had pappadum with some very tasty chutneys, shrimp and scallop appetizers and then duck vindaloo with roasted potatoes.  

Dinner at Veeraswamy

• Went to the ABBA Voyage show which was recommended to us by Ewan.  The arena was in the Eastern part of the city so we took the train out to it.  We got dance floor tickets which meant we had to stand the whole time but it wasn't too bad as the show was only 90 minutes.  It definitely beat our expectations - the holograms were so lifelike! And of course the music was fun to dance to! When we left the show, Keith sent a note to Ewan to let him know we enjoyed the show and we got an immediate call from him to say that he and Sharon were nearby so we popped over to meet them for a beer at The Lockdown Room in the Dockings.  Was really cool to see them, albeit it short - however, we will see them again in Italy a month later! 

ABBA

Drinks with Ewan and Sharon at The Lockdown

• Had dinner with Melissa at her house.  Sebastiano was not there (he was on a boys weekend trip) but we were able to see the kids which were adorable! Was so great to catch up with Melissa as it had been too long.  We brought a few bottles of wine and she made a yummy couscous dish with chickpeas, tomatoes and feta.

• Went for another long walk - took the train out to Putney and then walked about 10 miles along the Thames to the London Eye.  We had planned on walking to Tower Bridge but cut it short as we were tired.  

Parliament

• Had drinks at Crown (pub) in Covent Gardens and then had dinner at The Cheese Bar in Covent Gardens.  At the Cheese Bar, you pick different cheeses from a conveyer belt.  Definitely on the gimmicky side and most of the cheese was just OK with just a few being really good. Overall would not recommend this place.  

Dinner at The Cheese Bar

We checked out of our hotel on Monday and took the train up to Edinburgh where we stayed one night with Kirsty before we met up with Keith's family the following day.