36 Hours in London

When your flight gets delayed 6 hours... you don't cancel and take the reimbursement. If you do, then you risk missing a rainless two days in London and seeing the Queen of England drive right by you.

This is my story of a six hour flight delay. Yes, I didn't get to my hostel until 2 a.m., but I wouldn't change a single thing about my trip to London. I got to have real Mexican food for the first time in 3 months and the Queen of England drove past me at 9 p.m. in Hyde Park. If that doesn't make the trip worth it, I don't know what does.

Unfortunately, Big Ben is currently going under some serious repares for the next couple of years, so it was hidden under major scaffolding. The bright side is that we got to here the bells ring! Since it was Remembrance Day, they rang Big Ben at 11 a.m. While Big Ben is under construction, the clock doesn't ring, except for special occasions.

Of course, we HAD to visit Buckingham Palace. It wouldn't have been a trip to London without stopping there. My friends and I were just amazed that the royal family actually lives in there. I wouldn't know what to do with myself in a building that large!

The park right next to Buckingham Palace was in full fall mode. It was a brisk day, but luckily no rain, so our stroll in the park was beautiful with all of the orange and yellow trees.

House of Parlement and Big Ben on the River Thames.

Luckily, London Bridge did not fall down while we were there. There are two different bridges in London which often get confused, which are the Tower Bridge (bottom picture) and the London Bridge. The London Bridge does not, in fact, have any towers on it. However, many tourists think that the Tower Bridge is London Bridge because it has towers.

A couple of my favorite book series are based in London, England, so I had such a great time finding all of the little spots mentioned in the books. Blackfriar Bridge is from the Infernal Devices series, and I couldn't help but embrace my inner Tess while looking out onto the Thames from the bridge.

OF COURSE we stopped at the popular Harry Potter locations. Millennium Bridge and King's Cross Station (Platform 9 3/4) were must sees while we were there. 

Westminster Abbey was another stop on our whirlwind London tour! The architecture and ambiance of the place was wonderful. Since it was Remembrance Day, they had lined up crosses all over the main courtyard to represent those who have been lost and poppies.

We stumbled upon this little stand with Paddington! I had to get a picture with this little guy.