I love it when plans finally see the light of day. There is a sense of achievement, of satisfaction, as if the months of fantasising and meticulous planning were worth it all. There were many nights where I spent lying awake thinking about going to London with Adam* and on Friday, we finally went.
It had been some time since I had last visited London and to behave as a tourist. My family and I normally go up there with a set purpose and get caught up with the busy flow of London life. Additionally, when we used to live in London, there was no 'need' to visit the sites as we were surrounded by them all the time. It would seem unnecessary to spend a vast amount of money on tours and tickets when I saw the famous landmarks on a daily basis. Unfortunately, this meant that I never acted as a tourist - by which I mean just getting an underground day pass and going wherever my heart desired.
My love of art and culture is what identifies me as a person. I was fortunate enough to visit the Saatchi Gallery at the time when the Rolling Stones' exhibition was being held. It had only recently been opened (we visited London on Friday the 8th and it opened its doors on Tuesday the 5th) and I believe that the iEC (who put on the exhibition) did a fantastic job at capturing the feel of who the Rolling Stones really were. For those who are interested, the exhibition is shown up until early September, so I'd think that it would be a great place to visit in the summer holidays. The nine show rooms were filled with the band's original instruments, exclusive video footages, and even personal diary entries. What interested me the most was definitely the flamboyancy of the costumes that each band member wore. It made me realise that when creating a business (which, essentially, is what a band is), everything to do with that business must be congruant with the band's image. The Stones were outrageous and appealed to those who wanted to rebel and I could sense the rebellion through their lyrics, their clothes, and their general attitudes towards authority.
After walking along the Thames in search of food, Adam, his father and I finally found a cute little vegan restaurant in the middle of Covent Garden called Le Pain Quotidien. Although it was extremely busy, the waiter managed to sit the three of us down in a corner. My first impression of the place was that it looked very 'Instagram Worthy'. I declined to bring this up in conversation with the other two, as, no doubt, they may have judged me, but the overall feel of the café was that it was very modern and simplistic. The tables were wooden and the simple table decoration included the salt and pepper in two lovely glass jars. The menu itself was overall very health orientated. From a quick glance, I could see that their food was all dairy and gluten free, something that has become fairly fashionable of late. Personally, I think it's just marketing and people jumping on a bandwagon, but who am I to speak? Whenever I get McDonalds' vouchers I can't resist the carbs and the grease and don't even question whether it's doing my body any good. It's cheap food and keeps me going. Anyway, I digress.
Above, I attach a photo of what I had to eat. I don't think the photo does it justice - my Avocado and Toast was topped with super seeds, citrus cumin salt, lemon juice and olive oil. It was delicious. Since the bread gave its name to the restaurant, I thought the bread would be a must-try and it did not fail me. It was quite heavy, understandably so for a dish on the 'main meal' section. If I were lucky enough to go again, I would probably try one of their soups of the day as I saw that it was a popular choice amongst the other customers. Adam's father also had a drink which was a mixture of milk and cinnamon which was absolutely gorgeous, but I can't find its name on the menu. Does anyone know what it's called?
Our next adventure was to explore Regent Street. It was around late afternoon so the crowds were dwindeling down by this point, so we were able to visit most of the shops that we wanted to. When people say that everything is bigger and better in London, they're not wrong. When we visited Topshop, there were about 5 different floors and one could easily get lost (if one didn't have someone like Adam to follow, who is 6"3 and whose head towers over everyone and everything). Each floor contained a different attraction. These ranged from a barber's shop, a beauty salon, and even a cupcake store! I felt that everything was overpriced but I loved browsing through it all. I could have spent hours just exploring the shop, but I was keen to get going since Adam said he had a 'surprise' for me...
If you know me IRL, you'll know my obsession with cuddlies. I'm 18 years old yet I am as excitable as a 5 year old when it comes to stuffed animals. Adam knows this and lead me by the hand, rushing me slightly until we were outside one of the biggest toy shops that I have ever been to: Hamley's. I felt like a little child again when I walked through the doors to be faced with sooooo many toys! I rushed around hugging giant teddy bears, screaming with joy and trying to pop all the bubbles that were constantly being blown in my direction (it's more likely that I was running towards the bubbles rather than them coming towards me, but that's a minor point).
Our shopping spree lasted the majority of the afternoon, and as our little luncheon of healthy stuff was a good five hours ago, we all decided to go to the Yo! Sushi as it was conveniently situated at Waterloo Station, where we were due to catch the train back to Bournemouth. Again, this restaurant was another first time for me. I have only recently started to like sushi (surprisingly, since I'm Asian and ought to have 'embraced' my culture before now), but now that I am living healthier (slightly contradicting what I said earlier about McDonalds), I love the fresh and clean taste that the sushi leaves on my palette. At Yo! Sushi, the food arrives on a conveyor belt and one can simply pick out what one fancies. There is also the option to order food, where one has to press a little button which lights up a post at your table to beckon the waiter/ess over. I loved the novelty of it all and would certainly go back again.
Unfortunately, our day was drawing to an end and the journey back on the train gave my feet time to recover after the long day of walking everywhere. As I lay my head on Adam's shoulder, we started to plan the next trip we were going to go on together. I can guarantee that this summer will be filled with a lot more adventures! in futurum expectat.
* All names in this blog are fake in order to ensure the privacy of my friends and conceal their identities. However, the characters are all real people and the events actually happened
