A tourist in my own capital

This past weekend (May 5th) I finally I found some time (and money) to go to London to see the girls. Honestly London surpassed all my expectations. I've been known, in the past, to grumble and moan about London without really knowing much about it...I had a strange preconception of London which turned out to be totally wrong. Firstly, I didn't realise how much I missed being able to speak my mother tongue, without ever having a problem expressing what I wanted to buy, order or find, it was so refreshing to be 100% relaxed and at ease. Secondly people are just so genuinely friendly, yes in France they say hello and have a nice day when they serve you but around 70% of the time I get the feeling it's just out of habit (and not because they actually want to say it). You don't get hassled in shops (even the touristy ones) and a smile costs nothing. In the shop where I bought my London keyring one man even asked politely if he could come back to Paris with me and assured me he was very rich.......I of course, (reluctantly) said no.

London itself is a beautiful city...and I finally had time to visit a few things. On bank holiday Monday we went to the London Dungeons which was such a laugh and was nice for all of us as most of the girls had never been either. We waited for the Dungeons for close to 40 minutes in the pouring rain, sheltering under umbrellas and discussing the likelihood of any of us producing ginger children in the future (don't ask). Inside we laughed and screamed (mainly Soph) as we learnt about the history of London. I also had time to see Trafalgar Square, Buckingham Palace (the Queen was at home!), St James Park, the Houses of Parliament, The London Eye, The Battleship on the Thames, Tower Bridge and Big Ben. I was literally a tourist in my own capital. I was shocked by how much I loved London (having always said Paris was much more beautiful) and found myself not wanting to leave.

Sometimes, like any city, it's not the cleanest place (I noticed a lot of the buildings were very grey - I imagine from the pollution) but I did notice that ARIEL, a washing powder company in the UK are heading a campaign to clean up the city. Paris was pretty disgusting before the new 'green' bins were placed everywhere around the city...and at least in London you aren't constantly dodging dog poo. I really had no complaints about London and although it rained whilst we queued for the dungeons, afterwards it was just beautiful, I even wore my sunglasses!

The Eurostar: I even made a new friend on the Eurostar. Being a Eurostar virgin I had no clue what I was doing but everything ran pretty smoothly, I even managed to book myself into Premier class and enjoyed a free meal and plenty of free wine on the way there. 'Big Dave' (the guy I met) explained how the Eurostar mainly works and how I could get cheaper tickets and better deals in the future. It sounds like a weird story but actually it was really cool to meet someone new and we chatted so easily that the 2 and a half hours flew by.

I think my favourite part of the trip had to be seeing the girls. We laughed so much, to the point that my stomach hurt everyday. It was so refreshing to be with old friends, friends that know me inside out  and share all my stories, year after year. I think my biggest realisation was how much I appreciate my friends and how much they can make me laugh again and again and again. Thanks for the best weekend girls!