Sofia Somewhere

Thankfully the skies cleared and the sun came out for my last day in London. So we tried to squeeze in everything else I wanted to do for my last day. In the morning we had brunch with my tita and I got to see my cousin briefly (we missed the train from Surbiton, so she was leaving the café as we arrived). We headed to the famous Borough Market afterward to salivate over the food. 

More rain today, so we spent the morning in Ange's place doing laundry, and then had lunch at Kingston. We ate at a place called Woody's and had a traditional English dessert: sticky toffee pudding. In the afternoon the rain subsided a bit and we headed to Camden Town, another popular market area . It was such a charming area with stalls selling clothes, crafts and small knick knacks. Camden Lock Market Camden Stables Market

Today's forecast was rain, and I would be out and about alone (since Ange had a training at Kingston to attend), so I went museum and gallery hopping. First up: the Saatchi Gallery at Sloane Square. The current installation was entitled Pangaea: New Art from Africa and Latin America . The art in the gallery is mostly contemporary; some were interesting, some not really my type.

Thankfully, the good weather from yesterday held up and we had another rain and cold free day in London. We started off at the National Gallery which had several Seuracs, Monets, and Degas that I enjoyed. They even had Van Gogh's Sunflowers and Chair painting. We also stopped by the room where Bond meets Q in Skyfall , though we weren't able to take pictures. The National Gallery Which is right by Trafalgar Square

Ange and I spent the day in East London, a charming spot which has turned out to be one of my favorite places this trip. We explored the place enjoying the vintage markets, food stalls, art murals and the lovely Colombia flower market. Old Spitafields Market Food stalls in Brick Lane I had the Fat Controller :D

The week before I arrived, my sisters had been saying how nice and sunny it was in London. But when I arrived, it started raining and became really cold (as it was in Ireland as well). Today, the sun finally came out and we had great weather! Since it was Bel's last day in London, we decided to stay in Kingston and not go into the city. We bought some juice, bread, cold cuts, and cheese at the supermarket and had a picnic by the river. The river Our spread

For our first day back in London, Bel and I went on a Muggle Tours ! (£12, book ahead) Our guide brought us around London to several filming locations of the Harry Potter films, as well as locations that were JK's inspirations for some places, and shared interesting trivia on the way.  The entrance to the Leaky Cauldron Our Gryffindor scarf toting guide...  ...who was also a Daniel Radcliffe lookalike!

We started the day with brunch at The Breakfast Club , a cute little café that serves big and hearty meals. I had the chorizo hash browns and a some hot chocolate since it was quite cold that morning. Chorizo hash brown and hot chocolate in a cute mug Afterwards, Ange took us around Camden Passage a bit then we headed to the Embankment station to catch the Sherlock Holmes tour. We joined the tour of London Walks , which are great and convenient walking tours. You don’t have to book ahead; simply check the schedule of the tour you want to attend and show up at the assigned tube station. Walks cost £9 for adults and £7 for students.

After a 15 hour flight, I'm finally in London! I met up with my sisters and my friend Cris, who I'm staying with for the first few nights. After I settled in, we headed out for dinner: Shake Shack! (first time try it :)