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Espresso and Ambition

A not-so-serious gal with some serious dreams.

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A Week in London at Christmas: Sites and Advice

January 4, 2017 by Taylor 3 Comments

London for Christmas is a dream. If you get the chance to visit during Christmastime, I highly recommend it. The town is covered in beautiful lights and there’s so much to explore – not only do you have the traditional sites to visit, but all sorts of new festive locations open up as well. Here, I’m going to document the places I visited during my week in London, and hopefully it can help you plan your own trip there as well.

 

Day 1: December 21

 

First up, we visited St. Paul’s Cathedral, the Millennium Bridge, Tate Modern, and Shakespeare’s Globe. As a warning, it’s around 16-18 pounds to visit both St. Paul’s and Shakespeare’s Globe. As a result, we really only saw the outside of St. Paul’s, but the building is beautiful and I’m sure the inside is equally as stunning. All of these places are within walking distance of each other, so we were able to travel everywhere on foot.

          

Millennium Bridge is a footbridge across the Thames that has some really stunning architecture, and dumps you straight into Tate Modern. Tate Modern is a wonderful art museum that features… shocker, modern art. There’s also a few Picasso pieces and other well-known artists – and the best part is that the entire museum is free. I’ve also heard that there’s a café on the top floor that has an amazing view – I didn’t go, but if you have time, definitely check it out. Finally, Shakespeare’s Globe. There’s a full tour that also goes into the history of Shakespeare’s life, so if you’re going to pay for a tour, this one is certainly worth it.

My parents and I stayed in a hotel in Canary Wharf, and I think this ended up being a great decision. Canary Wharf is far enough from the center of the city that you don’t experience the full-blown craziness, but it’s also only a short tube ride away, which makes it easy to visit all of the attractions.

 

Day 2: December 22

            

On this day, we found ourselves in Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery. Trafalgar Square is an incredibly famous part of London, and naturally it’s usually filled with a number of tourists. I’d recommend getting there somewhat early if you’d like to get some cool pictures, because otherwise your shots will be filled with people milling around in the background. The National Gallery is yet another free museum, and it’s overflowing with beautiful paintings. Not to mention, the architecture of the building itself is beautiful.

In the evening, we wandered up to Oxford Street, which is a major commercial street with a lot of shopping opportunities. Also, since it’s the Christmas season, there are lights strung up that make the whole street glow. (Side note: if you’re at all a fan of LUSH, their prices are so much cheaper in the UK than in the US since they don’t have a manufacturing center in the US, so I stocked up on goodies while I was there.)

Finally, we ended the night by seeing Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. As a lifetime Harry Potter fan, this was nothing short of a dream come true. While the written script is a pretty good read, it is 100x better to see it come to life. The casting is fantastic, and I had a perfect view from the third row. However, if Harry Potter isn’t your cup of tea or if you can’t get tickets (they’re hard to come by at the moment), any show in the West End is bound to be a great time.

 

Day 3: December 23

          

This day involved a miniature tour of Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, and Westminster Abbey. Since I’ll be touring the Houses of Parliament as a part of my study abroad program, I didn’t go see it then, but it would be an interesting tour if you haven’t already seen it (I’m super excited to see it this weekend). Also, I was able to go into Westminster Abbey for a Christmas Eve service, so it didn’t make much sense to also pay to tour it since you get a pretty good view of it just from attending a service.

Dinner took place at Mildred’s Soho. There are a couple of locations of this particular restaurant in London, but it is a great choice if you’re vegetarian or vegan, since the entire menu is vegetarian and at least 50 percent is vegan. The night concluded with the second part of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – once again, I highly recommend it.

 

Day 4: December 24

            

Today was where we delved into the more festive parts of London. Every year, Hyde Park transforms into a “Winter Wonderland,” which features carnival-like attractions and plenty of food. The Wonderland itself is free to enter, but you do have to pay for any of the rides as well as any food or drink you may want. It’s a bit cheesy overall, but you really need to visit one of those places at least once during the holiday season, right?

          

We also went to a Christmas Eve service at Westminster Abbey. It’s a ticketed event so you need to request tickets about a month in advance during the designated purchase window, but the service itself is free. The chapel is itself is beautiful and the service has a heavy emphasis on carols, so the acoustics of the building make the experience magical. I’d highly recommend.

Day 5: December 25

One thing I didn’t anticipate properly about spending Christmas in London is that nearly everything is closed. In fact, many places are closed all the way through December 27. As a result, we actually ended up walking through London for about five hours – even the Underground was shut down for the day! I also believe there are some tour buses still operating on Christmas Day. While I’m normally not really one for bus tours (I much prefer walking everywhere), this would’ve been a really awesome option if I would have known about it.

Another important note for Christmas Day is the importance of making dinner reservations. Particularly if you want a traditional Christmas meal or want to eat somewhere in the center of the city, many of those restaurants book up quickly.

Just a spontaneous piece of encouragement we encountered during our walk.

 

Day 6: December 26

Based on my experiences in the US, I completely expected that Boxing Day would involve stores opening at 6 a.m. and there being mad rushes to make the most of the after-Christmas sales. However, Boxing Day shopping was actually relatively calm where I was, and none of the stores actually opened until 11 a.m. I’m sure Harrods in the center of the city was a completely different situation, but the Canary Wharf shopping traffic was significantly lower.

We also did a bit of ice skating at the Canary Wharf ice rink. There’s another rink in Winter Wonderland and a few in other places, but this one won out due to its location. However, ice skating didn’t exactly go as planned – my mother ended up breaking her wrist! On that note, UK hospitals are actually pretty nice and even the emergency room was pretty efficient (US, take note).

 

I missed a few sites that I still would like to see – namely, the Tower of London and the London Eye, but since I’ll likely be in London on a couple more occasions before I go home in March, I’m planning to see them then. Until then, cheers!

xo, Taylor

 

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Filed Under: Etc., Travel

Comments

  1. Kiran says

    January 4, 2017 at 1:50 pm

    London around Christmas is gorgeous! Lovely photos, Westminster Abbey looks incredible, thanks for sharing x

    ALittleKiran | Bloglovin

    Reply
  2. Ann Morgan says

    January 6, 2017 at 9:05 am

    Great job, Taylor. It was very interesting to see London through your eyes.

    Reply
  3. Miquel says

    June 28, 2018 at 11:14 pm

    Your style is unique in comparison to other people I have read stuff from.

    Many thanks for posting when you’ve got the opportunity, Guess I’ll just bookmark this blog.

    Reply

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Meet Taylor

A real-life combination of Elle Woods and Hermione Granger. Recent graduate of the University of Georgia, currently living and working in DC. New blog posts every Monday, new YouTube videos every Thursday. Subscribe by clicking the link below for post updates and exclusive content!

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tayy_kay

📍 dc
🔥 life + fitness
✨ nasm certified personal trainer
🎥 new vids weekly!

Instagram post 2195844312121366575_7729751 it’s not a real mirror selfie unless it comes with a free where’s waldo game of my cats 😸😸 they’re truly excellent little photobombers, lol
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shop this look by following me on @liketoknow.it or by copy-pasting this link into your browser: http://liketk.it/2I02c 🖤 #liketkit
Instagram post 2192513994027168715_7729751 ⏩ swipe ⏩ to see a magic trick! ✨ok ok, not actually magic, but @teamiblends butterfly tea DOES change color when you add a squeeze of lemon, thanks to pH-sensitive butterfly pea flower 🌸 so maybe it’s not ~magic~, but it is ~science~ 👩🏼‍🔬
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get your own (and get experimenting) with the code taykay20 for 20% off an order of $24+ or taykay30 for 30% off an order of $34+! 🤑 #teamipartner
Instagram post 2191777887535233534_7729751 full workout, one machine!! 😛 smith machines are honestly great, and they don’t get enough love - they’re excellent when you’re first starting out with lifting and need that extra bit of stabilisation that comes from keeping the weight on a fixed track, and there are a number of exercises i find i like better on a smith machine than anywhere else - especially some of these!
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ready? let’s go:
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1️⃣ 3 sets of 6 sumo squats to narrow squats (so 12 squats total) - the narrow ones are death for your inner thighs in a way that no other leg exercise can match ☠️
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2️⃣ 3 sets of 10 curtsy lunges per leg to 10 good mornings - drop your hips back and keep your spine flat as you get as close to parallel with the ground as possible, and really focus on contracting your hamstrings to bring yourself upright again
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3️⃣ 3 sets of 10 kneeling kickbacks per leg - i forgot how much i love these they are just so!! good!! - into 10 single-leg incline glute bridges per leg

4️⃣ 4 sets of 12 half squats to finish this off - mind muscle connection is key here, really focus on squeezing your glutes at the top of the movement to make the most of this one! also if this hurts your knees skip it altogether - sometimes these aren’t for everyone and that’s perfectly ok!!
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🎧 woah - neffex
Instagram post 2188165587741361151_7729751 nobody likes you when you’re 23 🤷🏼‍♀️
Instagram post 2187385382881912295_7729751 got a whole lot to be thankful for this year (including but not limited to these pants) 🌟
Instagram post 2185989836220911104_7729751 that dead lil plant in the corner is a mood. i don’t know what kinda mood, but it’s a mood. ☠️
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new youtube video just went up on my channel - it’s a fun core + cardio workout that you’ll def wanna try! link is in bio ☺️
Instagram post 2184435918311263145_7729751 world’s cutest cover photo amirite?? 😅 ok but what IS actually cute is all these exercises targeting your gluteus medius, which is the muscle on the sides of your booty that play a crucial role in hip movement and also can help give the illusion of wider hips (which is super helpful if you’re built like me and have no natural curves whatsoever!! fake it til ya make it babyyyyyy)
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do all four exercises back to back with no rest, then rest for ~1 minute, and repeat 2 more times! throw this in the middle or the end of your leg day ☺️
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1️⃣ 12 lateral leg lifts - even though you’re holding the plate with your arm, it shouldn’t be lifting the weight up at all, that alllllll should come from the legs. also make sure you’re not swinging your leg and are really focused on feeling it on those side glutes (and also a little in your obliques, bonus ab work!!)
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2️⃣ 5 4-step squat walks - so two steps to the left two to the right is one rep. resistance band isn’t 100% necessary but man oh man does it make it 10x harder 🔥
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3️⃣ 10 fire hydrants with a pulse at the top - focus on keeping weight equally distributed on both hands so that you don’t sink into the opposite hip too much. also maybe don’t use an extra heavy resistance band for this one because i was DYING SO MUCH and i couldn’t even get my leg up to 90 degrees 😂
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4️⃣ 15 frog pumps - feet together, knees out, you look like a weirdo but it really is an excellent exercise i swear
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#legday #legdayworkout #workoutsforwomen #glutes #glutesworkout #gymlifestyle #exercisemotivation #exerciseroutine #gymworkout #musclebuilding #fitlifestyle #bootygains #bootybuilding
Instagram post 2182074781179766218_7729751 my very good and obviously 100% correct logic: if i wear long sleeves and long pants it’ll obviously make up for the fact that i’m literally wearing a crop top and i won’t get cold even though it’s like 40 degrees out!! 🥶
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shop this outfit (and maybe buy a jacket to go with it) by following me on the @liketoknow.it  app or by pasting this link into your browser: http://liketk.it/2HaPV ❣️ #liketkit #LTKunder50 #LTKholidaystyle #alsoidkwhyimstandingsoweird #whereismyspine
Instagram post 2179321133647360332_7729751 first of all, can someone please tell me where the HECK the first half of november went?? i’m lost 🥴 but i’ve got an ABSolutely stellar ab circuit for you on this fine sunday (will i ever not use that pun? doubtful), be sure to bookmark and save for your next gym session!
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1️⃣ 10 plank walk outs to commandos - focus on keeping your core tight throughout this entire movement to really maximise the effect!
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2️⃣ 10 3-part mountain climbers per leg - leg goes outside, across, then straight, and that’s one rep!
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3️⃣ 15 pause sit-ups - sit up approximately ¾ of the way (so that there’s still tension in your abs) and hold for 1 second before finishing the movement
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4️⃣ 10 single-leg hollow crunches per leg - these are SO MUCH HARDER than you expect them to be omggggg. if this is too tricky, use the modification at the end of this clip and put your feet on the floor.
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5️⃣ 12 1-1-2 leg lifts - drop one leg down, then the other, then lift both up at the same time! make sure to only go down as far as YOU comfortably can without your lower back lifting off the mat - going past that point will actually make the exercise LESS effective for your core. 😉
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cycle through this 2-3 times for a 10/10 burn 🔥🔥🔥 .
shop this workout outfit by following me on the @liketoknow.it app or by entering this link into your browser: http://liketk.it/2H0H3 ❤️ #liketkit
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