UK – JellyfishKing Travel

Day 1 – Hot and Sweaty

We arrived in London quite fresh from the luxurious flight. We claimed our bags and went straight through immigration without any delay. There were taxis waiting with a queue so we decided to grab one to the hotel.

The weather was hot (32 deg) and the traffic was horrendous – which was expected. but £120 (240AUD) later we arrived at the Tower Hotel – hot, sweaty and frustrated.

We self checked in and went to our room. The view was stunning overlooking the Tower Bridge – BUT the room was like an oven – the thermostat displayed 33 deg. We tried to give it half an hour – maybe the aircon hadn’t kicked in. No change to the comfort level – so we asked for a room change. Jane managed to get a room with a nice view over St Katharine Docks. That room was also hot – but bearable – 28deg. The hotel never cooled down during our entire 5 day stay. I guess their air conditioning gave up trying.

We went for a walk around the hotel, checking out the Tower Bridge and St Katharine docks. We shared a fish and chips and a restaurant in the Docks. Jane wasn’t impressed with food.

Day 2 – Doughnuts

We woke early – Jetlag I suppose. We ventured out about 6am hoping to get some breakfast, Nothing was open! The hotel was actually serving breakfast but we didn’t want to pay £25 (50AUD) each for the buffet. We had a coffee and a cinnamon bun in Costa.

We walked over the bridge and along the South Bank. There weren’t lot of people around – just joggers (none of the them were smiling). We walked past Hay’s Galleria, but again we were too early for anything to be to be open. We pushed on to Borough Markets. Of course we got there too early and walked around waiting for opening time. London doesn’t cater for the jet-lagged.

One the Borough Markets were open we had a good look around and marveled at the exotic foods on offer. Jane wanted a doughnut from Bread Ahead after she saw it on Instagram. Bread Ahead was open, but their special doughnuts didn’t arrive until later (of course). Again we waited. A queue formed and with great pomp and ceremony the Doughnut were paraded out to cheers and applause from the idio… people in the line. Jane bought two at £10 (20AUD) each, Jane was in heaven, Me? They were ok but not worth all that fuss. Jane bought another two before we left – yes that’s $80 on doughnuts!

We crossed the Thames on the Millennium bridge and up to St Paul’s Cathedral. The cathedral was gigantic. We took photos around the grounds, but were too stingy to pay the entrance fee.

Next stop was the Barbican Centre, This is a performing arts centre with some nice gardens. By this time we had walked enough to deserve some refreshment. We stopped in at the The Jugged Hare for couple of pints.

Exhausted and tipsy we caught the tube back to the hotel for quick nap.

We awoke around sunset and had a quick dinner outside under the bridge. Nachos and buffalo wings from a food truck. We walked over the bridge for some sunset photos – the difference was amazing – so many people compared to early this morning. Tourists!

Day 3 – Thieving bastards

Again we woke early – but not as early. We walked past the Tower of London and found a Wetherspoons open for breakfast. The breakfast was ok. We took the tube to Westminster to take the obligatory photos on Big Ben, the London Eye and Westminster Abbey. Jane didn’t seem impressed with Big Ben – she thought in would be a Bigger Ben. We intended to visit Westminster Abbey but out Copilot (AI) generated itinerary failed to know that its closed for visitors on Sundays.

We pushed on to St James’s Park. This is London’s oldest Royal Park and is a nice thoroughfare to Buckingham Palace. The palace of course is the home of King Charles and the royal family. We were in luck as there was a royal band playing in the courtyard. Hundreds (maybe thousands) on people had gathered to witness it. The band matched out of the gates and down The Mall. We had a good view and was nice to witness a bit of royal pageantry.

We caught an Uber to Covent Garden and explored the shops. We both agreed is was time for some liquid refreshment so we scouted for a pub. Our “too early” curse was still with us. We found a pub that was open down the street. A couple of pints at the Marquess of Anglesey hit the spot.

Jane had seen a vintage shop selling Burberry trench coats near Covent Garden so we checked out “Check It Vintage“. There were indeed lots of Burberry coats but at £800 (1600AUD) for a second hand coat was out of Jane’s budget.

We caught the tube to Leicester Square – not to check out the artsy theatre district – but to have lunch at Jollibee. Whenever we go to a new city, Jane seeks out the famous Filipino favourite Jollibee. We sat with all the other Filipinos and Jane got her taste of home again. We will be coming back to Leicester Square tomorrow to catch the West End show Beetlejuice.

We to a short walk to Trafalgar Square. Unfortunately the fountains were closed and roped off for maintenance. The place was empty. The national gallery was right opposite and as there is free entry we decided to have a look. Such a great experience for free.

We took the tube to Kings Cross station to check out Platform 9 3/4. The famous scene where Harry Potter crashed his luggage through the wall into the secret platform reserved just for wizards. There was a massive queue (mostly kids) to get an official photo, so we snapped pic between the queuers.

Exhausted we took the tube back to Tower Hill and out hotel. Exiting the Tower Hill station, I remember opening my wallet to get my Wise card to tag off . I never saw my wallet again.

Our feet were in pain and glad to get back to the hotel for a rest. Reaching in my pocket for my room key I discovered my wallet wasn’t in my pocket. My heart sunk as I came to realise what had happened. I’d either dropped in on the way, or more likely I had been pickpocketed!

I froze the credit cards immediately. We retraced our steps back to Tower Hill just on the remote chance it was lying on the street somewhere. Nothing doing. We asked the guard at Tower Hill – nothing had been handed in. We returned to the hotel miserable and I got online and cancelled the two cards and ordered new ones. I checked the accounts and nothing was bought or withdrawn. I lost two credit cards – drivers licence – and £20 cash – and my nice Tommy Hilfiger wallet. I had all my other cards in the hotel safe.

I have been very vigilant on the street from then on – not to mention Jane asking my “where’s your phone” every five minutes!

To try an cheer ourselves up we went across the bridge to have dinner at Butlers Wharf. There are few nice restaurants on the river bank with a great view of the Tower Bridge. We chose the Chop House because the menu promised delicious steaks. I ordered a 200g rump – medium rare – for £40 (80AUD). At that price it should be perfect. It came over-cooked. I’m not usually one to complain, but I had to send it back. They apologised and said they can give to a Fillet steak as a replacement (£50 on the menu). When that arrived it was under-cooked! I didn’t mind it rare so I ate it. The staff were great and only charged me half price for the steak.

Day 4 – Looking for Hugh

We researched a good place to go for breakfast and De Vine was the clear winner. The breakfast was as good as advertised. We then catch the tube to Notting Hill. Jane loves the movie and was keen to bump into Hugh Grant. We walked to Portobello Road to see the famous Portobello Markets. Of course Jane had to visit the “Blue Door” and the Book Store featured in the movie. Hugh must have been busy that day.

We had lunch at Dishoom Permit Room, an Indian themed pub. The curry was delicious.

We continued our quest to find Hugh, wandering the beautiful streets on Notting Hill. We found the Rosemead Gardens also featured in the movie. The gates were locked however. It was a private garden for the residents. Hugh was probably in there. We made out way back to the hotel for a rest – holding our belongings tight.

We had tickets for the show Beetlejuice at the Prince Edward Theatre, We caught an Uber to Leicester Square for dinner before the show.

On the previous visit to Leicester Square we saw a restaurant called Bella Italia, and made a mental note for the pre-show dinner. Searching for the restaurant on google maps we discovered there are four Bella Italia’s in that area. We couldn’t remember the one we liked. We chose Bella Italia – St Martins Lane. We shared a pasta and garlic bread. Good choice.

Seeing a London West end show was a bucket list item of mine and Beetlejuice was a great choice. Although the Prince Edward Theatre was hot and claustrophobic we thoroughly enjoyed the show with lots of laughs. Definitely recommended.

Day 5 – GMT

Finally our jet lag was wearing off and we managed to sleep in. We skipped breakfast and made out way to Tower Pier to catch the Uber Boat to Greenwich.

Arriving at Greenwich we were hungry so we had lunch at Zizzi. The peperoni pizza was huge and delicious.

We walked though Greenwich park to the Queen’s House. This beautiful building was once a Royal Residence and now serves as an art gallery. We then took the steep climb to the Royal Observatory. The Royal Observatory played a major role in navigation and astronomy and has the Prime Meridian passing though it. Another bucket list item checked off as I straddle the line, having each foot in different hemispheres. It also had stunning views over the Thames and North London.

Making our way back down to the Pier, we stopped and had a drink at The Ship Tavern.

We took the Uber Boat back to Canary Wharf and strolled around the modern buildings and docks. We were surprised to see people swimming in the docks water.

We caught the DLR train back to hotel. The DLR is a automated driverless light rail system. We arrived safely.

For our last night in London we booked dinner at Darwin Brasserie in the Sky Garden complex. It was walking distance from the hotel. We were lucky enough to get a window table and the views from the 36th floor were spectacular. The food and service was also top class.