Day Out With A New Friend

Angela and I met through an Americans in London meetup group. We only actually communicated online in the beginning, as she was still in the US but preparing to move to England. She married an Englishman last year and moved over this October. While neither of us actually live in the city of London, we are just short train rides away. Shortly after she arrived and got settled in we were able to get together for some retail therapy and recently met up for a day out in London. It is great to be able to share all of the experiences (and emotions) with another American living abroad. Of course, I am like the mentor now that I've been here a year and a half. I have a lot of observations and such to share. I also love being a tour guide and was happy to show her around London. We covered a lot of ground, but there is still so much more to see!

HMS Belfast and Tower Bridge

We met in Trafalgar Square to attend the Annie Leibovitz exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery. After viewing the exhibit we walked through Leicester Square to Soho and Chinatown. We had lunch at one of the many chinese restaurants, but unfortunately the food left much to be desired. From there we walked to Whitehall and the City of Westminster. Of course, I pointed out the major attractions as we passed. We walked along the river all the way down to the Tower Hill area. I'm sure you wouldn't quite understand the distance if you've never been, but there were so many things to see along the way - the London Eye, Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, HMS Belfast, the Golden Hinde, Tower of London and Tower Bridge. We decided to stay in town for dinner and wait for the after-work rush to pass (4pm-7pm). We dined at a great Italian restaurant in a little harbor near the Tower Bridge. We had a wonderful day out and I can't wait for another one! (Thanks, Angela!)

Tower Bridge

Our view while sipping on Chai Tea Lattes from Starbucks