A Fabulous Weekend at Home

Last week, I spent the weekend in London, which is becoming something of a rarity for me as I've been traveling quite a bit and will continue to travel for the next few weekends. But having a nice, relaxing weekend at home was much needed and very enjoyable.

On Saturday, I slept in nice and late (such a treat!) and after cleaning the flat (it's funny how much of a mess I can make in such a compact space) I headed out for a tour of London. Earlier in the month, I purchased a Living Social deal for a walking tour called "Kings, Queens, Politics and Power." The tour guide was wonderfully cheesy (he even had a sound machine), which I love, and we learned all sorts of interesting things about London and it's politics as we walked around the Westminster area. Here are some highlights from the tour:

The tour guide is telling us about those circular blue plaques on the old houses. They tell what famous/influential people have lived in the home. This is one of the most posh streets in all of London, he said.

Queen Ann street. A couple neat things: (1) the residents of the street all put their money together to commission that statue of Queen Ann to make the street more jazzy (2) the little square plaque below the old street sign is the fire insurance mark. In the 18th century, if you didn't pay the fire brigade back in the day and get one of those plaques on your house, they wouldn't come help you put out the fire. Still, most people chose not to pay the fees (3) The large black, bricked rectangles behind the statue are old windows that were bricked up to avoid paying the window tax that the government instituted in the 18th and 19th centuries. 

This is blurry (oops!) and I didn't realize it at the time (I just thought the lantern snuff thing was neat) BUT...this is Sting's house!

Fall colors in St. James Park

St. James Park

There are tons of different bird species in St. James park. I thought this little duck diving for a snack was really cute.

Some huge pelicans and other birdies hang out near Duck Island Cottage in St. James Park.

The lamp posts in the Westminster area of London are painted with Coco Chanel's logo. The Duke of Westminster had an affair with Coco Chanel back in the 1920s, and this was one of his love tokens to her.

Abraham Lincoln statue, one of the many iconic men watching over Parliament Square. 

Parliament Square, with Big Ben and the London Eye.

Westminster Abbey. I still haven't been inside but will definitely head back there during another free weekend.

Crosses to commemorate fallen soldiers, placed in front of the abbey for Remembrance Day, which is celebrated on November 11.

I love the old taxi sign. Placed here outside Parliament for the MPs to hail a carriage after a long day at work.

What are those jolly policemen guarding?

The entrance to 10 Downing Street, where the Prime Minister David Cameron lives!

The grey house is 10 Downing Street

The memorial statue where the Queen and other important royal figures laid statues on Remembrance Day.

There really is only one word I can use to describe London: magical. The city is so vibrant, so alive, so rich in its history and culture. The more time I spend here, the more neighborhoods I explore, people I meet and stories I hear, the more I love London. It really is an enchanting city. I am so blessed to be here.