I decided late last year that I was going to come to England for 6 weeks to do some solo traveling, and see how I like living there. So far, it has been amazing. Here’s week 1 in London!

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Day 1

When I first arrived at Heathrow, I found that one of my bags got left in Canada. I flew AirCanada on a super cheap flight, so I guess I got what I deserved! Luckily I had my smaller bag and a few things in my backpack in case something like that happened. Pro tip: Always bring clothes and necessities in your carry on bags!

I didn’t sleep well on the flight unfortunately- I guess I was too excited. Luckily for me, I messaged my Air BnB hosts and they said the flat I’m staying in was ready early and that I could check in at 11. I decided to brave the daunting thought of traveling on public transportation with my bags (if the big one had arrived I would have ubered) and hopped on the Underground (Tube). There were tons of people with bags on the Tube, so I didn’t worry about that. I had to take a bus as well to get to my flat, so that was a little more awkward, but again, only having my small roller and backpack wasn’t that big a deal.

Once I made it to my flat in Clapham, I was able to settle my things, take a shower, and go explore a bit. I basically walked around my neighborhood a few blocks in each direction. I found a coffee and a few parks in the area. Overall I am very happy with my location. If you want to find hotels in this area, here are some great options!

Clapham is on the southwest side of London, outside the city centre but not so far out. My gym is a mile away, there is a yoga place down the street that I joined for £30 (they gave me a deal for 3 weeks). There is a bus stop right outside and the overground is about a 10 minute walk. The tube is a mile and a half or so, but the bus gets you there in 15 minutes. I also learnt that if you use the same payment to get onto the bus, tube, overground, etc., it caps you per day or per week of use. Find out more on that here.

John came up unexpectedly that afternoon, so we grabbed dinner at Battersea Power Station. There are tons of cool restaurants, shops, and bars around there, so I highly recommend a trip. We looked around at the shops (all higher end and not at all the outlet-type pricing if that’s what you like). The place we ate at is called No. 29 Power Station West. The food here was okay, but there was a cool atmosphere and multiple different bar spaces that would definitely provide a fun night out. We had a couple of beers and then headed back home. John had to go back to Christchurch that night, and honestly, I was basically a zombie by 8pm, so it was an early night making up for some of the lost sleep.

Day 2

The next morning I got up around 9:30 so I could make brunch with a couple of girls I met in a WhatsApp group. Sounds weird, but I am nothing if not social, and not knowing anyone here also makes it harder to meet people. I met them in Clapham Common at a place called Bobo and Wild. It’s a small place with a few tables inside and a few outside. The food was really great; I had the açaí bowl, while the others had a mushroom toast and a salmon bowl. All three of us had a latte as well. It was great company and nice to know someone in the city who live close to me!

That afternoon, I signed up to do a yoga class at the place right down the street from my flat, Sadhana Yoga. I’ve been super sore from a lifting injury and then all the travel I’ve been doing, so I thought what a nice and convenient way to get some stretching and a more mild work out in. They gave me a deal since I’ll only be here for 3 weeks, £30 for 3 weeks as a new member.

John came back up around 4:30, and because of parking in London, we decided to take his car to his Aunt and Uncle’s house in Stratham. While there, he wanted to show me around a bit because when he lived in London that’s where he spent most of his time. He worked at a little pub there that his uncle use to own, but has since sold. We had to go have a beer of course! On the way back to my flat, we stopped at a pizza place called Pizza Metro Pizza. This pizza was bomb! Like one of the best pizzas I’ve had outside of Italy. I’d definitely go back here. We called it a night after walking home.

Day 3

I woke up and went for a run the 3rd day, which was a nice way to see more of the neighborhood. There were a lot of families out walking to school.

I decided to go to Shoreditch during the day because I really wanted to see the street art. Shoreditch is known for being the hub for hipsters, so I was excited to see it all. I basically walked around aimlessly after having lunch at Lantana Cafe. They’re actually an Australian cafe, but I heard about it online and wanted to try it. I got the teriyaki salmon bowl and it was delicious. It was served cold which was different, but actually really refreshing and flavorful. I got a latte and headed on my way to wander around.

I found street art around every corner I swear. It was such a nice place to walk around. There were quite a few people out and about, which I can’t blame them as it was a perfectly sunny day. I also happened upon a massive thrift/vintage market. I bought a pair of heart shaped sunnies and wandered around. It was a bit overwhelming but if you are looking for something specific this is the place! Beware of pickpockets here!

I ended up wandering to Spitalfields Market where the delicious and beautiful Humble Crumble has a stall. The last time I was in London I went to Humble Crumble. They have another stall in Borough Market, and it was so good I knew I’d go back. I was overly stuffed after eating their Easter special egg nest, but no regrets.

After the market I went back to my flat. Unfortunately I was still full from my crumble that I didn’t actually end up eating dinner. John got KFC and then we went to a pub down the road from my flat to do a pub quiz! We were terrible (who would’ve thought, an American doesn’t know English trivia?!) It was fun anyways, and we got some chips and beers while we were there. ALSO my luggage finally made it to my flat!

Day 4

The next morning I just hung around the flat. I could feel the jet lag catching up to me with each passing day. This was annoying because I thought I’d be feeling my best by now! I grabbed some groceries at the shop down the road and did some blogging while John worked. We went to the gym in Chelsea during his lunch break. It was a nice easy walk across the Thames and back.

Once I showered, I headed out to Primrose Hill near Camden. This was a neighborhood I saw on Instagram, otherwise I never would’ve found this little gem. It is so cute and picturesque! So many beautifully colored homes and flats, plus, with it being spring, the flowers and trees were all blooming. It was a gorgeous walk around. I found a little park too where I hung out for a bit before walking to Camden.

Camden is most known for the locks and the market- it was crawling with people! I walked all around the neighborhood-more colors and flowers and street art! After a bit, John arrived and we went into the market to hunt down the Yorkshire Burrito! You guys. If all you do is go to Camden Market for this, you will not be disappointed. It took us a bus, an overground, and an underground train to get to Camden and it was well worth it for this burrito! It is exactly what you would expect it to be- a roast dinner in a Yorkshire pudding wrapped like a burrito. We both got beef, but they have a chicken and a veggie option, too.

After dinner we found a pub and had a couple beers before taking the tube to Covent Garden. John wanted to check out the new Apple Watch, and it split up the long commute home. We decided to stop in a pub there as well because there was a football game on (Chelsea v. Liverpool). The commute home from there was easy.

Day 5

I was not feeling the greatest when I woke up on the fifth day, so I chilled around the house for the morning. I was a bit frustrated I wasn’t feeling well my first week in London. In the afternoon, John had a presentation and kicked me out of the flat, so I went to Battersea Power Station again. I didn’t want to go far, and I found a place online that said it was good for working on a laptop.

Ironically, it was right next to the pub we went to the first night I was here! Megan’s Battersea Power Station was a great spot! It was really busy, but luckily I was able to get a spot at the window in the corner. It was a little noisy, so if you don’t like that for working, I wouldn’t recommend this place. They do encourage bringing dogs here too, so if you have a fluffy friend, this is a good option. The food looks amazing! I just got hummus with flatbread and had a strawberry mint juice. Both were great.

I went back to the flat after about 2 hours, took a nap, and then John and I went out for dinner. Again, I wasn’t feeling going too far, and he had to head back home that night, so we found a pub down the street by the overground. At The Falcon (A Nicholson’s pub) we both had the traditional fish and chips. I’d come back here to try some of the other food items, but the fish and chips were so delicious. The tartar sauce, which I don’t usually like, was like none I’d had before. The fish was really thick, flaky, but substantial. John liked the mushy peas too!

John went home after that and I went to bed early, still not feeling my best.

Day 6

Unfortunately, I was feeling even worse by day 6. I slept in, drank some tea and took some pain killers in the morning. Then, decided to lay low for the morning and just watched Netflix. I cooked lunch at home today since I had groceries.

Feeling a bit better by the afternoon, I decided to go out. My initial plan was to take a day trip to Cambridge today, but since I didn’t leave the flat until 1:30, I decided it would be better for a different day. I took the tube to The Welcome Collection in hopes to find a good work space.

I was greeted by a cafe, 2 free art exhibits (which were great!), a library, and something called “The Reading Room”. The library required a library card and a sign said they weren’t allowing more cards at this time, so after checking out the exhibits, I went to the reading room. There are tons of tables and work spaces around for people to use, including a large set of stairs with pillows on it that people were set up at. The upstairs portion had a library of sorts. It was quiet enough for me to work comfortably here, but likely not as quiet as the actual library would be. Depends what you’re looking for. After a few hours blogging, I went to find dinner in the area.

I ended up walking a mile to Holborn where The Pie Room lives inside the Rosewood London Hotel. It rained on me for the first time this week-which goes to show that London isn’t actually always rainy! I ordered the pumpkin soup and sourdough bread with butter to start. It was delicious and a great way to warm up after the wet walk. Of course I couldn’t not order a pie here, so I got a traditional pork pie. This was the first time I’d had one, and it was not disappointing! It came with gravy to pour onto it, which gave some extra flavor and softened the crust a bit. I only managed to eat half of it, but it was great the next day reheated.

Day 7

On Friday I got up and went for a run, then booked the train to Cambridge! I actually didn’t know that you have to buy a ticket when leaving the city. I’ve just been using my ApplePay for public transportation, which is great, but when you aren’t in the city you have to have a ticket. Anyways, it was about £20 round trip.

When I first arrived, it was about a 10 minute walk from the train station to the park where I found Parker’s Piece– an open space with a little observation wheel in the middle. I decided to check it out and ended up riding it. It cost £6 and did 3 turns around. It was a gorgeous day, so the park was pretty full and quite a few people were out playing football, volleyball, and a few others that I honestly didn’t recognize.

From there, I walked further into the town where I found tons of old buildings, gorgeous architecture, and an age-old tradition; punting. Punting is a little canoe-type boat that is used to show tourists around the city. You can book a punting tour here. I decided I didn’t want to do it on my own, but I walked along the water and saw a lot of the sites that would’ve been seen on the tour. According to the history of punting, the boats are very stable because they have a wide, flat base. They were first used to transport things up and down the river, but now students at Cambridge captain them for tourists.

After I saw the mathematical bridge and walked along the paths leading towards the Queen’s and King’s Colleges (both which were closed to the public sadly, due to it being Good Friday), I wandered around without anywhere specific in mind to go. I was a very strange mix of the old and the new. One corner, I found one of the oldest churches in the city, the next was a newer looking building with a Lululemon in it! I popped into a couple of the shops, but didn’t buy anything.

After a bit, I started heading back towards the train station. I stopped in a pub for a drink and fish and chips. To be honest, I think that fish and chips from The Flacon has destroyed my taste for any other fish and chips. It was not a great comparison. The pub did have Big Wave though, which is the first place I’ve seen it over here! Once I was finished I walked back and got my train home.

There you go; week one in London! If you only have a few days to spend in London, check out my 3 Days in London post.