I’m in London!

• 

• 

As you may know I’m currently in the UK, my husband and I came here at the beginning of January to begin our future as expats. His plan is to study a master degree in Engineering, and my plan is to get certified as a TEFL teacher. We decided on these plans a very long time ago, individually, and then we combined them so we could have our future together. While these plans have changed a little because of COVID we decided to go ahead with our move and start our future the best we can. I had a TEFL course picked out in Prague that is supposed to start in March, however after conversing with the head of the program I’ve decided to go with an online program so I can get started teaching as soon as possible. 

Since we’re in London and we don’t have much keeping us busy we’ve settled nicely into a routine. This routine consists of trying new recipes, some of which I am very excited to share in the future, walking in Hyde Park to get some fresh air everyday, and once a week we decide to treat/torture ourselves by going on a massive all-day walk into the city and getting take out. Yesterday was our splurge day, and I thought it would be an interesting concept to explore some of the major London hotspots that are normally packed pre-COVID. This is neither of our first times in London, my third time, and I still love it as much as I did the other times I was here. Between the both of us we have been to all of the spots we went to yesterday. 

Just as a disclaimer we were safe, we socially distanced and wore masks at all times. 

• 

• 

The first place we made our way to was Buckingham Palace. Now the last time I was here was June of 2017, so think peak travel season with no hint of a pandemic, and it was absolutely packed!! Yesterday, which is winter and obviously not peak travel season, was dead, there were hardly any people around and I didn’t have to wait to get good pictures. It was quiet, there was no hustle or bustle and we were really able to enjoy the palace without having to worry about moving out of people’s way so they could get a good picture, there were no walking tours to avoid, it was great and very odd. 

The second place we stopped by was St. Paul’s Cathedral, while there was some construction going on near the cathedral, it was empty. There was a sign out front saying that services have been postponed due to the pandemic. The only people nearby were people who were on a mission to somewhere else. They had no interest in stopping to admire the great and giant architecture of the cathedral, they’ve probably seen it plenty of times before anyway. The last time I was here was October 2019 and there were heaps of people around exploring, stopping for lunch, taking pictures and enjoying the wonderful fall air. So once again it was an odd experience being able to enjoy our time, get some great photos, and not have to shove through crowds of people. 

Our third stop was Shakespeare’s Globe, this was one of the most interesting places I had been to when I was last here in October. I took a tour of the globe, I had a Midsummer’s Night Dream themed tea, and watched a Midsummer’s Night Dream play performed. My Literature major heart was soaring! Going back yesterday was a completely different experience! There were no tours being held, the gates to the courtyard were closed, the restaurant that served afternoon teas was not open, and they definitely were not performing any plays. It was probably a bit reminiscent of when the play houses were originally closed in the 1640’s by the Puritans, although now it’s currently closed due to the pandemic, which makes much more sense than to preserve the morality of the people of London. 

• 

• 

Our fourth and final stop of the day was to Borough Market, this was my first time here, but my husband’s second time. It’s a huge open air market back off the city street next to some exceptional architecture. This place is a perfect location to try all types of ethnic foods, shop for fresh vegetables, seafood, meats, cheeses, wines, and anything else you could think of. I’m sure this place is normally packed!! How could it not be with all the great options available. I would say this was the busiest location we visited, and still everyone was distanced, wearing masks, and we weren’t allowed to eat inside the market, understandably. We decided to get lunch at the market. It was my husbands turn to choose, so we went to a place called Hogs, that served greek wraps, falafels, and bbq wraps. I went with the falafel, it’s one of my favorite foods, and it was incredible! On our way home we wandered past the cutest doughnut shop, I decided to splurge some more that day, and buy some to take home for us to enjoy later from the comfort of our cozy window nook. 

Overall the day was great, we walked approximately 11 miles and I’m incredibly sore today, but it was an intriguing experience to see the way COVID has affected these monumental sights that most everyone knows. I’m excited to continue exploring locations and seeing the way COVID has changed them. 

• 

•