Foodie Heaven

So traditional English food is not delicious but all the different types of food in London ARE delicious. On the morning of January 3rd we woke up with food on the mind and set off to the Notting Hill Gate tube station to go to the Borough Market. This market was amazing with stand after stand of fresh cheese, olives, chocolate, homemade pasta, meats, vegetables and more. Lucky for us there were samples at every corner and we were sampling and tasting at every step. UNfortunately for us, the temperature was FRIGID and we had to make a quick stop into the Brewer Wharf for a Baileys and hot chocolate before we could continue. After purchasing some cow's milk and comte cheese, some sweet potato and goat cheese ravioli, and some fresh tagliatelle, we walked along the Thames past Shakespeare's Globe Theatre to the Swam Pub. There we had our first pint of the day and a snack of smoked salmon.

After lunch we continued along the South Bank of the Thames past the London Eye, various street performers and amazing views of Big Ben and Parliament. Whenever Jeff and I go on vacation we try to bring home some artwork or pottery. As we were crossing the London bridge, we spotted a street vendor selling six black & white prints of London sights for 1 pound. We couldn't believe we found such a deal in a nortoriously expensive city so we immediately snatched them up!

On the other side of the bridge, there was a protest going on against the attacks on Gaza so we ducked into a pub for more pints and some frittes. While in the pub we witnessed an Italian woman trying to order food...in Italian to a waiter who only spoke English. Being the best Italian speaker in the group, we sent Ashley to the rescue. She soon realized the woman wanted this British pub to serve to serve authentic Italian food. Ashley did her best to explain to each side what was being ordered/what could be served. The Italian woman was very thankful but we quickly left the pub before the woman's food was ready in order to avoid further involvement in the issue.

Our next stop for the day was Sloan Square-a very Posh area of London-where Harrod's is located. Harrod's was a complete madhouse. I couldn't believe how large this famous department store is and how many people were shopping there. Inside we spotted goods by ever major designer, furniture, jewelry, electronics, and a swarovski crystal foosball table. The place was trendy, amazing and overwhelming.

After we left, we were waiting for the bus home and spotted multiple police cars racing by and a helicopter hovering overhead. We couldn't imagine what was going on until we realized the protest we had seen earlier was still going on and forcing the police to reroute traffic. As a result, our bus ride took a bit longer than normal and so we were ready for the wine and cheese that awaited us once arriving home. We had reservations for dinner at Luna Rosa but enjoyed a bit of a happy hour first. Jeff even made a solo trip to the Tesco for more beer.

At 7:20 we left and walked to Luna Rosa for a METER of real Italian pizza and wine. SO GOOD. We finished it all of course and probably could've eaten more.

Earlier in the day Ashley had received a text from Megan saying Azizi and her husband were home from a ski holiday and wanted to meet for drinks. After dinner we made our way to the Earl of Lonsdale Pub to meet up with everyone. This pub had some great private rooms with small entrance doors. We sat in one of these rooms and of course Ash and I took a pic in the small doorway. After cherry beers for the girls and pints for the boys, we headed home to crash into bed.