While away in Madrid, Spain; I was able to fly over to the United Kingdom and visit London for about two days. My first time in London, I was in awe of how I felt very comfortable there and it felt like home. I was able to get a couple of historical places, meetings, and shopping into my two days in London.
London: A European New York?
The Airbnb that I stayed in was on the outskirts of London. It was about a 30-45 minute train ride into London. So I was nervous about taking public transportation because I usually always walk or take cabs when I’m in Europe. As I got to the train station and read the subway map; I started to realize that it was just like the MTA in New York City. It was easy for me to navigate and get to my destinations. I was actually surprised at the ease of public transportation. The major difference between taking the Metro in London and the MTA in NYC was the swiping in and out of the subway. In New York, you only have to swipe once to enter the subway. In London, you have to swipe your card to get in and out of the subway. I have seen that in D.C., the use of swiping your card to get in and out of the subway.
In my personal opinion, I felt London was a cleaner version of New York City. I came up with this conclusion from my comparison of London and New York fashion. In London, they were dressed in their dark or neutral color palettes during their fall weather. We see that all through New York during the fall and winter season. Mostly seeing UK natives walk rather than drive when I reached the city. While walking through London at night, it did not smell as bad as it does in New York. (New Yorkers lets keep it real that NY smell is something different.)
Fendi Cafe & Harrods
One of the major things, I wanted to do when I visited London was to go to the Fendi Cafe in Harrods. I saw a lot of people post about it on social media. I can honestly say that the cafe lived to its hype. The food was excellent along with the service and of course the Fendi decor. The cafe was on the 5th floor of Harrods. and it had two seating areas. I was able to enjoy a glass of prosecco with lasagna for lunch. This was a perfect way to start my day of shopping at Harrods.
After lunch at the Fendi Cafe, I enjoyed the day venturing through Harrods. It was like what Macy’s on 34th Street is like in NYC but better in my opinion. In my opinion, I felt that even though Harrods was busy, it had a sense of calmness that you do not feel when you go to Macy’s on 34th Street. The employees were super helpful and did not get frustrated with my indecisiveness. They went the extra mile for me in getting the belt that I wanted from their stockroom. I also appreciate the employee in signing me up for the Harrod’s loyalty program even though I was not from the UK because I can use it online. I had an overall excellent experience at Harrods from the Fendi Cafe to the shopping. London continued to amaze me from the food and touristic sites.
London Cont’d
Even though, I only was able to spend two days in London. I felt like I was home which I really appreciated about the United Kingdom. I enjoyed shopping at Topshop, Harrods and eating at the Fendi Cafe. A major tourist site that I visited was Buckingham Palace and see where the Royal Family stays. Thankfully, I am already planning another trip to the UK to visit more tourist sites and really see London from a native’s perspective. Until next time, London. Cheers!
