long live the queen

So we finally land in London, England after a long 10-hour flight with a delay at the beginning. We landed at Heathrow airport which is one of Londons several airports but by far the busiest for international flights. We took a train from the airport to a metro station. The metro system in London is amazing. We purchased oyster cards which basically gave us unlimited rides for a week, you can always pay per ride or per day, but since we were going to be using it constantly for 4 days, we thought this was the most cost-efficient.

Besides the metro, we walked as much as we could - google maps is a lifesaver when it comes to international travel. It even will guide you to a metro station, tell you where to get off, and then go from there. Thank god for smartphones, because I couldn't imagine using a paper map or constantly asking for directions.

The United Kingdom is the only European nation that doesn't use the Euro, they use the pound. While most places do take debit or credit cards, we withdrew some pounds to avoid constant international fees (which vary depending on the bank). Also, banks and currency exchanges vary on rates so research that too, to save money!

In London, we visited Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Big Ben, the Tower of London, and the British Museum - just to name the main points. We also saw 1984 at a small theatre one evening and tried a ton of English beer. We tried some of the iconic British meals such as - the classic fish and chips, bangers and mash, shepherd's pie, and a traditional English breakfast which consists of baked beans, toast, eggs, a roasted tomato, and some type of protein.

London was a great starting point for the trip because it has a lot of similarities to America for those who haven't traveled abroad and everything is in English.

Next stop -  Rome, Italy!

Front of Buckingham Palace

The London Eye