Walks Summary

My three favorite walks were Regent’s Park, Bankside and Southwark, and Central Parks.

Regent’s Park was the most beautiful park I have ever been to in my life. It was the perfect walk to set the tone for the rest of my London experience. I loved getting to know everyone, stopping at Camden Market for treats, lounging in the grass and people watching, and learning about all the beautiful estates we passed.

The Bankside and Southwark walk was at the perfect time on the perfect day. We took it slow and easy because we were all so tired from Rome but I still loved it. We weren’t afraid to sit down and watch boats go by on the River, stop for snacks along the way, and chat with a few of the locals. This is one of my favorite parts in all of London.

The central parks walk was enhanced by the bike riding. I was worried I wouldn’t enjoy it because we had seen most of the walk already, but it proved me wrong and ended up being a really positive experience. I love biking so learning bike etiquette in London was terrifyingly fun. I do not think I am brave enough to bike on some of those streets again, but it was fun to see different parts of the parks I had not experienced before.

Walk #10: The City (East)

Lauren, Me, and Britton trying to stay dry!

 I wish that when we had done this walk it had not have been during the pouring rain otherwise I feel like we would have enjoyed it a lot more. It was great seeing the Tower of London again, Bank of England, and cute little pubs and restaurants. My favorite part of this walk was when we accidentally met up with some others in our group and ate at this delicious pub. It was perfect to sit back, warm up, and dry off for a little bit and really experience some of the English pub culture. I wish I could remember the name of it because it was one of my favorite places I have eaten at my whole time here. As miserable and wet this walk was, we still got to see some cool things so I am glad we did it.

Walk #9: Bankside and Southwark

It may not have been the smartest idea, but we did a walk right after we got home from Rome. Tired, hungry, but needing to finish a walk, we knew it had to get it done. Amanda, Bri and I really enjoyed this sunset walk along the Thames River. Amanda did a fabulous job navigating us along the water. We saw familiar sights such as the Globe, Rose, Tate Modern, and Millennium bridge but were also able to see some new things like City Hall, Tower Bridge and my favorite- Tower of London. The streets were deserted and it felt like we had the entire place to ourselves. We took our sweet time and enjoyed the sunset views. I am really going to miss this place.

Sunset view from Tower Bridge

Roasted peanuts were the cherry on top of the walk

Our feet, standing on the crack of the Tower Bridge-- you can even see the water underneath!

Tower Bridge and a little bit of Tower of London

Finally done, and our feet HURT from walking so much

Walk #8 Lambeth and Southbank

This walk was one I am glad we were able to do. I had never seen this part of town before and am not sure that I would have seen it. This seemed to be the least city part of London- smaller and older buildings, less businessmen walking around, and very few shops or restaurants to stop at. It was fun to see all the theaters and how much smaller from the outside they look compared to the ones surrounding Piccadilly Circus. I wish I had more time to really explore this area. This one wasn't my favorite walk but we still managed to make it fun.

{Taylor, Me Anna in front of the Old Vic theater}

{Close up of the theater}

{Don't ever try to take pictures under a bridge because the lighting will be terrible}

Walk #7: Inns of Court

{Me, Kaylee, Alison, Alexa, and Hillary}

 

{The only surviving building after the London Fire}

This walk was really fun, but freezing cold. It was a little unfortunate because they would not let us walk through the Inns. Apparently this walk no longer really exists? But we found some interesting sights along the way! First we saw the Royal Courts of Justice and some lovely Tudor buildings. One was the only building to survive the great London Fire and another was one of the Old Curiosity Shop. I have no idea what this building is but it had Charles Dickens name on it so we figured it was somehow important. We ended up at the Knights Templar but unfortunately we could not see anything other than the main entrance. I guess we will have to come back someday!

 

 

 

{There were a lot of random animal sculptures on this walk that provided the perfect photo opportunity}

Walk #6: Central Parks

Taylor and I about to embark on our journey

 A group of us came up with the brilliant idea of biking the Central Parks walk. The walk ended up only taking about 45 minutes instead of a few hours and it was really fun to intimidate everyone with our bike mob. I feel as if I had done this walk before (it closely resembled the 'Wedding Route' we walked our second day here)? One of my favorite parts was seeing the guards march through the park on horses. If I had not have been on my bike, I would have definitely gotten a picture. I have decided that the park walks are my favorite because there is so much beauty to see and less people around. I loved seeing the palaces for the first time since the wedding hype.

The group outside of Kensington Palace

The group outside of Buckingham Palace

Walk #5: Bloomsbury

Outside the British Museum

 I love the walks like this that have stops along the way, such as the British Museum. It really makes the walk more enjoyable when you have a halfway destination to reach. Hannah, Sam and I made an afternoon out of this day- first with lunch along the way, then some walking, spent a few hours at the British Museum, and finished the rest of the walk with just enough time to spare to be back in time for dinner. I liked this walk because it was in a part of town I had never been before. I even did an okay job being the Leader and leading the group around to the destinations.

Inside the museum!

French-style Hotel Russell in Russell Square