London - Day 11

So, I fell off the blogging wagon for a bit. Somewhere between Cambridge and Belgium, I caught the flu. No, not swine. I checked. Yes, I was THAT sick. Of course, Rob caught it too and we were down for the past 4 / 5 days and still have not had a proper meal. I'm feeling so much better now, but still have a stubborn cough (that is killing me I may add). Being so sick in a country that speaks another language was quite frustrating. Good thing for high school french! Medication in Belgium are listed in 3 different languages plus Braille, but not english! Anyways, will tell you all about it in the Belgium post.

In the meantime, back to Cambridge for day 11! A fourty-five minute train ride outside London, Cambridge is absolutely beautiful and a lot less people!


Can you imagine going to school in these beautiful buildings and surroundings?


Feel like punting? You can either rent your own boat or sit back and take a ride with a guide.


Cambridge town map


Walking towards King's College Cathedral....



Loving the door within the door! (Although the small door looks tiny in relation, it would have fit a regular person, so you can see how large the big door actually is).


Side view of the chapel




Back in town ...


Weekend market ...


I can't remember the details of this church (sorry), but love the shot with the spider web.


Zoom in. Does the fake man on top of the pie shop remind you of anybody?


Trinity College was founded in 1546 and is the largest college in the University.


Today, the College consists of a Master; about 160 fellows, most of whom are teachers; about 320 postgraduate and 650 undergraduates.


It was closed during our visit, but they have the most amazing looking dining hall (pictured on the website). Apparently, the one from Harry Potter was based on this.


After our tour, we walked along the Cam river bank


Tons of boats along the canal - both recreational and homes.



... and what was at the end of the walk?! Our first pub food of course! Unfortunately, they ran out of Sunday roast lunch as we didn't arrive until almost 4pm. So fish & chips and steak & frites for us! nom nom nom ....

London - Day 10

Everytime I come to London, I get sick. New place. New bugs. So it shouldn't surprise me that I feel like I am coming down with something. Feeling a bit run down today and have a nasty cough. Blech.

London day 10 and day 11 was spent in Cambridge, about an hour by train from London. Thanks to E & M for hosting us this evening. We had a great time including our first pub, scone and Indian food experience! Yes, it was quite a weekend.



At Kings Cross waiting for the train... still can't believe the amount of people in London!



Looking out the train window...



E & M picked us up from the Waterbeach station and we headed to the small town of Ely for lunch and a quick walk through.

The cathedral ...


The downtown market that takes place every weekend ...


While we were in town, our friends had to pick up a few things at the local Tesco.


An american cheeseburger anyone?


For some reason, produce here always has so much packaging. Really? Is it necessary?

London - Day 9

We hopped onto the Victoria line and made our way to Highbury and Islington where the Make Lounge was located. It is a fantastic new area that we discovered and definitely off the tourist path.

We stopped and had lunch at a fantastic bakery called Euphorium in Islington. Delicious sandwiches and hot mochas!



Had a brief, but fantastic meet and greet with Jennifer from the Make Lounge! Her workshop space includes three studios over two floors and the retail shop (opening soon) is over two rooms.


Thanks to Deidre for a copy of Uppercase Magazine that we passed to the Make Lounge.


Fantastic store sign made to look like grosgrain ribbon.


Highland and Islington is near Camden Town, so we made the mandatory stop. I come here each visit and it just doesn't seem the same anymore. We were there on a Friday instead of the weekend, but it just seemed to be packed with young tourists and transients. A lot of the vintage and furniture shops seem to be gone and replaced with new fashion and food stalls.

I was told to get off at Mornington Crescent and walk down to Camden Town, but I believe that station is only opened on the weekend. I usually get off at Camden Town and walk down to Chalk Farm (row of houses in Chalk Farm).


Custom designed scooters at a food stall for customers to sit and enjoy their food.

London - Day 8

(image heavy)

I already posted about my birthday, but here are my snapshots of day 8 in London.

The Borough Market is London's oldest food market and has been at it's current site (under London Bridge) for 250 years.

The market is open only on Thursday's from 11:00am to 5:00pm, Friday from Noon to 6:00pm and Saturday from 8:00am to 5:00pm.

This is my first visit to the market. I'm not sure where I first found it, but it's amazing and a definite must go!



We went the wrong way to the market, but did get a beautiful view of the Tower Bridge and the Tower of London.



Beautiful church right next to the market





The market is like the public market at Granville Island, but there are a lot more food vendors ...



such as fresh paella ...




savoury pies since 1853 ...



sausages ...





If you love coffee and cake, Monmouth Coffee Company and Konditor and Cook by London Bridge are a must!




Coffee here is filtered and you can get black coffee or white coffee (aka with milk).



Right next door is Konditor and Cook with some of the most amazing cake ever!




The whole market had vendors selling huge meringues!



To top off the birthday extravagenza, we went to see Wicked at the Apollo Theatre by Victoria station. I have wanted to see this musical for so long, but kept missing the shows in Seattle and Portland. It was worth the wait, but definitely don't miss reading the book.