In the middle of the BMT, the group was given a free weekend to explore London and take a break from the constant stream of site visits. My roommate Ali and I planned to take full advantage of this time as there was so much we wanted to do, but couldn’t fit in during the busy weeks.
During our free weekend we had to learn how to navigate the tube system which led to some interesting mix-ups and comical wrong turns. But overall we got the hang of it and figured out how to get where we wanted to go. First on the list was Spittlesfield Market, a market lined with adorable boutiques and the main, central feature of a flea market. The flea market sold everything from 1 pound books to jewelry to clothes. I ended up buying an old, small, blue book that was a compilation of the best English poetry through the ages. Along with the flea market and shops, there were ample restaurants.
Ali and I decided to eat at the Gourmet Burger Kitchen. After a long, rainy morning of tube transportation all we wanted was a tasty, hot meal. I ordered an avocado bacon cheeseburger with aged cheddar, Rosemary skinny fries and a salted caramel milkshake. It was a splurge, but turned out to be one of the best meals of the trip. After lunch, we spent a couple hours wondering around the flea market and stopping into every boutique to do some shopping.
Once we had spent our fill of time at Spittlesfield, we headed to Camden Market. At first, the area seemed seedy and exceedingly touristy – the streets were swarming with unsavory characters. However, we kept going, optimistic that if we made it past the exterior scruff there would be a hidden gem at the center. And we were right! We finally stumbled into the open air food and flea market that had never ending branches and ally ways. Its depth seemed to have no limit. There were clothes, trinkets and jewlery kiosks, record shops and my favorite part – the food stands. There was a sea of white tents under which there were cooks freshly making orders on demand. The fragrant smells mixed and mingled together in the air to form an intoxicating aroma. The food made at Camden consisted of every type of ethnic delicacy you could imagine.
Ali and I ordered grape fruit iced tea and a Peruvian dish of chicken, potatoes, onions and peppers mixed together fresh off the grill. For dessert I had my first ever churro which Ali assured me was much better than the average churro. It was a Brazilian style churro, made from scratch right in front of our eyes. The inside was filled with chocolate filling and the outside was smothered with cinnamon sugar. Safe to say my churro standards are going to be pretty high from here on out. After we ate, we wondered around Camden market until it closed and then headed back to the flats.
The next day, Ali and I began with the British museum where we spent hours looking at the Ancient Egyptian sculptures and mummies. The mummy exhibit included the tombs with the original bodies still inside, perserved for thousands of years. It was fascinating – there were even cat mummies!
Following the British Museum, we headed across town to the Imperial War Museum of London. At the IWM, we walked through the entire extensive WWI exhibit. It contained authentic pictures, black and white video, WWI artifacts, letters and diaries of the soldiers. The information and history available in that one place seemed endless as well as endlessly captivating. There was even a replica of the trenches which you could walk through and hear the automated voices of soldiers during an attack. We then went to the second floor to see the WWII section of the museum. It consisted of large machinery and weapons used in WWII complete with an airplane peppered with bullet holes on display. There was also an interesting display featuring a family during wartime. The family had ten kids and followed all of the family members through the war, focusing on the ways they had to adapt. This included rationing, women entering the workforce and men leaving their families to fight in the war. It was fascinating to be able to put real faces with the wartime hardships we so often hear about.
Ali and I quickly had to leave the IWM to rush off to our play that was starting soon. We had bought tickets to see the Jersey Boys at Picadilly Theatre right by the famous Picadilly Circus which featured a central statue people gathered around and the famous giant screens scrolling with advertisements. London is famous for its fantastic theatre culture so we figured it would be a good investment to go see a play while we had the chance. We ran to the theatre and got in our seats just in time for the beginning of the play. And what a show it was! The characters were charismatic with massive personalities, and most of all the writing was witty and humorous. The crowd laughed through a lot of the show, but also teared up during the raw, heartbreaking moments. The absolute best part of the play though was the music. The sound Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons made was so unique and iconic that I just knew I was hearing something special. The audience was dancing and clapping in their seats, singing along to the hits like Sherry, Oh What a Night, Who Loves you and Can’t Take My Eyes Off You. Jersey Boys is now definitely one of my favorite plays of all time!
Ali and I ended the night by walking around the Picadilly Circus area, enjoying the jovial atmosphere, happily singing the Jersey Boys songs in the streets. It was wonderful to be able to explore so many parts of London! My free weekend was simply bliss.
