Picking
up from where I left off in my previous post, I spent a couple of days in
London before heading home to Sweden for Christmas. I travelled to London from
Southampton by coach (which takes about two hours but never feels that long)
with my friend Ivy. We dropped our stuff off at the hotel we were staying in by
King’s Cross before doing a little exploring including going for a search to
find Platform 9 3/4 (yes, I’m kind of a Harry Potter fan)
and checking out the captivating Christmas lights and window displays at
Harrods. We then met up with our friend Malena for a traditional English
afternoon tea at The Cadogan in Knightsbridge. This was the first time I had ever
done a proper English tea so for me it was very exciting. My friends were nice
enough to book everything in advance (as usual I had my hands full with other
responsibilities at the time) so I really had no idea how grand everything was
going to be. After the tea we went and did a little browsing around Covent
Garden before eating a 3-course Christmas meal together. Below are a couple of photos from the
afternoon tea taken by Ivy and Malena.
The
following day we met up with our friend Josh before heading to the Winter
Wonderland in Hyde Park. This was the first time I had ever been to London’s Winter
Wonderland so I was very eager to see what it had to offer. The park was set up
with many food stalls, a Christmas market, games, rides and more! I have to
admit that the rides were rather expensive so we only went on a couple,
choosing a rollercoaster and the Power Tower (which actually wasn’t at all as
heart-stopping as I thought it was going to be). I still had a great time
enjoying the atmosphere of the park and took the chance to try mulled wine for
the first time.
The Power Tower
In
the evening Ivy and I took the coach back to Southampton, giving me time to
spend the rest of the night packing for my journey home to Sweden. I only ever
travel with my backpack when I go home (because it’s much more convenient not
having to carry a large suitcase and it’s cheaper). However this means I’m
always faced with the challenge of trying and pack as little as possible.
The
journey home went fairly smoothly and before I knew it I was back in our little
apartment being greeted by a very happy monster (aka my dog Belle). It’s been
so nice to spend some time at home relaxing, eating way too much food, lounging
on the sofa, watching movies and TV (we have a TV in the house I’m living in at
Southampton but I never have time to watch anything) and I’ve also been going
for nice long walks with my mum and our dog in the forest. The air in Sweden is
always really fresh, and to my surprise it has actually been fairly warm (let
me just clarify that when I say warm I’m talking around 5°C at
most). I was actually expecting decimetres of snow (which is what I came
home to last year) but I’m not at all disappointed because the good weather has
allowed me to easily bike to and from the town centre.
This photo was taken this time
last year of the lake near our summerhouse.
Since being home I’ve also been to the cinema and watched the new
Hobbit movie with my sister. I really enjoyed it and we got to watch it for
free because she found a pair of free movie tickets hidden away in our
apartment! In addition to this we’ve done a little shopping in the sales and I
bought a new laptop (which I really needed seeing as my old one had developed a
mind of its own as well as going senile). Furthermore, I’ve caught up with a
couple of friends and I plan to watch my sister’s ballet rehearsal tomorrow.
I’ll then get a chance to see all my old dance mates and I’m really looking
forward to seeing everyone again.
I’m actually feeling excited about the New Year (which is strange
because it was only just last week that I was completely dreading the end of
2013) and I’m hoping 2014 will bring with it a ton of new adventures and
chances to makes wonderful memories.
Wishing
you all a Happy New Year!
Kristin
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