London Dreaming

Before I begin I must mention that I've been to London exactly once; a 4 day trip, 5 years ago.  However, those 4 days showed me a city that I've fallen in love with and hope to return to one day as a citizen.  After all, how can you dislike a city with so much to offer?  There's historical venues, the West End, world-renowned restaurants, and shopping like you wouldn't believe.

Though shopping is my usual favorite past time, I wasn't given much time to indulge in the full shop 'til you drop experience as I had hoped.  But there are a few venues I would most definitely add on to my dream shopping extravaganza, if only to get back that same sense of discovery and wonder as I experienced the first time around. 

First up, though Londoners may roll their eyes and groan, is Portobello Road Market.  It may not be extravagant or even a must-see, but it's always screamed quintessential London to me.  There's something about the thrill of the search.  There may be no crown jewels but if you take the time to dig through the vendors' "stock", you may just find a diamond in the rough.  Not to mention, I've been on a never ending search for pieces of a discontinued china pattern for more than a decade, and I like to think one day I'll find those pieces amongst the other treasures.

The next stop on my tour de stores would be Fortnum & Mason.  Let's be honest here, I could most likely eat my way through their beautifully arranged hampers and baskets and die happy. The unfortunate part is getting food back to the states is an utter pain in the neck.  So my only splurge are boxes upon boxes of Royal Blend tea.  The only blend I've ever tasted that has made my tea-totalling heart sing.  There are, of course, thousands of blends in England, all claiming to be the best but I've never had the pleasure of trying those.  I was given the chance to enjoy High Tea with cups upon cups of this perfectly created blend and felt I was in heaven.  Recreating that event again, would be icing on the cake of my shopping trip.

Next up, is not so much a shopping destination but there is a shop on premises so I suppose it still counts: Shakespeare's Globe.  There's just something about purchasing the Bard's works in the "Mecca" for all Shakespeare fans.  This may sound a bit cheesy but what can I say?  I'm a sucker for Will.

Aside from these 3 very distinctive and different places, I think I'd rather the surprise of discovering something new than following a strict itinerary.  The streets of London are full of noise, and kitsch and high-end and low-brow owned by a colorful cast of characters.  My first trip to London I was completely clueless as to what to expect, and the trip was fabulous.  This time around, lightning may just strike twice.  After all, that feeling of new excitement is always the best part of travel, not to mention also, if you're me; shopping 'til you drop!

*If you're interested in joining in on the fun too, check out the VisitBritain site for more information.