Europe London- Day Five

Day Five- London

Yesterday I spoke to a wonderful local taxi driver who offered me advice about what a local would do on a day off. He told me about Commercial street market and Colombia road market which is a flower market.
I got up early and catch a taxi to the markets. I arrived there at 8:00am thinking I would be late or they may even be they would be finished. The markets  were just setting up. Apparently this is unusually for the markets. I hung out in a little cafe and piggy backed off a free wifi until they were opened at 10am.

Cafe next to the markets

The markets were amazing. They had stalls of clothing, jewelry, hats, photos and alot of others. It took me roughly 30mins-1hour to do the whole markets. They had some amazing shops around the area as well. There was this great cheese shop. I got to try a whole different amount of types of cheese.. So yummy. They also had alot of cafes and stalls. Also just a few streets down they had this beautiful flower market which is worth a look.

                                                    The markets


Trying to make the most of my last day in London I hailed a taxi and got dropped off at Piccadilly Circus. And did some shopping. Tip: For the male and females H&M and Zara has some great clothes for cheap. And if you go after Christmas the boxing day sales make everything cheaper.

                                                    Piccadilly Circus

My back was so sore from lugging around my bag. Tip: When you travel you will be doing alot of walking so pack lightly for day trips. Below is the list of things I took.

Day Bag:

• Umbrella (which was essential in London because it rained most of the time) You can also get away with a coat with a hood or a poncho
• Wallet & Money (Obvious I know but had to include it)
• Any tickets that you will need for your activity during the day
• Passport in my money belt (dont leave your passport at your hotel, because this is your ticket home. You do not know what goes on in your hotel room once you have left it. If your passport gets nicked your its a pain in the bum to get a replacement)
• Tissues
• Hand santitizer 
• Water bottle (Which i filled from a filtered water tap in the hotel restaurant) 
• Hotel Key (and hotel address just encase you have to take a taxi)
• Chap stick
• Gloves
• Travel/ Phrase book (If you are having lunch by your self because you are travelling solo this will give you something to do.)
• Map 
• Panadol (make sure you bring some from your home country. I tried to buy some from Romes airport and they only had this dissolvable one that wasnt panadol. I didnt want to risk it so i induced the headache)
• Snacks (there was a local convenience store next to my hotel. I brought a couple bananas, corn chips, salsa, a few water bottles which only cost me 3.80 Euros) Plus this comes in handy if you are on a tour and you dont get a lunch break.

To be honest you probably wont need more than that unless you are hiking ect.

Before I jumped back on the hop on hop off bus to go back to my hotel I had dinner at a sushi train. This sushi train was so fancy. They had taps on the bench where you could get still or sparkling water. Catch is you had to pay for the water out of the tap. If I knew this I would of just drunk out of my water bottle.

In winter the Sun goes down in London around the 3pm mark. If your not comfortable with being out when it gets dark in a strange city you can head back to your hotel and have room service. Or depending on where your hotel is located there might me some great restaurants around it. Dont be overly surprised if you do not get particular great tasting food from London. Most of the food I had was very tasteless.

Miss C xx

Europe London - Day Four

Day Four- London

Today was one of the best day of my entire trip. It started off a little rougher than what I expected. I was up a bit of the night with a sick stomach. I woke up at 6am to leave for my day trip to go to Warner Brothers Studio to see the Harry Potter Exhibit in London. I still had one more day left in London and because I wasn't feeling to well I thought I'd see if I can move it. Tip: Some day trips you cant change and you wont get your deposit back. If you book one in... your going have to do it if you wanted to or not. Because I couldn't move the day trip I had to suck it up and go any ways. Best thing I could of done.

I ended up catching a taxi to to the Golden Tour head office where the buses depart from. Tip: If you do go on this tour make sure you get here early. There are a couple buses that go on this tour.

Taxi in London

It took us about 1 hour to get there. The drive was so beautiful. I was on the 7am tour. We got there early and the doors were not open.

                                          Tour Bus- Harry Potter

 They made us wait about 45mins out in the cold.

                                          Warner Brothers Studio- Harry Potter Exhibit 

 And it wasn't just cold. It freezing... Tip: If you are going on an early tour... make sure you rug up. Because there is a high chance you will have to wait out in the freezing cold. They let us in around 8:30am-9ish. 

                                         Inside Warner Brothers Studios

                                       

The tour was amazing. There is two small bits of the tour that is guided and the rest of the tour is self guided. I dont want to tell you to much of the tour because I do not want to spoil it. But if you are a Harry Potter fan or even if you arent this tour is for everyone. Its informative and fun. You get to see the diagon alley, a replica of hog warts and lots more.

                                         The Great Hall- Harry Potter

 They have props, sets, the great hall set and you can ride on a broomstick. They have a great gift stall. You can buy souvenirs, wands, capes ect

                                          Chocolate Wands from Warner Brothers Studios

It took me roughly 1-1.5 hours to go around the tour. The Golden Tour allow 3hours to do this tour before the bus departs. I ended up having some lunch at the cafe. They have a great selection of food and gluten free products. A taxi pulled up at the front and I thought I would see how much it cost to get a ride back to my hotel. I spoke to the taxi driver and he cut me a deal because he needed to head back that way. I started talking to this lovely taxi driver and he offered advice for me to do on my last day.  We were heading back into city and we started to head towards Abby Road where the road that the Beatles made famous. It was so lovely. He goes to me,  I never do this but would you like me to stop and I will take a photo of you on Abby Road. It was so cool. 

                                          Abby Road- London

He ended up dropping me at Madame Tussauds. It was raining and I had to wait outside for 1.5 hours and I brought my ticket before I arrived. Tip: If you go... go early. Bet the crowds. When I finally go in I was really overwhelmed with the amount of people in there. It was soooooo packed.

Check out Hhw many people were in Madame Tussaud

It was so packed I could hardly move around or take pictures. It was really impressive and its worth a look but get there early. The wax statues look so real, they even have a train ride half way through. They also sell food in the venue. I ended up having chocolate covered strawberries half way through. YUM

"If you like it than you should of put a ring on it" AKA Beyonce- Madame Tussaud

When you take risks while travelling this is when you usually surprise your self and enjoy your self more than you thought you would of. 

Europe London- Day Three

Day Three of My Europe Trip

This morning I woke up at 7am. Packed my bag and went down to Breakfast. Before I came over to Europe I organised with my family and friends to all install viber. You can use viber to send free text messages and make free phone calls to your family and friends using an internet connect. (Tip- check in advance if your hotel has free wifi. Most hotels do. Other wise you can log on at Mcdonalds all around the world). I went down and had breakfast at the hotel. Some hotels will include continental or hot breakfasts with your booking (check your booking before your arrive)

                                                    The President Hotel- London Dining Room

My booking only had a continental (Cold) breakfast booked. Being a coelica (allergic to wheat) this didnt work for me because the cold breakfast was cereal and toast. I paid an extra 5pound per breakfast to add hot items on it. The hotel staff were great they got the chef to prepare some gluten free bread for me also. They knew I was a tourist so they gave me some fruit to take on my day with me. I also filled up my water bottle with there filtered water cooler in the dining room. At breakfast it was dark and raining. The sun was just rising at 7:30am. I had made a plan before I arrived in London of what I was going to do today. After I ate my breakfast I jumped back on the hop on hop off double decker bus. I was on the top level reading my map when I meet this girl from Australia who was also alone.

We got to talking about what we had planned for the day and thought we would keep each other company and do it together. We ended up getting on the other loop and firstly going to Buckingham palace. (Tip- Changing of the guards only happens a few times a week in the winter season. Check to see the schedule before you go) We got there in the rain and it was amazing. It is actually alot smaller than I thought it would be but the fountain in the middle of the round about is gold and spectacular.

                                                           Outside Buckingham Palace- London

We were out side of the palace for about 15mins. Since you cannot go inside we thought we would just have a short visit there and take a few photos. There is a cute little gift shop beside the palace which has items you can purchases such as plates, key rings, hats coats you name it all related to the Buckingham Palace.

                                          Souvenirs from Buckingham Palace- London

We jumped back on the bus and made our way to Parliament house. So worth a look. Its an incredibly huge building. It is such an impressive building

Parliament House- London

We walked to Westminster Abby which is about 5mins walk from Parliament. Its a beautiful church but I didnt find it that impressive. But its worth a look to say you have seen it. 

Westminster Abby- London

Also in close walking distance you can see Big Ben, London Eye and the London Aquarium. We jumped back on the bus after looking at the big ben and taking some photos and did a loop across to the Tower of London. I had brought my tickets before I arrived in London but my Australian friend brought her ticket on the hop on hop off bus for about 20 pounds. (Tip- Buy your tickets before you get there, the lines to buy a tickets to the Tower of London are HUGEEEE!!!) We stopped for lunch at a cafe called 'EAT' just outside the tower of London. They have fresh salads, soups, sandwiches, fruit, yogurt, chips ect that you can take away or eat in and they are fairly cheap.

You could spend hours in the Tower of London. They have guided tours, headsets you could borrow for 5 pounds for an audio guide or just wander around taking it in. We ended up borrowing an audio guide. It was very informative. We only listened to 2 sections out of the 5 because we ran out of time.

                                          Tower of London- London

The line up to see the crown jewels were over an hour long. So we didnt see it. We ended up spending over and hour here. The lines are huge to every exhibit. (Tip- go in the morning or late afternoon after the crowds are gone). We jumped back on the bus and headed in to Piccadilly Circuit and vistied M&M world. This was one of my favourite things to see. They have 4 fours of M&M products and a double decker bus in the entrance. Without a doubt if you are in Piccadilly circus you must go have a look.

                                         M&M World- London

Before we got back on the bus we took the token photos with the red phone booths. No one ever tells you that inside the booths are filthy and have porn and rubbish in them. But lets face it you still have to have that photo when you go to London. 

                                                   Red phone booth pic- see the rubbish inside

After this we had got some sushi for an early dinner. I was expecting a sushi train like Australia. But this one was fancy with all these different menu items I had never heard of and you had to pay for a glass of water. We got back to the first stop went to the supermarket I went to the day before picked up some supplies and parted ways. We didn't exchange phones numbers ect. Some times you will meet someone and know you will only know them for a little while but remember the time you spent together. 

A few tips that I learnt from day three is

• Pee before you leave the hotel - stupid tip I know, but essential. You never know when you where the next toilet will be
• Dont be afraid to talk to people. You never know they could be in the same situation as you are
• If you see something you want buy it... You may not have a chance to be able to go back there again to get it
• Take every opportunity thrown at you. Visit places that look interesting
• If you are out after dark alone make sure you have a safe way to get back to your hotel room
• They charge for water. Buy a bottle and refill it when you can.
• It rains... take a poncho or an umbrella. Because you will be doing alot of walking and its not fun walking around saturated all day
• Take the hop on hop off bus. It is a great form of transport. And London is quite spread out and they are really reliable.
• Get your family and friends to add viber to their phones before you leave so you can contact them for cheap (when you have an free wifi connection on your phone)
• Have a clock with your local time so you know when you can talk to your family and friends
• Do what the locals are doing. Have breakfast, lunch and dinner at similar times to they do to avoid jet lag.
• Try not to carry to much in your bag.... Trust me... After the first day my back was aching. 
• Where your bag on your front. This will make you less of a target to thefts.
• Plan your activities or things you want to see before you leave your home country.This will make sure you do not miss out on seeing the things you really want to see
• Have the address of the hotel on you just in case you get stuck and have to use a taxi
• If you catch a train keep your back to the wall. Or keep all your personal items in your bag watch out for thefts.

Europe Day One & Two (the flight and London)

Day One

I woke up so nervous. Cursing words of excitement and of nervousness. I could not believe I was travelling to Europe within a few hours... and I was going alone... I was so nervous and excited. Thoughts were racing around my head a million miles per hour. "Have I packed everything?" "Will I have enough money?" And than the thoughts came in of all he negative things my family or friends had said. About loneliness and safety.

The night before I went online and booked my seat. Made sure that my bad was packed, laid out the clothes I was going to wear and packed my carrying on bag. I was all set ready to go.  

Once I got to the airport I got my bag wrapped which cost me rough $10.00 Aussie. Than I went and lined up in the online bookings line. It took me roughly 2mins to be served. I was talking to the attendant and he said my flight was fully booked. My first flight was from Brisbane to Bangkok 8 hours..

A few tips for the airport I can suggest for you:

• Go online the night before and book your seat. This will ensure that you do not have to wait in a massive line when you arrive and you can line up in the online bookings line which is relatively shorter.
• Get your bag glad wrapped. It costs roughly $10.00 but it is worth it. Especially if you are having a spot over you never know what could happen to your bag from when it leaves your side when you sign in to when you arrive at your destination. Eg. My friend was flying home from fiji and when she got her bag back she realized that all her items in her suitcase were covered in a fish sauce which another passenger had in their bag which must of broken.
• Make sure your lock on your suitcase is locked before you book it in. (sounds stupid.. but check it)
• Make sure you have some cash for the country that you may have a long or short stop over for because you never know you may be hungry when you get there or want to buy something.
• Bring something to do while waiting in the air port because they are Boooooring. A puzzle book, music, and ipad. 
• Make sure you get to the air port 2 hours early.
• Make sure you head through customs at least 1 hour before your plane departs
• One of the best things I can suggest for you to do at the airport is buy some snacks to take on the plane. They may only feed you once of twice and depending on the length of your flight it could be 10 hours between when you get feed each time.
• Another tip which alot of people do not know about is sometimes if your flight is not full you can ask the attendants if there is any business class seats available. Sometimes they will upgrade you for free or for a small fee of $100.00 (I got this tip from a Chicago women I met in Rome) 

The plane ended up departing at 2pm.. I was on this very packed plane for about 1 hour before they served lunch. Since I had my name down as a dietary requirement they brought my food to me first. I wasn't feeling very well because of the turbulence so I only ate a little bit. 2 hours into the flight I ended up throwing up. Alot.. I felt sorry for the couple beside me. (Another tip... if you get motion sickness.... take some travel sickness pills before you get on the plane...I learnt this very late into my trip) My 8 hour flight I wasnt well. And when we finally landed in Bangkok at 12am (Brissy time) and 8pm Bangkok time. I was exhausted and didnt want to get on my second plane. I was so hungry from throwing everything up I looked for food. If you have been to Bangkok Airport before you will know it is HUGE. Being a coleica I found the only thing I could eat there was some chips from a burger king (In case of emergence have some cash for the foreign country you will have a short stop over in)

Day Two

I had a four hour stop over in Bangkok before getting on my second leg of the flight. I was so tired and sick by this point I even investigated getting a hotel room and moving back my flight. In the end I told my self to suck it up and get on the next flight. I only do this once.

                                                       A statue in Bangkok airport

By the time my next flight was ready to bored it was 12am Bangkok time and 3am Brisbane time. I was well and truely ready for Bed. When we got on the plane they feed us and turned off all the lights to let us sleep. I still was a bit sick but this flight was much better. I had no one beside me so I could lay down and sleep over the 3 seats. I'm not sure how long I slept for but I dont think it was for very long because I woke up starving. Since I was sick and had nothing in my stomach I was forced to wait until they served the last lot of food which was 1 hour before they landed. (Bring snacks on the flights.... they will only feed you twice on a long haul flight) On long haul flights alot of people watch movies, walk around, talk to others or sleep. Another tip I can give you is bring ear plugs and a eye mask. Honestly... It helps.

The time ticked away slowly. As the more hungry I become we finally got feed breakfast. You dont realize how cold it gets on a plane. They will give you a little blanket and a pillow but to be honest there is not much leg room so you do not get a chance to spread out. (Tip: Bring a jacket.)

I was so excited when I heard the captain saying in Thai that we were landing shortly. When we landed. I have never been so happy in my life. Seriously I hadnt had a shower in 26 hours, my make up had worn off because of the brief sleep I had and because I was sick and I was sure that I would of looked awful. After 26 hours.... the plane finally touched down in London at 6am their time. I grabbed my carry on bag, my neck pillow and my jacket and got off the plane. It was a bit of a walk to go through customs and the line..... wow... It took over half an hour to get through. In the line I called my transfer company to make sure they hadnt left without me. When I got to the counter they asked me so many questions before they stamped my passport and let me through to get my bag.

When I got my bag and than walked through the gates to find the transfer driver holding a card with my name on it.  And he took a few others and my self to the van. It roughly took 30mins to get from the airport to my hotel. Driving through London it looked exactly like the movies. Houses side by side and it was raining.  When I got to my hotel I checked in and went up to my room and took a well needed shower. My room was very small but clean and comfortable. The bathroom was nice and modern. By the time I finished my shower the sun was coming up and it was 8am. I packed my handbag with an umbrella, tissues, wallet, cash, maps, tickets, water bottle and lip gloss and I was off. (Tip... it rains alot bring a poncho or an umbrella. Water is hard to come buy. Buy a water bottle when your there your hotel may have a filtered water tap you can use)

                                                   Single Room The President Hotel London

I was so lucky that i brought a long bag because the key they gave me was on a long metal rod.

                                              Key for my room- True Story
                                         

Being extremely jet lagged and my first day in London alone I thought I would make the most of it. (Tip- before you leave your room make sure your suitcase is locked. You never know what happens in your room when you are not in there) I had brought a hop on and hop off bus pass before I left that was very handy. I asked the man at the desk where the stop was and it was really close to my hotel. When I was at the airport and walked out side I laughed to my self thinking "Is this it? Its not cold at all". Turns out I was wrong. I should of worn gloves. Because it was bloody cold and raining. I walked out the door and headed for the hop on hop off bus. They were fantastic they gave me a map that took me to all the major tourist attractions in London. I started out by jumping off at the first stop at the British museum.

                                           The British Museum

 This is a free exhibit. And it is so beautiful. I highly suggest going. I wander around for roughly an hour but you could of spent hours their. The there was so many different interesting displays and guided tours you could take. Or you could even wander around in awe alone like I did.

                                         Inside the British Museum

After the Museum I headed across the road and picked up some souvenirs. Yes... I did this that early into my trip.  I honestly had no idea if I was going to get a chance to later on. I brought some key rings, pens, a post card to send back home. I then went to this small Italian restaurant for London right outside the museum. What I was about to do was something that I thought was going to be so unnatural for me. Eating alone at a restaurant. I ended up ordering a risotto turns out they had no rice. I opted out for the chicken breast and veggies. It was relatively cheapish... it cost around 15Pounds with a drink. But I wouldnt say it was worth it. It was a small breast with some string fries and some very oily carrot. And carrot is honestly the worst vegetable known to man... I may lie a little bit about the carrot... but honestly I'm not a fan. But eating at this restaurant alone for the first time wasnt as daunting as I thought it would be. I looked at the menu and ordered. Than got out my map and by the time I thought about what was next my food was out.

After lunch I ventured back into the cold and wet streets of London. I thought I'd walk back towards my hotel. Turns out I'm not the best navigator and I got lost and ended up at a starbucks. It was cold and wet so I took shelter in side with a hot chocolate until I got my barrings.

I asked the barista if she knew how to get back to my hotel but she pointed me in the wrong direction entirely. So not wanting to confuse my self I ended up walking back to where I started at the Museum.  I saw a hop on hop off bus coming and jumped on to do one of the loops. I ended up taking the bus to Harrods.

                                           Harrods department store

It was boxing day in London and Harrods was lite up with Christmas lights and trees. It was so beautiful and expensive. But worth a look. They had several different levels. Bedding, shoes, bags, food, sport, massages, jewelry. All designer.

                                         Food Shops- Harrods

If you have money to spend and like luxury items definitely go to  Harrods.

By this time it got to late afternoon and the sun started to go down. I hopped back on the hop on hop off bus  and headed back to the hotel.(tip- 25 pounds for 2 days, buses run every 15mins they do 3 loops. Cheap and great transportation) I got back to the hotel and walked down to the local supermarket. I don't know about you, but I'm a snacker. I always have something to eat in my bag just in case. So at the supermarket I got some suppliers. I got some banana, corn chips, salsa, a couple bottles of water for 3.85Pounds. I could not believe how cheap it was. I than headed back to the hotel. By this time it was 5pm and it was pitch black. Being alone and by my self and extremely tired I decided I would order room service.

I didnt realise how different the food was to Australia. I ordered nachos for dinner and a plate of corn chips came out absolutely drenched in cheese and olives and peppers. Not what I was expecting at all. I ended up laying on  the bed at about 6pm London time. I didnt realise how tired I was until I woke up at 9pm thinking there must of been a war going on in my room. Turns out the walls are very thin in my hotel room and the next room was watching a war movie. (Tip- ear plugs... no explanation needed) I set my alarm nice and early for Day three of my adventurous alone in Europe.

Tips for planning travelling Solo in Europe for a female

I know when I told my family I was travelling alone they advised me not to. So here is some tips that I have learnt from travelling alone.

The planning Stage:

• First of all, have a realistic budget of what you can spend on your trip and how much you would like to take over for spending money. Budget your self for a certain amount a day to make sure that you do not run out of money. The amount per day will need to cover breakfast (if your hotel doesn't include it), snacks, lunch, dinner, activities and shopping. For example I gave my self 100 euros a day. I found that some days I spent none of my budget and other days I nearly spent all of it. 

• Do your research. Decide on places that you would like to see or visit and how long you would like to be there for. Which type of transport for place to place do you prefer? Train? Car? Bus? Plane. When deciding what type of transport to go for also think of what type of year it is. If you choose to hire your own car you might run into difficulties putting snow chains on if its winter by your self. If you choose train make sure you arrive at your destinations during the day and leave places during the day. That way when you arrive you will be able to navigate your way around instead of being lost in the dark. If you choose plane you have to realise that when you go place to place you will need to be at the air port 1-2 hours earlier depending on if you are taking an international flights. You will have to deal with checking your bags, customs and waiting for planes. If you do choose the option of flying to and from your destination make sure you arrive during the day. Another tip is booking your transfers in advance.Or will you be participating in tours eg. Contiki or Bus about? If so you will have to make sure you have booked accommodation on either ends of your tours unless you want to fly home the day your tour ends.
• Where do you want to go? Cities? Activities? Sites? If you book tours for activities in advance you may get cheaper deals
• Shop around. Go to travel expos, travel agency's, look on website for deals. When shopping around  go to a few different travel agency's and find out what prices they are offering. Or you can book your flights on line... this may offer cheaper deals as alot of agencies add a percentage onto of your trip.

Booking your trip

So now you have found the dream trip you want to do, the quote is right and you have your budget in place. All that's left to do is book.

• Make sure your happy with the flight times of when your arriving and departing. Because once you have locked them in they will charge you money to change them. On the way back from Rome I had an 18 hour stop over in Bangkok when I booked it I got told I could do a free walking tour when I get there. I was really excited by this. But I failed to realize that I spent 10 hours on a plane and than I would of had to have stayed awake in the air port for another 18 hours before taking off again. I ended up arriving in the air port and booking a hotel to have a few hours nap and to explore.  You can either book a stay over before you go or you can book it when you get there. I got to Bangkok exhausted, and got a deal on a hotel, breakfast and a massage for $100 Aussie dollars. Are you arriving or departing in the dark? It can be a bit daunting arrive to an unknown destination in the dark. In winter the sun rises at 7-8am and sets at 3-4pm. 

• Make sure your flight, accommodation and tours all match up and are correct. Some tours you will not be able to change when you get there but some are flexible. I booked a Warner Brothers studio Tour to see the Harry Potter exhibit... Yes I'm a fan. On the day off I was really ill and I called them up to see if I could switch days and I couldn't  But on the other hand I had a Madame Tussauds ticket which I could use any day. Its a good idea to see which tours are flexible and which arent.

• Do you have food allergies? You can let your travel agency know and they will tell your accommodation and air line and they will be able to provide a meal for you within your requirements. And the best thing about this is if you do have an allergy that will bring your meal out first before any other guests has their food. 
•  Do you know how you are getting from the airport to your hotel? I recommend that you book your transfer in advance. They are great because when you arrive even if it is in the dark you will have someone waiting for you and you will not have to wander around and find the bus stop. 
• When booking through a travel agency they will require you to pay your flights up front and a deposit of your accommodation to secure it. Flights can be honestly the most expensive item on your trip. But booking in advance will save you money. And than you can pay of the rest of your accommodation. Final payments are usually due 2months before you fly out. On final payment you will receive within the week your vouchers and all your information.
• Pay the extra and get travel insurance you will never know when you will need it.
• Make sure you keep a receipt

Next time tips how to save money for your trip