In the last couple of weeks of my travel I ended up passing back through London a few times for a night/day here or there. This resulted in many Christmas market visits, a fantastic night out, a trip to Harry Potter Studios, and a visit to a movie theatre with the UK’s biggest screen.
If you didn’t know already, I am a Christmas fanatic. It is well in-truly my favourite holiday, and I just love to get in the spirit. Even though it was only early-mid November I was thrilled that Christmas markets and lights were popping up across London. It was a taste of a winter Christmas. This meant I spent hours going from market to market across London, enjoying the stalls, vibes and food. I tried mulled wine – not a fan but I did like the sweet Christmas treats. Although many of the markets had similar stalls, the vibes were immaculate with buskers and decorations. I even got a little souvenir/gift shopping done.
Unexpectedly I had a fantastic night out, the night before I went to Harry Potter Studios. I had no intention of drinking at all, I was ready for Netflix and an early night in when my roommate worked a miracle and convinced me to go out. To be honest it probably didn’t take that much convincing. A trip to the nearest convenience store had us some cheap wine, before we went out to a couple of bars, and then went to the club Ministry of Sound. This is a fairly well known club in London, and it had some fantastic DJ’s. We won’t talk about how much I spent while out this night, but I had a great time and stumbled back into bed in time to get 2hrs sleep before getting the train to Harry Potter Studios. It was a little rough, but no regrets.
Now Harry Potter Studios! Despite the hangover, I had the best time and spent almost all day exploring the sets. It was so much fun to be so completely immersed in the world of Harry Potter, it really was 12 year-old me’s dream come true. Not to mention, they change themes every few months, and I was there during the Hogwarts in the Snow theme! Even better. Unfortunately I didn’t get the chance to try butter beer, the queues were massive and I didn’t think I’d be able to keep it down – but next time! I highly recommend this experience!
I rounded out all my time in London with a trip to the movies. The weather was cold and wet, and I was keen to watch The Ballard of Songbirds and Snakes (the new Hunger Games movie). What better way to do this then by choosing the movie theatre with the biggest screen in the UK. It was certainly a lotttt bigger than my local cinema in NZ, and a lot more expensive. I went into the movie with very low expectations, but I was honestly quite impressed. It did drag on a bit, at 2hrs 40min, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It took me back to my teenage Hunger Games obsession era.
I said it the first time I visited and I’ll say it again. London is somewhere I really like. While you do run out of touristy things to do after awhile, especially when on a budget, it is a such a cool city to experience.
~ Nikita’s Nomadic Notes
Nikita’s Nomadic Notes 