London & Edinburgh in March: 5 days

This tripped was planned when my friends were at high percentage beer tasting. Within 30 minutes, we all bought tickets. Little did we know we would be going before everyone was in panic about the looming pandemic.

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TRIP COST
Flight: $420/pp (DTW <> ORD <> LHR)
Day Trip to Edinburgh: $89/pp (LHR<>EDI)
Airbnb: $411/pp
Food/drinks/souvenirs: $375
Per Person Total: $1,295

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TRAVEL DAY
Twas the night before takeoff, and President Trump announced a travel ban to Europe, excluding the UK. So here we are, the morning of, still going. Thanks Brexit! 

People were already jumping ship from what the virus could be. We kept going, driving to the airport together with the looming doom and no one having the guts to cancel the trip. We were meeting 2 other friends who were coming at the airport, and they bailed last minute. We grabbed a beer at 7am and said "cheers!" to what we didn't know would turn out to be our anxiety-ridden vacation. Our plane was barely half full.

We get to London late at 11pm, and head to our airbnb and go to bed. 
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Airbnb: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/27696873

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DAY 1: HOP ON / HOP OFF
We wake up in the morning and since the latest travel ban to Europe, the coronavirus is now declared a "national emergency" in the US and Michigan schools are closed for 3 weeks. Meanwhile, in London, everything is normal. 

Lunch at The Plough

• Chicken Pot Pie!
• Cask ale is warm, you guys. This is a warning.

​Hop on, hop off bus tour ($26)

• Julia, our tour guide, talked about the drop in tourism and uncertainty in job security.
• The bus was really empty. Hardly anyone on it. Maybe 10-15 people max at times.

Some fun facts:

• Hard Rock Cafe started in London
• "Hangover" comes from people being hanged, those days being holidays, and people getting sloshed because of its sadness.
• Took a coffee/snack break at Victoria Market - LOVED

Kings Cross Area

• Tried to go to Dishoom - recommended to us - such a long line!
• Ended up eating dinner at The Lighterman
• Went into King Cross Train Station
• Photo opportunity at the 9 3/4 platform (no line!)
• Harry Potter Store

Cittie of Yorke Pub

• Highly recommend this pub! Local pub, with an eclectic vibe.
• Sat in a cubicle meant to look like a train car

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DAY 2: RIVER TOUR / SOHO

Hop on, hop off tour included a river cruise near the Tower of London so we headed there.

• Hotdogs & cappuccinos for breakfast
• Theresa got bird pooped on, on the way there

River Tour from London Bridge to Parliament

• Saw replica of Shakespeare Globe Theatre
• There was a bridge built by women during WWI: only bridge in London built on time & under budget
• "Big Ben" is the bell, the tower is called the Elizabeth Tower 

​Took tube to Borough Market

• Amazing street food, so many vendors, SO MANY PEOPLE.
• If you wanted to get coronavirus, this was the place. Why are we here!?

The George

• Ate at the restaurant upstairs - lovely! More chicken pot pie.
• They have an outdoor patio that we enjoyed a drink on.
• Theresa lost a bottle of hand sanitizer and we were all bummed.
• We asked where to find more. Believe me, we've been looking.
• We actually found small bottles per the recommended store for $15. Worth it.
• Do you see why we are losing our minds yet!? We are crying over lost hand sanitizer.

Soho

• ​Tons of shopping and adorable streets
• Recommend a cool shoe store: "Irregular Choice"
• They have an H&M home. Why doesn't America have these? Take all my money.
• Hamleys: 5 floors of toys. A floor dedicated to Harry Potter with huge lego installations.

Sketch

• MUST GO FOR FANCY COCKTAILS.
• This is a place we splurged a very expensive drink on, worth every penny.
• Coffee & tea also an option!
• The bathrooms themselves are experiences like no other, a complete art immersion.
• Beautiful interiors and instagram-worthy.

Dinner @ Malabar Junction

• Chile Paneer appetizer was so good

A bird pooped on Theresa today.
I woke up with a bloody nose. 
It's Cailin's turn.

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DAY 3: PUB HOPPIN'

English Breakfast

• I skipped out on this, but friends went
• I roamed covent garden for coffee to find tiny alleys & tons of coves to lounge. This is what I love about London.

Pub Hoppin'

• Craft Beer Co. -  so many beers on tap
• The Angel
• Waxy O' Connors
  • Recommended by Julia on the hop on / hop off
  • Irish bar with many levels, and a tree inside of it
  • Had beef & Guinness pot pie, and a trio beer flight
• De Hems Cafe Bar
  • Near Chinatown, so we checked that out and got ice cream
• St. James Tavern - sticky toffee pudding to die for
• The Sun & 13 Cantons
• The Argyle Arms - 18th century pub
  • Ate dinner upstairs: It's Sunday = Sunday Roast. Welcome to the UK.

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DAY 4: DAY TRIP TO EDINBURGH

All the bands holding it together broke lose today. 

• We planned to leave at 4am for Edinburgh. 
• 1:30am: Cailin knocks on my door. Our flight home is cancelled.
• Panic strikes. We discuss options as a group, but Cailin books a new flight home. Today.
• The travel ban from the US has been extended to the UK at midnight tonight, so she wanted to get out before that.
• We too, also ended up booking new flights home, which we later cancelled because we could rebook our original flights to Chicago on the same day. Caveat: we had to catch another flight to get home to Detroit, so we booked a cheap spirit flight.
• On barely any sleep, we took an uber to Heathrow.

Edinburgh

• Arrived to watch the sunrise at 8am through the airplane
• Took the Airlink100 to the city center (Prince St. stop for $10)

Angus Cafe

• Delicious breakfast in an inconspicuous little diner
• Hazelnut cappuccinos
• Scottish breakfasts

Victoria Street

• Must see street that heads toward the Edinburgh Castle
• Same street that inspired JK Rowling's Diagon Alley

Edinburgh Castle

• Beautiful views of the city

Camera Obscura

• 5 levels of interactive optical illusions - a fun place to explore!
• The "camera obscura" viewer was founded in 1835, made of mirrors, to look at the city from a tall viewpoint in real time. You can see people roaming the streets of the entire city.

Hideout Cafe

• Grabbed coffee
• Basked in the sunlight

Victoria Street

• Went back to explore the shops
• The Great Wizard: Harry Potter shop
• Museum Context: built in 1840, very Harry Potter Ollivanders-esque.
• JK Rowling wrote the books in the Elephant Cafe down the street
• HP things all over town: bar called McGonagals, cemetery headstones with Tom Riddle, etc.

St. Giles Cathedral

• Can go inside for free
  
  

The Royal McGregor

• Spinach tart & sticky toffee pudding

It started to rain and got super cold so we headed back to the airport.
Loved this city and want to come back another time! Would recommend to spend more time here, and Scotland in general. Only an $89 flight from London.

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DAY 5: LONDON MUSEUMS

Tate Modern Museum (Free)

• Andy Warhol Exhibit
  • Real name is Andrew Warhola; from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  • Gay in the 1950s, got shot :(
• 10th floor observatory with great views!
• We were interviewed by the BBC to get our thoughts about the museum closing tomorrow
  • Said we understand the situation
  • Think she wanted to hear the opposite, how you can't close the arts

Sky Garden (Free)

• 35th floor observatory with a garden & a bar!

Nandos

• Fast food place in England. It's great. Carribean Dishes.

National Portrait Museum

• Trafalgar Square = empty. Eery.

The Ship Tavern

• Sole group eating dinner in their upper dining room.
• Best meal yet. Chicken and mushroom pie. Best Sticky Toffee Pudding.

We've vowed to redo this trip, when a pandemic isn't looming over us.
Thanks for nothing, coronavirus.