Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

Back in 2012 while watching the London Olympics I kept wishing I was studying abroad then. So I was overjoyed when I saw the tube advertisements saying that the Olympic Park was opening to the public two years later while I was there!

Tiff and I decided to use our last bank holiday wisely and venture out to Stratford for the day to explore. After taking two tube lines and walking in the wrong direction, we finally arrived to a beautiful view of the entire park! The ArcelorMittal Orbit (pictured above), the Stadium, and the Aquatics Centre were all awesome sites to see. Not only that, but the landscaping around the entire park was gorgeous! 

My favourite building was the Aquatic Centre! The amazing lines and textures of it was just breathtaking. The park really is a must-see in London!! 

Holland Park: Round 2

Recently, I went to Holland Park for the first time! I loved it so much and was so glad that after our final day of classes, my friends and I went back to explore again! 

It was a beautiful, sunny day and the flowers were still in bloom! It was great to look at the same spots from different angles. In my opinion, this park is a must-see when visiting London!

Holland Park: the most beautiful park in London

I almost skipped going to see this park because I wanted to take a nap after class...I am so glad I didn't! The flowers were the best I've seen in London, and that is saying something because London does it's flowers well!
                              

I can't wait to go back this week with my friends. There are so many photo spots that I couldn't take advantage of in just one visit. Not only that, but I feel like it is the forgotten park of study abroad students, so it will be nice to show my friends a new spot. I'm glad someone recommended it to me or I probably would have missed it!

                              

               

The flowers of London.

                  

Lovely Spaces: Kensington and Chelsea.

Since attending the amazing mobile photography workshop a few weeks ago, I have been using my iPhone more and more (sorry Nikon!). It's just crazy to see the quality of photos our phones can take with a little extra thought and some editing apps!

One day after class, my friend and I decided to walk straight past the tube station and keep walking until we were tired. We ended up exploring parts of Kensington, Chelsea, and then Battersea Park! It was an awesome spur the moment walk and reminded me just how much I like having no reservations :)

**I have started an "iphone photos" tag to make it easier to see which posts include photos taken on my iPhone 5 and which were taken on my Nikon 

How can you see all of the tourist spots of London in one day?

The answer...

St. James Park 

As I began to think about where I was going to take my roommate from Pittsburgh during her brief time here in London, I felt very overwhelmed. So London is HUGE...I just didn't realize how huge until I started to map out the city for a weekend trip.

I know this sounds horrible but I wanted to find a way to get the tourist spots out of the way so I could show her some places that I love and some places that I knew she would enjoy! 

During one of my lunch breaks at work, I realized that I had been walking around the answer to my problem for about 20 minutes twice a week since I had arrived in London...St. James Park.

Starting there you can basically just walk around the park's perimeter and see Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, the London Eye, and the horse guards! 

Alright, so you have to do a bit more walking than that but if you just turn down a few streets and weave a bit into a large square, you've done it! Add Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square to each side of that walk and you have covered a lot space in a short period of time!

This map is much more confusing that it should be but I think that after looking at it for a moment you will realize it isn't too bad. It just has a lot of stops in one, small area...which is good news for the people who don't like to walk very much!

1) Piccadilly Circus
2) Buckingham Palace



3) St. James Park
4) Westminster Abbey

5) Big Ben and Parliament

6) The London Eye


7) 10 Downing Street
8) Horse Guards

9) Trafalgar Square

I know that seems like a lot for one day but Kelly and I tried to take our time at each stop, and we still only took the morning to finish this walk!

My favourite shots in Regent's Park

First Impressions: Kensington

In between orientation sessions today I got to explore the area around my school with my classmates! The school even had a scavenger hunt activity for us to do (much cooler than it sounds!). It took us all around Kensington and even helped us explore some of the museums of London! Here are some of photos I took before it started to rain! 

Kensington is quite different from the area my flat is in. The architecture, the shops, everything! It's much more...I don't know how to describe it, but it is cleaner and posher. The high street has Zara, Topshop, and other trendy chain stores. The buildings are beautiful (like the one above)! 

It took me a lot longer than I thought to buy a sweet! Haha. For lunch I got this delicious pastry that was perfectly sugary and chocolatey. But I seriously haven't had a full meal yet...I keep getting side dishes or sweets...I have to work on that! haha. 

After walking a bit down the high street, we ran into the Kensington Gardens! They were absolutely amazing! I feel like London is so unique in the way that one minute you can be on a bustling street full of people and cars, and then the next minute you are in a park hearing birds chirping and there is grass as far as the eye can see!