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Shopping and relaxation in London
As Peter and I left for bed earlier the previous evening, we had a great and sound rest and managed to wake up quite early on the following day. We had a great breakfast in our London apartment terrace and right after a pair of cups of hot tea we headed towards the Oxford Street, at the Westminster area. I have to say that i am very grateful that my husband adores shopping, because I understand the majority of the men hate this.
Therefore, along with Peter together, we went to numerous major department shops, as well as brand shops. We invested most time in Selfridges – the 2nd biggest store in the UK, and Marks & Spencer retailer shop where we purchased some clothes. Peter also went to the large Nike retail store, whilst I checked the new collection from Zara.
With hands full with bags we took the underground to our London vacation flat, where we had a short snooze and a shower. In the early afternoon we went to see the St. Paul’s Cathedral which was near to the holiday apartment in London and after that went to the Hyde Park where we enjoyed the entire afternoon, since it was very hot to go on visiting sites tours.
Our final evening in London was very pleasing. Peter discovered a little and really romantic restaurant, where we had a meal and a couple of glasses of wine. After that we proceeded for a stroll along the south bank of the Thames River. It proved this is very a pleasurable place at night with lots of street entertainers, traditional pubs and cafes. The area is also great for making photos, which we did and for relaxation and contemplating the river and the party boats floating by. Then we crossed the river using the Tower Bridge and took the metro back to our London holiday apartment.
A day at London Museums
We had a great sleep at the London flat and on the following day Peter woke me up with a light breakfast and a very hot cup of tea and we handled to make plans for the rest of the day. We had a great map and made a pleasant walk to the British Museum, where we decided to be our first stop. That museum absolutely amazed me with its striking amount of objects. Peter read that there were shown approximately seven mil pieces of art that originate from all major regions. He loved most the unique reading room, that is currently surrounded by the Great Court. We devote good time in every one of the sections in the British Museum and my most liked one became the Department of Africa, Oceania and Americas, while Peter loved most the Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan. Since it was already lunch time, we ate at the museum restaurant and the meal was good and at a fair cost.
After lunch we headed towards the National Gallery, which is positioned on the Trafalgar Square, neighboring the Nelson’s column with its four lions at its base. Before entering the gallery we created some photos of the monument of this great soldier. Peter told me that it is here that locals rejoice the New Year’s Eve and assured me that we will return one day to be a part of this celebration as well.
In the National Gallery we noticed paintings from great artists like Cezanne, Giotto, Velazquez, Titian, etc. Peter advised we ought to buy some souvenirs for close friends and family members from the gallery’s store and we did so, which got to be a great idea, as later on everybody liked the present.
Our final stop for the day was the Tate Gallery, in which we observed some modern art pieces. The day was quite long and tiring, therefore we spend the night in our London holiday residence and went just for a brief walk after dinner prepared by me.
Honeymoon time in London, UK
After Peter bought me a proposal ring in the capital of Greece this past year, I had no clue that things will move forward so soon and I was very astounded once he assured me that he expects us to make the wedding once possible, with no need of any delay. Therefore, we began coordinating the wedding ceremony and I devoted some weeks reserving the honeymoon also, since Peter was extremely occupied with work. As soon as I suggested London as our very first family holiday, he explained this isn’t the standard romantic vacation destination, but when we were there he was proven to be wrong.
I love to go to London, as I adore its great setting, the good attitude of the locals, the excellent memorials and the active social life. That was my 3rd time in the capital of the United kingdom, but first for my spouse Peter. Once we reached our London flat and unpacked our suitcases, we had a brief sleep and went for a walk. We had numerous days to spend here, so we weren’t in a hurry. That first morning I brought Peter to the Tower of London, one of the major attractions of the city, set on the northern bank of Thames River. We needed an hour and a half to see the exhibit there and make photos, then we went out, bought fish’n’chips with beer and sat on a bench, dining and looking at the Tower Bridge, that I find just about the most exciting sights in this huge city.
Peter liked it in London and especially enjoyed our walk down to the Big Ben and the Westminster Abbey. Since we were quite worn out after that long stroll we made, we took the subway and went back to our London city holiday apartment where we had the opportunity to take a long sleep and a shower, before we went out for a nice dinner in the area, as well as a visit to the London Eye where we saw the city flooded with lamps from the top.
Eating out with the children in the capital of Scotland
We were residing in a nice and totally set Edinburgh apartment placed in the centre of the Scottish capital and my wife often made the breakfast, however in the course of the day we were outside and little ones wished to test the sandwiches available. Obviously my spouse was against this and to be honest me too, because we insist on feeding our kids with eco-friendly and healthy meals, therefore we did our best to buy them veggies and fruits too and thus to compensate the snacks purchased on the street.
We avoided the eating places along the downtown zone, Grassmarket area and the Royal Castle, because we’ve read they might be really costly because they are focused straight to the travellers, but we loved to dine out in the West End region and the Leith location. During the evenings we generally visited the cafes alongside the pedestrian Rose Street that is going parallel to the Princes Street and that offers plenty of pubs offering excellent food. All these bars were additionally near to our Edinburgh dwelling as well and this made the walk home easy and fast, which helped when the little ones were tired and falling asleep in our arms.
We often ordered fish and chips, deep fried pizza which is a true Scottish delight. I was into the Black Pudding that is deep fried and goes well with ale, while my wife preferred the haggis meal, also deep fried.
Needless to say, I wished to visit a bar or two, but with the kids that was impossible to accomplish. Thus, I purchased a lot of beer from the supermarket, stored it in the fridge and with my wife we enjoyed a few drinks on the terrace of our Edinburgh property soon after.
The capital of Scotland for children
Immediately after the festive days, I was joined by my spouse and kids and we all got accommodated in a larger Edinburgh holiday accommodation, again placed in the downtown zone of the destination and offering much more facilities and bonuses compared to studio apartment in Edinburgh I had been hiring throughout the festival.
That was the 1st time me and my wife brought the children with us and I was afraid they will be bored, but actually it ended up that the Scottish main city is a great place for kids, because it is simple to walk around and has many sights and leisure spots to keep them busy.
During our family trip we were taking it slow, got plenty of sleep, good breakfasts in our vacation home in Edinburgh and also had plenty of hours to relish the sights. The areas we brought our kids to involved the Royal Mile, where our kids played all over the walkways in between the Holyroodhouse Palace and the Castle which they loved to explore. Another landmark they liked a great deal was the Arthur’s Seat, where we made a picnic with the sandwiches my spouse made and spend enough time thinking about the nature and the town below.
On another day we visited the Camera Obscura at the Outlook Tower, where the boys enjoyed the periscope and searched for the attractions around Edinburgh. The same day there was rainfall in the afternoon and we spent it at the Museum of Childhood where the kids were pleased by the traditional games and gadgets.
The last pair of days we had in the city we spent in the Edinburgh Zoo, which is outside the centre but nevertheless easy to get at from our Edinburgh holiday apartment and in the Princes Street Gardens where the kids had so much space to run and have fun.
Festive days in Edinburgh
I love festivals and for that reason Edinburgh is my city. The first time I visited it was many years ago, after which I haven’t missed a summer. This season I travelled for the Edinburgh International Book Festival in August and as usual I accommodated myself in an Edinburgh vacation apartment I have picked some months ago, as I knew the organization of the accommodation during the festival weeks wasn’t achievable.
My serviced accommodation in Edinburgh was located in the center, near to all attractions and the areas where the festive days occurred. I was curious to find out about the new literature styles and to hear excerpts from audio books that were meant to be bestsellers. The courses were quite interesting as well, but almost all of my free hours were spent in the massive bookselling tent where I bought many novels from the creators presented on the festival and then waited for signing tables to exchange some words with the authors I was mostly impressed by.
After a short sleep and a meal in my Edinburgh apartment, I was prepared to enjoy my most favorite time of the day and to get a pint at the Spiegeltent, where I took part in the open discussions throughout which I usually met many new friends.
The other festival I adore to go to is the Edinburgh Fringe Festival which is the most significant alternative shows event on earth, which celebrates fine art and songs. This festival could be attended by everyone who wants to present oneself and one’s art. The art shows are being organized in all cinemas in the city, but as the competitors are many these activities could be organized in clubs, halls, etc. In the course of the Fringe Festival there are further many free shows and exhibitions, which I want to go to as well.
Visiting sites and eating out in Amsterdam
The final day in Amsterdam begun pleasantly, as we woke up early and headed for a breakfast and coffee in the local cafe which was a second away from our Amsterdam apartment. Then Michelle recommended we need to go on a specific tour, known here as Walking Over Water Tour, that lasted for over 3 hours. That trip was really worth it, as we discovered the old centre of Amsterdam with the leaning homes and the sea dikes, and then we headed to hidden monasteries and the lost city walls. I was thrilled by the execution sites which were once used, whilst Michelle was impressed by the Red Light District where we noticed a few girls placed on display in store windows. At midday we had a light lunch at one of the numerous small eating places along one of the lovely waterways and we tried a new local kind of beer that was very great but I do not remember its brand.
In the afternoon we returned to our Amsterdam vacation flat, since it was very hot to keep outdoors. Immediately after that we traveled to visit the Maritime Museum and the oldest chapel in the town – Oude Kerk, yet we kept the windmills De Otter and De Gooyer for the following day, before the flight.
Later on on our last evening in the capital of the Netherlands, we visited a sophisticated bistro which drawn us with its neon lights and interesting signs. The meal was great and so was the wine, which set us into the mood of going to a club. Michelle liked the enchanting setting of this spot and I was astonished by the good attitude of these people. We had a few ales and drinks and enjoyed the music. Late at night we went back to our holiday apartment in Amsterdam and went to sleep right away.
Spare time for museums and galleries in the capital of the Netherlands
Because of Michelle I got up the following morning by the smell of a warm cup of espresso and a great bite, which she created in the kitchen area of our equipped Amsterdam flat. This helped me a great deal, since I had several drinks the evening before and to be honest, I am not used to that much drinking.
Michelle had organized that day for traveling to the Amsterdam galleries and we went in the direction of our very first stop – the fantastic Rijksmuseum, being the nationwide museum of the country. The subsequent stop on our list was the special Van Gogh Museum that keeps the biggest variety of art works on earth from this great artist. That took place to be my place in the town, on the other hand Michelle liked best the Amsterdam Tulip Museum with its multimedia presentations presenting the history of the tulip, which was close to the House of Anne Frank which we visited before that. The final place we came across was the Sexmuseum.
I become truly exhausted from going to museums and galleries, thus I really valued our lunch which we ate in one of the little eating places around the Van Gogh Museum. Following the prolonged daytime I was truly happy to return to our Amsterdam vacation apartment where we had a very good and sound sleep. As we woke up, I proposed Michelle to go to a cozy bistro close to a canal in the area, in which we had a standard local meal and had some beer. We agreed that Amsterdam is among the most stunning and enchanting spots on the continent and is also a city of diversity and open-mindedness. We were looking at all these happy people, riding their bikes, going in and out of cafes and talking about everyday challenges and in a way we felt as part of this. I think at that moment we fell in love with the city and promised to come back when we can.
Very first hours in Amsterdam
Michelle and I were partners for a year already but have not been on a true holiday. As a result, for the one-year celebration I chose to surprise her and bought seats for all of us for Amsterdam. Prior to doing that I prepared a research and knew Michelle hasn’t been there but the main city of the Netherlands was involved in her wish list.
Just as I expected, she was extremely excited and she could not stop laughing and planning all through the dinner we had in one of the neighbouring eateries. The second we got to our apartment she began looking at the internet and soon she showed me a list of reasonably charged Amsterdam apartments for rental, which had great central position and were totally equipped and fixed. We selected one that most appealed to us with regard to location, inner surface and price and did the reservation form. The next afternoon we had a verification and started doing our sightseeing and tour programme.
The city welcomed us sun-drenched and pleasant and we located our Amsterdam vacation residence very quickly. When we unpacked, Michelle took the guide and we headed for a brief walk along the waterways. I may say that the most pleasing spot in the capital of Netherlands is the old city, that is established in a kind of a semicircle with five waterways and the Main Station. We made numerous pictures in the Rokin and Damark areas and the River Amstel. In fact, both me and Michelle lost course of time, because we were strolling along the tiny narrow streets and were looking at the historic buildings and the little islands, all linked by bridges. I was surprised how peaceful life is here and we loved that feeling while eating in a little cafe, nicely arranged with flowers. The beer in Amsterdam is superb and I had a few more than I should have, so we went back to our Amsterdam apartment and instantly went to sleep.