I have no idea why it took us an entire year to make the two-hour train trip to London.  In fairness, we planned two previous trips which, for various reasons, didn’t pan out. This time around, we were determined to make it work.

We had a whirlwind weekend that involved a lot of walking, a lot of great food and visits with good friends.  We stayed at The Arch London in Marylebone, which we scored through Jetsetter.  It was the perfect base for out getaway:  centrally-located with several high streets to explore.  I especially loved browsing (and buying!) books at the nearby Daunt Books, housed in an old Edwardian shop.

We had an inventive brunch at Tapa Room on Marylebone High Street, Asian-fusion at Yauatcha in Soho, a fancy ‘new British’ lunch at the new-ish Dinner by Hester Blumenthal,  and Indian street food at The Old Truman Brewery on Brick Lane in Shoreditch.

 Mostly, though, we meandered and I marveled at the English being spoken–and written–around me.

The one touristy thing we did was to visit the Churchill War Rooms, which I loved.  Though pricey (£17/person), it’s a must for anyone remotely interested in life during WWII in London.   It was from these extensive underground bunkers that much of the war strategy was created:  dozens of high-level officials work and slept here for the duration of the war.  The audio guide was well-done and it was a two hours very well spent.

My only regret of the trip was that we ran out of time to do more of the things on our list (e.g., the Lichtenstein retrospective at the Tate Modern). I’m pretty sure we’ll be heading back very shortly.