Winter sun in Sweden

While Linnea returned to the sunshine back home, I ended up in a Winter Wonderland at Mormor and Morfar's place in Sweden. Quite some difference in temperature from London! It was chilly!

We did a little excursion all together to Morfar's favourite café on Mösseberg in Falköping, and had some Christmassy fika. You can never have too many lussebullar!

I was only home for four days, and even though it was all winter white like this on the first day - the last day it had already all melted away, and the yard looked like this. I wonder if they'll get a white Christmas after all?

Flying solo

So, leaving London on Tuesday it was time for this one to take her first solo flight. Big happening!

Her mock exams are starting the 2nd of January, straight when coming back to school from the winter break, so she didn't feel she could take time out of studying more than for our trip to London. So after our days together in the English capital, she was due to fly back home to the UAE capital, and I would fly across to Sweden.

I waved her off after having watched her check her bag in. She had plenty of time, but she was anxious to get across to the other side of security to get her Starbucks Christmas coffee and go have a browse around.

She was lucky getting upgraded to flying First Class on her way back as well, and she even had nice company by the Black Eyed Peas, who were on their way to Abu Dhabi for a concert!

I had really good travel mojo as well, as I managed to get on a British Airways flight with a stand-by ticket - straight to Gothenburg (rather than having to go via Brussels, with a short connection, which was the initial plan). Yes, such a relief!

Time for the second part of my winter trip!

We'll be back!

London was wonderful. We ate well, we shopped Christmas gifts, we saw the sights and we got into the Christmas spirit. But above all, we really enjoyed spending this time together! ♥︎ Many beautiful memories were made ♥︎

Linnea made sure she's coming back, by giving the lions at Trafalgar Square a little pat. At least that's what I thought tradition said, but I must have got that wrong! Now I can't find the story behind it, ha ha!

Ah well, Linnea IS coming back. She really fell in love with the vibe in London, and felt like she fit right in. I can see her move here in sometime in the future!

London food

We didn't opt to have breakfast at our hotel, as we were only in a low-budget chain hotel, and we wanted to enjoy every meal out on the town.

The first night we had really good pasta at a nice restaurant we found not far from the hotel. We took a chance, and it had great ambiance, lovely service and the food was om-nom-nom, I'm still dreaming of that fresh truffle pasta.

On the Sunday Maya and Anna came into the city to join us in our ventures. It was a little bit wet and rainy to start with but it finished after lunch.

We continued to do some shopping, of course, but mostly we enjoyed some nice food together trying to avoid the masses.

For lunch we went down a side street to Oxford Street, and to the Scandinavian Kitchen:

Good food, but Linnea claimed that the Gingerbread Muffin from Espresso House in Sweden is better.

Anna and I taking a break while the girls were raiding the shops:

In the evening, before they took the train back down to Horsham, we went to a pub with live music and yummy festive nibbles, down in Carnaby.

Cheers to a good trip!

London Christmas lights

Of course, the main reason we came to London was to enjoy all the Christmas lights, the Christmas decorations and really get the Christmas feels; and we were not disappointed.

We walked all over, and saw all the famous lights, here in Covent Garden. A display with 40 giant bells with red bows, 12 giant baubles and 8 massive mirror balls:

Fortnum and Mason's advent calendar facade:

We saw it both in daylight and in the evening:

The famous angels of Regent Street, the 'Spirit of Christmas', where the Christmas Lights tradition in London started off back in 1954.

The Norwegian Christmas tree at Trafalgar Square:

Norway has gifted London a Christmas tree every year since 1947, a tradition that has been happening as a thank you for the UK support in WW2.

A nice chap outside The Ivy:

Snow falling (!) in front of the Savoy:

 

In Carnaby this year they had opted for a galactic display, with neon lights and colour waves in an almost psychedelic fashion:

The Liberty shop:

In front of the Cartier London flagship store on Bond Street:

Bond Street is the luxury shopping district, and it showed with a royalty-inspired display with huge lit up Christmas crowns:

All the luxury brands take their decorations very seriously, they had absolutely dazzling Christmas displays:

We sure weren't the only ones visiting London, on a weekend in December. Especially on the Saturday evening we almost had to fight our way through the streets, or give up and just follow the flow.
But, it was certainly worth it! It was all so very very pretty!

Even the London Eye was shining in an array of festive colours: