The Luggage Diaries: I'm Sleepy & My Stomach Hurts--But We're in London!! {No. 20}

Even in business class, I apparently can’t sleep more than 2 hours on a plane. Dean slept about 45 minutes. So we landed at 6am, ate an airplane breakfast at approximately 5am (12am our time) and then a second breakfast around 9:30am (4:30am)—not because we were hungry but because there’s nothing else to do when you’ve checked all your luggage in the hotel and your room isn’t ready. The other thing is--someone told me a long time ago that the best way to get acclimated to a new time zone is to start eating at regular meal times in the new zone as soon as possible, even if you aren't hungry. When your stomach clock is regular, your sleep will follow.

Sidetone: I really really really really REALLY like to be by myself. I like to walk by myself, shop by myself, eat by myself, go to the movies by myself. I crave solitude. So even though this is an anniversary trip, Dean and I learned long ago that our vacations together go much better if we each have time to do the things in life that bring us individual joy and then come together at a later point to share our joy. We are not a spend-every-waking-moment-together type couple and I just want to encourage any other couples out there who may be like us. It is possible to dearly love your spouse and not desire to be joined at their hip for every minute of your vacation. Toward that end, Dean had a tour at Emirates Stadium later in the afternoon but for the morning, we decided to just roam together.

In my mind, we would just walk to breakfast (a spot I knew and had my heart set on) and we would take the path through Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. It would be easy and feel good to walk. I forgot to mention to Dean that this was about a 3 mile walk. #whoopsiedaisies It was about 85 degrees (and climbing) and Dean was wearing jeans and a polo. I could instantly feel the vibes emanating from Dean’s sweat and attitude.

Thankfully after walking *only a 1/2 mile out of our way to three different rent-a-bike locations, we found one that had two bikes for both of us. Actually, not true. We found one at a station so I went ahead and took that and then barely pedaled while Dean walked beside me to the next station. Sweaty Dean was once again in the game and we biked the rest of the way to Notting Hill. So here’s the rest of that day….

Kensington Gardens Diana Memorial Walkway--I took as many pics of the flowers and stopped to touch and smell them as I felt was possible with Sweaty Dean in his current mood.

Oh praise, we made it to Granger & Co in Notting Hill. I came here on my last visit when Walker and Mamie were with me and stared for a full 5 minutes at the scrambled egg nirvana before I could put a fork to it. Now on the menu, it simply calls these things "Scrambled Eggs with Toast." What?! You can't just scramble an egg like no one has ever scrambled an egg before in the history of mankind and not give it a special name. Scrambled Eggs Nirvana, I say! Something! And the Ricotta Hotcakes with Banana and Honeycomb Butter were so good. I think I accidentally ate the lump of honeycomb butter all in one go because I thought it was a slice of banana. No regrets. Really wish someone in Knoxville would learn to make these ricotta hotcakes.

And tea, tea, glorious tea. It makes me feel like I'm at home to simply order tea and know that a teapot is coming, the water will be piping hot, the tea leaves or bag will already be *IN the pot steeping before it arrives at the table (America, PLEASE for the love), there will be a tiny spoon and little jugs for my milk and honey. No one bats an eye, no need for special requests. NORMAL.

On the move through Hyde Park. These trees, these trees. So majestic. Reminders of how old London is.

At a point when we were in Hyde Park and no vehicles were nearby and I made Sweaty Dean slow to a snail's pace so I could capture "the moment." Loved riding these city bikes around! The bikes are through a company called Santander and they have an app. Just plug your info in on the app and they send you a release code (or you can do this at the machines located at each station). You put in your release code and pull out your bike. Only 2 pounds and any journey under 30 minutes is free. Machines are located all over London so it's usually easy to find one when you need to pick up and again when you need to return near a destination.

Our temporary home: The Stafford London. I specifically wanted a very British hotel for this trip, heavy on the charm and coziness. The Stafford London is every bit of that. Even our cab driver from Heathrow loved that we chose it. It's tucked back on a side street and only a couple of blocks off Piccadilly in Mayfair. At some point maybe I can add some shots of the inside and the American Bar. The Stafford has a wine cellar with over 9,000 bottles in it that used to serve as a bunker for Americans during the second World War and was thought to have had a secret underground tunnel to Buckingham Palace at one time. The staff are so kind and everything about the hotel is gracious and thoughtful. We love it and would stay here again in a heartbeat!

This is where our room is--in the old carriage house (built in the late 1600s) which was converted to rooms and suites in 1991 by The Stafford. The courtyard below is a quiet little haven for guests and Londoners in the know.

Our carriage house room. I squealed when I saw it. A space for everything, a little fireplace and still has the old beams of the carriage house throughout the room (you can see little pieces of them to the right in this photo, above the bed and through the closet mirror on the left). I never want to leave.

Gorgeous heavy drapes which totally block out the morning light when pulled and have the loveliest design and pom pom trim. So many of the bigger hotels have moved to modern design and minimalist color palettes but I loooove feeling like I've been transported to the English countryside with all the colors and patterns. Cozy, cozy, cozy. Or as the Brits would say, "Cosy, cosy, cosy." I holed up and took a nap while Dean went to his Emirates Stadium tour.

Because of our time living in Belfast 16 years ago, we had the chance to come to London many times and every once in a while over the years since we moved back to the US. So we have done all the normal things that one should do in London--and many times over. Changing of the Guard, The Tower, the double-decker bus tour, Covent Garden, Piccadilly Circus, all the museums, etc. We are excited on this trip to get to do some things we haven't done before and wouldn't normally have chosen with children in tow. Since Walker and I got to attend an Arsenal match on our spring break trip here last year, I thought Dean, as an Arsenal fan, might enjoy getting to tour the stadium since the boys don't have matches on in the summer. You can do a general tour or pay up a little for the "Legends" tour which is conducted by one of several "Arsenal Legends," former players themselves. Dean's legend was Charlie George and he said he really enjoyed the whole thing!

The "pitch" is a combination of both artificial turf and actual grass that grows up into the turf. That way when the players slide, a huge mound of dirt doesn't get clumped up on the field. Grassy perfection!

Dean with his Arsenal Legend, Charlie George. Back when Charlie played, it was nothing like it is now in terms of player compensation, media coverage and the celebrity status players have today. Charlie is from North London and grew up right around the corner from where Arsenal played. It was a dream come true for him to get to play for Arsenal.

Charlie's big moment was that he scored the winning goal against Liverpool for the FA Cup in 1971. They bronzed his cleats from that game and made a statue of Charlie in mid-celebration.

The Arsenal locker room. Pretty bare bones!

Dinner at J. Sheekey in Covent Garden. Loved this! J. Sheekey is mainly seafood (and has a dedicated oyster bar next door) and I chose it because Sir Dean loves him some raw oysters. We had the coziest table inside (all the tables are pretty close together). Dean had oysters, crab bisque and halibut and I had a tomato salad and their fried haddock (aka: fish and chips). Mmmm. And for dessert: Chocolate Soufflé with house-made mint chocolate ice cream and their Apricot Tart. Both desserts outstanding!! Such a fantastic first meal in London.