Go back to Week 1, I dare you!

This weekend has been absolutely nuts for me! My family decided to take a few days off to visit and so far it has been great because I can be a tourist once again. Remember the first week when we all were completely jet lagged, marble eyed, and excited for what was to come? We touched down in London and we were left off to explore this beautiful city and that was, at least for me, the last time I actually was a real tourist in London. But this week, I was able to do it all over again, and now that I've been here for 5 weeks, it's so much better than that first week.

Showing my family all the beautiful sites of London was actually really exciting even though I've been to them all before. It's almost like you're showing off and you're just so proud. It's kinda like if you buy a new shirt or move into a new place and someone asks to see it and you just can't help but brag. We visited all the major tourist attractions like Picadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square, Hyde Park, Kensington Palace, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, the London Eye and more. But, the only issue was that when my family would ask me what things meant or how things worked, I wasn't able to tell them because I simply just didn't know.

Yeah, we went on a little bus tour around London but that was weeks ago and tbh, it was just alright. So, I decided to look into tours to take my family on so all their questions could be answered and so they could see the hidden gems of London that even I didn't know about yet. When we went to Picadilly for the first time on Friday I remembered seeing a tour guide with an umbrella that said "FREE TOURS" on it. I looked it up and it was true, there were free tours ranging from tours of London, street art tours, ghost tours, pub crawls, and even a Jack the Ripper tour. I booked us immediately and then Sunday we woke up bright and early to get to the Tower Hill station to meet our tour guide.

We signed up for the "London in a Day" tour. We went to every tourist attraction you can think of, but I can say it was one of the BEST walking tours I've ever been on. Our tour guide was so passionate and funny and it was just so enjoyable. This tour lasted from 10 am until 5:30 pm with lunch in the middle. I heard so many stories about the history of London that I feel like I know more about the city than Londoners do. As I went along this tour I couldn't help but just appreciate the beauty and history of this magnificent city. This tour made me appreciate and solidify my choice to study in London all over again. [*Disclaimer* yes, this tour was free, but it was strongly encouraged to tip the guide and these guides are amazing so you'd be so stupid not to, so you'll have to pay but you won't be upset after one of these].

If you're interested in going on one of these tours the company is called Strawberry Tours and they also have tours in a few other cities including Amsterdam and Barcelona!

Moral of the story, once classes are over and we don't have to be stuck inside writing papers and preparing presentations, go out and keep exploring! I love traveling on weekends so much, but I also can't wait just to have time in this city I can call home for a few months. This single tour inspired me to stay curious and stay wanting to find new places in this city to discover. It's OKAY to be a tourist! It was one definitely one of my favorite things I've done so far!