The last full day in London, was full of shopping, museums, and great food!

My husband won an auction for a watch that he wanted on eBay and thankfully the person was located in London, we agreed to meet with him and do a cash purchase for a discount and peace of mind of having the watch on hand and not going through mail. What we learned dealing with banks as a US citizen;

1. Most banks will not change much money for higher notes, unless you are a customer.
2. HSBC will change the most money without being a customer; about 400 pounds for each person.
3. Finding a Citibank does not mean you will not have to pay services fee  for taking money out; also you pay by how much you take out (the more you take the more you pay).
4. Chase has a flat fee for taking which ever amount out; only $5 per transaction at any bank.

The first stop on Monday morning; Chanel at Harrods. They had a great selection. We went at opening and they did not have much of a crowd, thankfully. My SA was very pleasant, she went to get all of the blue caviar chevron m/l classic bags that they had in the store. I looked around for a bit and they had the reissue m/l in many colors, even though I was told its leather, it looked and felt like cloth (also Dior did a similar (near identical) material last year and the SA at one of the Dior boutiques acknowledged that it is in fact a new cloth material that is strong). They had a gray with gold hardware bag that I liked but did not want to pay as much for cloth as I would for leather. So I choice the blue chevron m/l bag that I saw in and was chasing all through London. With the tax refund, the bag came out to be even cheaper than in Paris with the refund. I was so excited about the bag, they also had an umbrella that I wanted to see, but we were short on time and had to rush to meet the person with my husband’s watch.

Since we were very close to Fortnum & Mason flagship store in London, we went in and got many different teas as souvenirs and a decent amount of teas for ourselves. The store is very beautifully decorated with fresh flowers and three levels making it a tea heaven. They don’t only have an extensive offering of teas they also have everything that goes with tea, chocolate, biscuits, kettles, cups and much more. We spent quit sometime in the store picking out teas. It is worth a stop when in London.

After we ate lunch at Cicchetti. The food was very wonderfully presented, tasted heavenly. They have small portions that are meant to share, so that guests can try many things of the menu; like tapas. The prices are decent, and the décor is very inspired by a dream Italian kitchen, from the fresh produce around restaurant to prosciutto not cut (big block of meat).

On our way back to the hotel to drop of our purchases we stopped by Harrods again to do the tax free forms on their top floor. It was a fast process, I asked for the refund on my card (Amex even refunded me the purchase percent they took!). We also bought some more teas at Harrods, they have  fantastic black teas. After we walked back to our hotel from Harrods with our many purchases. By the time we returned to Harrods the Chanel umbrella was sold, this was about 2pm in the afternoon.

As soon as we were ready we went to visit Natural History Museum, which is a few blocks away from our hotel. The museum is great, they have many examples. The best part, before the museum would get stuffed animals(used to be living) for their exhibits, but now they are all showing signs of aging, because the museum will not participate in the destruction of animal species any more. They also have interactive exhibits that would be great learning tools for kids (like the pregnancy cycle and mirrors that will show a fun effect, among the many other exhibits). As we found our way to the natural stones (including precious gems like diamonds, emeralds) the museum was closing around us, we missed the diamonds!

 

The next stop was a certain blue police box. The walk from the museum to the Box took a while, but it was very cool to see the only example of the police box, same as on the TV series Doctor Who. We found a great Thai restaurant nearby; Siam Secret.  The food was out of this world and like most best spots it was hidden away. It had a very cozy fire place and the place was full of patrons. When we go back to London we will visit this place again, it is amazing!

After a long and exciting day we walked back to our hotel, the weather was pleasant. Till next post!

London, England, Chapter 1

England:Stonehenge, Roman Baths, and Windsor Castle, Chapter 2

London, England, Chapter 3

London, England: Chapter 5 Last Day

Cicchetti

 

Siam Secret