Yesterday, my boyfriend and I decided to make the most of the long Easter weekend and venture up to London for the day (ok, we hopped on the fast train to Waterloo and got there in 35 minutes). We had originally planned to skate around Hyde Park, but as the forecast predicted rain for the afternoon (which never materialised, besides a light 30-second shower) the skate shop couldn't let us rent any skates from them. Whilst my boyfriend has his own, short of buying a pair on the spot (I decided £140 was a bit steep for an impulse buy) skating was out for me!
We briefly considered renting a Boris Bike (the ugly Barclays bikes) but as we headed over to Hyde Park, the very light snow turned to heavy sleet, and we ducked into the Underground, instead.
We ended up in South Kensington, at the Natural History Museum. It was free to get in, and just big enough to spend the afternoon there, so we queued up. Luckily, it didn't take too long to get in, despite the crowds of tourists - though it was quite busy once we got inside! After standing around in the cold, the first thing we did was head to the cafe for a hot drink - and were luckily enough to nab a table almost immediately. The drinks were really tasty, and given that we were at a tourist spot in central London, the prices were really reasonable!
The Natural History Museum building is absolutely stunning!
The first area we checked out was the Blue Zone - i.e. loads of really awesome huuuge mammals, and skeletons of various ancestors (including a huge rhino-like mammal with two huge horns!) I was surprised at just how much there was to see, given it was free to get in. It took us quite a while to get round, but it worked out nicely as by the time we queued up to see the Dinosaurs Gallery, the waiting time had gone right down. We both agreed that this was the BEST bit:
Dinosaur skeletons, fossils, and an animatronic T-Rex - awesome!
Of course, we couldn't go home without taking a dinosaur with us - though this little guy wasn't quite as fierce as the ones in the gallery!
Teeny little cuddly T-Rex!
We stayed until closing, and then hopped back on the Underground and headed over to Oxford Circus and Carnaby Street. If you find yourself in the area, you have to check out Cha Cha Moon - they do the most amazing noodle dishes ever. This time, we started with prawn dumplings (sooo good) served with chilli and garlic sauce, and then I had the wonton soup. After the dumplings (which were pretty rich) the soup was quite light, and really hit the spot. The restaurant itself is really cool, with low atmospheric lighting and rows of wooden benches. Highly recommended!
Dumplings and wonton soup at Cha Cha Moon
As for Easter, I've somehow found myself with no chocolate today !! (I know, something's wrong with the world). Luckily, we picked up some M&S hot cross buns yesterday. We had apple and cinnamon ones last night, which have always been my favourite, but this year there's a new flavour to try - Belgian chocolate and orange:
A little taste of Easter!
They may not be Easter eggs, but they'll do for now. I guess I'll just have to eat extra chocolate tomorrow!
Happy Easter, everyone :)
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