On September 1st, 2015, Tyler and I said “see you soon” to our families and departed Toronto’s Pearson Airport for Gatwick Airport in London. A few months before our departure, we received our Youth Mobility Visa for the U.K.! We planned to live and work in the U.K. for at least 6 months. I was so excited to finally be in the city I dreamt of visiting for years!

 

It Begins

We landed at Gatwick airport on the morning of September 2nd, 2015. From there, we made our way into the city. We checked into the Generator Hostel – our base for a couple of nights. As we relaxed, I pulled up Google Maps and looked at the area we were in. I was excited to see that King’s Cross Station was just down the street! Being the huge Harry Potter fan that I am, I got ready and headed out to explore! There, I found the “Platform 9 and 3/4” wall as well as a little souvenir shop next to it!

 

Exploring London

Over the next few days in London, we explored some more and attended a free walking tour through the city. This tour brought us to Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace (I’m also a huge fan of the Royal Family so needless to say I was excited!), through Trafalgar Square, down Whitehall and past Downing Street, ending at the British Parliament.

 

Job Hopping

Before we left Canada for the U.K., we worked with an agency that found jobs for us so we were all set with a place to live and a job when we arrived. After our first days staying in London, we made our way outside of the city to the county of Surrey. Job number 1 was in a small village pub. We ended up not being fully happy here so we were moved to a Hotel job over in the county of Hampshire. This job was 100 times worse so we left and stayed with my cousins in Southampton for a couple of weeks (there will be more details of this in my next series post)!

 

Third Time’s the Charm

It was almost October when another job opportunity came up at a Pub right in Central London (beside Trafalgar Square)!! I was SO excited! Third time really is the charm because we were so happy with this pub that we stayed there until the end! Also, I really wanted to be living and working IN London, not outside of it.

 

Until Next Time

We worked at The Chandos from October 2015 to June 2016. During this time, we had so many adventures! We made really good friends from all parts of the world and we still stay in touch to this day (Thank God for Facebook and Instagram)! Below, I have included some of my favourites from our time in London. This wonderful city will always hold a special place in my heart.

Have you been to London before? Is there anything you would do differently if you went back? Tell me below in the comments!

*All photos were taken with my point-and-shoot camera*

King’s Cross Station, St. Pancras Station, and the Harry Potter souvenir store.

 

Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace.

 

Left: Me in Piccadilly Circus. Right: Me with a Trafalgar Square lion.

 

Tower Bridge and The Tower of London.

 

Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre and St. Paul’s Cathedral.

 

St. James’s Park.

 

Leadenhall Market – Anyone else recognize this from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone?!

 

Tower Bridge and HMS Belfast

 

Winter Wonderland Theme Park in Hyde Park! It was so much fun!

 

Seeing the Queen and the Royal Family for the first time!

 

Exploring the Tower of London.

 

Wandering through St. Katharine Docks!

 

The Chandos, our home and workplace during our time in London! I highly recommend visiting if you are ever in the area.