Found a fantastic fare to London and grabbed it for a quick weekend on
United Airlines. Since it was Veterans Day this week, in England it is Remembrance Day.
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| Conrad London lobby art |
Checked into the
Conrad London which was formerly an Intercontinental. It was an early am arrival and the hotel was not able to give me a room yet but I was able to go to the Executive Lounge which also had showers. It is a first for me to see that a lounge had showers. It is probably a remnant from when it was an Intercontinental. I found it completely helpful that it was showers and was able to refresh myself and enjoy breakfast. By the time breakfast was finished, the front desk was able to give me access to the hotel room. The grand deluxe room could be bigger. It reminded me of small NYC hotel rooms. I was happy enough to get a room even if it is a bit cramped. The lounge host was exceptionally thoughtful when I had asked about the Conrad duck later on during the weekend. The response was that they didn't do that sort of thing (perhaps another Intercontinental leftover) but they had a duck tub decal for kids. After thanking her, I went off for the day and was pleasantly surprised when I saw a plate of chocolates and the duck decal in the room. Even though I didn't ask for it, I appreciate that they sent something to the room.
Even though it was a redeye flight, getting into the room prompted for a long nap. Woke up in time to get a late afternoon tea set at Emmeline's Lounge in the lobby. One of my goals on this trip was to get afternoon tea and I wasn't initially planning on getting my first taste at the Conrad but it ended up being fantastic. Ahh, to have authentic scones.....
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| Emmeline's Lounge tea set |
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| Emmeline's Lounge dessert |
Still slightly tuckered, went back upstairs to the lounge to have some evening snacks and free booze. The lounge food is better in the morning than in the evening but you can't beat free booze.
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| HMS Belfast |
The next day, went out to
Imperial War Museum. Unfortunately, missed out the
Remembrance Day events in the morning. It would have been cool to see the Queen and if Harry's new girlfriend was present (I love Suits show!). The museum was interesting, it was very popular too! After an hour of visiting, the fire alarm went off. With that cue, walked over to the
HMS Belfast. Compared to other ships I have visited, it seemed roomier inside. After romping around London, headed over to the Langham for a late afternoon tea. Normally I wouldn't recommend having tea at 5 pm but I'm a tourist.
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| Palm Court afternoon tea |
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| Palm Court afternoon tea |
Had a few drinks at the Langham London hotel bar -
Artesian - to kill time before the afternoon tea reservation at
Palm Court. If I could imagine a bar that would fit Sex in the City in London, this would be the bar. The drinks were very very hipster and definitely is an experience type bar. Expensive, of course. After enjoying my slightly hipster drink, went over to Palm Court. Although it did seem a bit rushed (maybe I wasn't dressed posh enough), the food was amazing.
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| Pieminster |
The next day, went out for brunch at
Pieminster. I did not realize that Sunday mornings at the wharf had so much activity. There were people all around and there were little kiosks of goods and foods available. Since I was committed to going to Pieminster, I tried to keep my stomach free. The pies were delicious and hearty.
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| Homer makes an appearance at the wharf in London |
Afterwards, decided to go through the Imperial War Museum to catch the few exhibits missed. Afterwards, headed back to the Conrad for a quick drink at the lounge. After drinks, went out to a local grocery store to try to find stroopwafels and crumpets. On the way back to the Conrad, did a memory lane walk through St. James Park and even caught the London Eye glowing over the pond.
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| London Eye |
After grabbing luggage from the Conrad, headed over to the
Hilton London Heathrow Airport Hotel. I originally thought it would be a better idea to move to the airport since the flight the next day was early. In hindsight, I think I would have been better off staying at the Conrad. After arriving into the airport, it took about 30 to 40 minutes to get to the actual hotel. It definitely isn't as conveniently located as other hotel airports (mainly I'm thinking of Chicago O'Hare). Had dinner at the Chinese restaurant, Zen Oriental, just to have something in my stomach. The hotel was interesting in that the airport theme was very embraced - hallways had airplane motifs etc. At least the room was bigger than the Conrad. Unfortunately, the lounge was not serving food but it was a nice area to sit in.
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