11.18.2023-11.24.2023. London. England.

Aside from seeing friends I haven't seen in many years, I typically do try to get away week of Thanksgiving as it's a great time for international travel. Especially with the aid of credit card points. I wanted to stay near Shoreditch as it's central and near most things. I ended up at Lehman Locke. Locke Living has many design centric short terms rentals in Europe. I liked this flat as it's a studio apartment with everything you need and it's more spacious than a hotel room. It is also across the street from Algate East station for me to get around on the tube and it's a 15 minute walk to Shoreditch and it's also by Brick Lane. It was the perfect spot to post up for the first leg of my London trip. I wish there was a tub as a tub is the best for when you are walking all day, which is most days when you are on holiday, and that the bed had a better mattress. Overall, this was a great value with good design and I would recommend it!



After we had lunch at Noble Rot, we walked around Soho and ended up at Liberty London, one of my musts whenever I am in London. If you like their fabric, be sure to give yourself time to go through their collection and their archives.





Then we went to Fortnum & Mason to stock up on teas and biscuits and to Harrods so Uli can buy his special cologne. We tried to get a tea/coffee at the Prada Cafe there but ended up elsewhere as it was closing. But look how lovely it is!



Hilariously, Dimitri from Paris was headlining at EartH Hackney the night I land in London. My friend Sarah, who was working in London at the time had never seen him and really wanted to. I told her that if I slept most of the flight and she brings me a coffee at 10PM, I will rally for her. So... Always a treat seeing Dim, and twice in 2 trips overseas is a good roll. Thanks again for the boogie Dim!







The next day we ended up at the Royal Academy via bus as there was the Marina Abramović show.











I ended up at St. Pancras Station as I was meeting a friend for brunch and went early to see the Christmas tree made of books. How lovely is this?



Then I met up with Uli in Shoreditch where he was staying on our way to Tate Modern before dinner.



While I did not get anything from Jolene during this trip, it is on my list. Be sure you get yourself something from their bakeries or have a meal at their restaurants.



The El Anatsui at the Turbine Hall at Tate Modern was breathtaking. Be sure to see the piece from all angles. Just wow!







Typical English charm.



The holidays just hit different at the other motherland... I really miss all this around November and December. It was so festive and lively and crowded and places were open. Unlike in San Francisco.











Uli suggested we go see Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club as he hasn't seen it yet and those were THE tickets in town. The previous run had Eddie Redmayne and they were impossible to get. I just saw that one is moving to Broadway for next April in case you were interested. I had no idea it was so risqué and realized why no one ever suggested I watch this musical as a kid. I would recommend it if you like musicals and are not easily offended. The theatre was gorgeous and the acting and singing superb! Made me wonder what the previous version was like for winning so many awards.



For the tail end of my trip, I opted for Artist Residence with the help of my credit card points. As previously mentioned, I like to close out with something nicer to end the trip. If I were able to take my typical 2 week international holiday, I would have loved to also spend a week in the country to balance it out. But having this master suite was not a bad way to wrap up this trip. I had this deep claw foot tub and an amazing mattress in my suite. It was also in Pimlico so I got to mix up neighborhoods as well! They also have other boutique hotels around England. Check them out.