Business Trip to London

This past week I visited our offices in London with some colleagues. I had not been in a few years and I forgot what a lovely city it is. I stayed at the Marriott on Grovesnor Square. Every time we gave the taxi driver our address they said, "you know, it's really on Duke St." It sort of became a running joke. The hotel was about a 10 min. walk to the office so it was a nice way to start/end the day.

After dinner the first night we walked to Covent Garden to check out the Apple Store. The store blended right into the neighborhood and had a really warm, community feel. Given the vibe, I would not have been surprised to find a coffee bar in the back corner.

We lucked out in that the CA sunshine followed us which made for an even better week. Each evening the streets were packed outside restaurants and pubs with people enjoying the glorious weather. Wednesday after work we headed out with the team to a rooftop bar for drinks (can you make out the tiny heads in the picture?) Unfortunately the "terrace was full" but we still had fun a the hip bar inside.

On my walk to the office one morning I noticed this building. It reminded me of my meat-loving husband.

Throughout the week we had been on a quest to find gifts for the kids (two of the women I traveled with have kids around the same age as K & C). Local colleagues suggested going to Hamley's, a famous London toy store that is celebrating it's 250th year! We stumbled on to a press conference for the new Princess Catherine doll (like a Barbie doll) that was just being released. The following day, the doll was all over the morning news. The city is definitely in Royal Wedding fervor!

The last night I headed out to Windsor to visit with some friends from CA. It was a lovely town, surrounded by parks and lakes and of course, Windsor Castle at the heart of it.