Down to London ...

Happy Monday. my lovelies! I got back late last night, from my fun-filled weekend away in London, with my 5 bestest friends, to celebrate Sandra's 21st ... (decide for yourself what part of that sentence veers somewhat from the truth)

We started out bright and early on Friday morning, and as soon as we boarded the first class carriage at Lancaster the celebrations began ... Julie grappling with a bottle of bubbly ...

Michelle on the left and me cheesily grinning on the right ...

Sandra (the birthday girl) and Sharon

Refreshing Buck's Fizz (well it was Eurovision weekend)

and chocolate cake baked by moi ... I'm surprised it was still intact!

After checking into our hotel at Marble Arch, and a quick wash and brush-up, we made our way to the award-winning Athenaeum Hotel, where afternoon tea awaited us ....

Could get used to this!

The birthday girl with her very own cup-cake ...

A walk down the road to The Dorchester, for one or two cocktails ...

This was my creation ... no garish umbrellas and dangling monkeys here!

Hung about a bit to see if the owner of this Bentley appeared ... could it possibly belong to Leo? We then jumped in a black London taxi and went to a Lebanese restaurant for our evening meal, of fish, chicken, falafel, hummus and baklava, which was followed by entertainment, burlesque style ...

Sandra was the star of the show ...

Next morning we breakfasted like kings and made our way across town with a leisurely stroll through the shops ...

Seeing interesting sights on the way .... this is my preferred way of seeing the capital in all its glory ...

We didn't go on The Duck Tours this time, but I have in the past with my family, and can thoroughly recommend it ... a tour of London landmarks in a WW2 amphibious vehicle, then a splashdown on the Thames! Our destination today was the Thames, for a trip to The Tower of London ...

Upon Westminster Bridge ...

Viewing the sights along the way ...

The London Eye ...

Shakespeare's Globe Theatre ...

The iconic Shard ...

HMS Belfast ...

and the impressive Tower Bridge and the first sighting of The Tower of London ...

The hairs on the back of my neck always prickle when I see Traitor's Gate ... Imagine being rowed along this great river, entering this gate at the side of The Tower ...

and embarking on the other side, walking up the steps, knowing the grisly end that awaited ...

After a good few hours of Horrible History, pomp and circumstance, and a dash of bling in the form of The Crown Jewels, we had a little saunter through St Katherine Dock to a nice little bar, where we sought shelter from the cold ...

and ordered some refreshment (for medicinal purposes, you understand) ...

Girls on Tour!

Once suitably refreshed, we boarded the boat again, made our way to The Strand and our evening meal, before crossing the road to our evening's destination ...

I must admit, I wasn't really looking forward to this show, but how wrong I was ... it is my favourite to date! Thrills, spills and great songs ... I won't reveal too much in case you're planning a trip, but it got a standing ovation, and everyone came out buzzing!

We walked back to our hotel taking in the sights and sounds of Chinatown, Soho, Carnaby St ... Liberty's windows looking very springlike ...

A blurry Claridges ...

After a good night's sleep and a fabulous breakfast, once again we set off to cross London, our destination? The amazing, cosmopolitan, bohemian Covent Garden.

The vibrancy of this little corner of the capital never ceases to amaze me!

Cath had moved since last time I was there, but I located her and spent a very pleasant hour ...

Window shopping ...

and a little light refreshment, before heading back for our cases, and then the long journey home.

A lot of laughs on the journey, we were entertained (unknowingly on his part) by a fellow passenger ... my eldest son Oliver joined us on the last leg, as he was returning from visiting his girlfriend ... we arrived home, tired, happy, skint ... the perfect ending to the perfect weekend!

Hope yours was amazing too!

Lots of Love, Claire xxx