It’s still hard to believe that this time last week I was 6,646 miles from home soaking up our final moments in Paris! Now that the jet lag has worn off (that was no joke! I was up at 4 AM and in bed before 9 PM for several days), I wanted to share some snapshots from our week of exploring London and Paris. First up? London.

We had a quick stay in London but were determined to make the most of our 2.5 days – I wanted to see it all! We spent the majority of our time walking around and exploring the city, while stopping to see the “musts” like Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square and the London Eye (although we did not go on it – I hate Ferris Wheels!). And it was a good thing we did a ton of walking throughout the entire trip… because we also did a whole lot of eating!

Our London AirBnB was located in Soho which felt very NYC-ish – we loved having so many dining options nearby and being so central to everything. Favorites included eating our way through Borough Market with coffee at Monmouth afterward, Thanksgiving dinner of Indian Food on Brick Lane and great juice and avocado toast at Mojo Juice Bar right next to our apartment.

But my absolute most favorite part about London was how totally decked out for Christmas the entire city was. There were sparkly lights, gigantic Christmas trees and carolers galore. And it was the. best. thing. ever. London, your holiday spirit is unparalleled. Second favorite thing about London? Their candy bars. Those things are pure magic and my biggest regret about our entire trip is not stuffing my entire suitcase full of ’em. Serious withdrawals over here, friends.

Also, I have to give a huge shout out to Renee of Avec Amor – she’s a huge travel buff and had a gazillion fantastic London recommendations. If you have any travel plans I highly suggest checking out her blog or sending her a tweet to pick her brain! That girl is amazing!

Have you been to London? What were some of your favorite parts of the city?