London: Traveling Alone Again

All through childhood and adolescence, I was an introvert, drawing my energy from solitude. It’s only recently that I have come to identify as an extrovert. I don’t know what exactly caused this change, but now after a long week and stressful week I prefer to talk to or meet friends for dinner or coffee instead of retreat to my room to read or watch Netflix. I am not making a judgment on either of these things. Neither is better than the other. They are just different coping mechanisms for different kinds of people.

However, I have recently developed a quasi-fear of being alone. It started when I moved to Seattle by myself. I have always prided myself on being someone who loves a challenge, and I was nervous of course, but my sense of nervousness was eclipsed by all the things I had to do. I kept busy and didn’t really notice how alone I was until I had been there for a few days. That is when I had a minor meltdown, which is part of what ultimately caused me to leave. What has happened since is a very mild case of PTSD. After having an intense negative reaction to something, I have developed an unhealthy relationship with said thing. This happens when kids have an incident where they almost drown as children and fear water or when they remember accidentally getting locked in a closet and develop claustrophobia. I know that to avoid this fate, I need to get back on the horse so to speak.

This is why I chose to travel to London alone. I traveled alone for the first time three years ago to Lisbon, and I loved the experience. This was back when I was an introvert, and I knew that the traveling experience was going to be different this time, but I felt that it was important that I keep trying. I made sure to book the trip for a modest four days, so as to make sure that I didn’t push myself too far into the “danger zone.” I also made sure that I packed my itinerary so that I barely had time to realize that I was alone.

I arrived at my hostel right after the New Year. I had booked a bed in a 14-person room in order to save money, and I do not think I will ever be doing that again. When I got to the room at midnight, no one was even back yet, which to me was a bad sign. Indeed I was woken up most nights around 3am with all the people coming back drunk from the pubs. Pro tip: if you’re someone who prefers to go to bed early and get up early, splurge for a 4-person room or even a private room in a hostel. This will allow you to actually get some quality sleep while you’re traveling.

 

Thursday—St. Paul’s Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Shoreditch, SoHo, Covent Garden

I snuck out of the room at 7am when everyone else was still sleeping and took the Tube to a coffee shop called Wild & Wood for breakfast. There I embarrassed myself by asking for a vanilla latte only to have the barista point to a sign that read “NO SYRUPS!” I felt like the undignified American that the rest of the world often makes us out to be. So I choked down my plain latte. I am sure that this latte was actually quite good, but I hate the flavor of coffee. I only drink it to stay awake after nights like the one I’d had.

My first stop was St. Paul’s Cathedral, which was one of the places I hadn’t been to in my previous trips to London. I nearly keeled over when I realized that the entrance fee was £18, a mind-blowing $25! Later when I went to Westminster Abbey, I spent £24, or $33. I always knew that London was expensive, but I was not prepared for that. I spent a couple hours there listening to the audio guide (which is a great companion when you’re alone) and climbing up to the cupola and the Whispering Gallery. The views from St. Paul’s were admittedly perfect due to its position on the bend of the Thames, which allows you to see Tower Bridge down river and Westminster Abbey and Parliament upriver.

I then crossed the river via the Millennium Bridge, which is the one that the Death Eaters nearly knock over during the opening scene in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I walked along the South Bank and lamented not being able to see a play in the Globe Theater (they only operate in the summer) and took nearly 50 pictures of Tower Bridge, which I learned is not the same thing as London Bridge.

I was trying to save as much money as possible in London, but I did splurge on a decadent lunch at Dishoom, one of London’s best Indian restaurants in Shoreditch. They had free refills on the masala chai, which was dangerous.

No part of me wanted to go back and rest in the hostel since it didn’t really exude peace and quiet, so I pushed myself to stay out all day, to the detriment of my feet and back. I tried to rest every few hours and have a tea or cider, but I finished the day in SoHo, thoroughly exhausted. I barely made it through my ramen at a place called Bone Daddies and luckily was so exhausted that I slept through most of the 3am noise.

 

Friday—Westminster Abbey, Parliament, Harrod’s, Hyde Park, High Tea, Marlyebone

Friday was a bit of a struggle, energy-wise, and I woke up too late to beat the crowd at Westminster Abbey. I followed the audio guide but spent quite a bit of time waiting to get up to certain spots to see them properly. It was completely worth it though, because it’s my favorite place in London. The intricacy of the décor was almost unfathomable, and I was fangirling over all the famous, historical figures buried there like Mary Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I along with Charles Darwin and Sir Isaac Newton. I walked around the area and tried to get a picture of Big Ben and the Parliament building, but it was covered in scaffolding. This was a huge disappointment, and also tends to be a pattern with my travels. When I was in Germany, the famous Neuschwanstein Castle was just an ugly grey block, and the same happened in Munich with Marienplatz.

It was quite sunny that day, and walking around was enjoyable bar the blisters on my feet. I strolled through Hyde Park and around the Marlyebone neighborhood, which is my favorite London neighborhood. I had a reservation for a high tea at a place called Seymour’s Parlour, which I highly recommend. High teas can cost up to £65 per person, but I found this one for £33. It doesn’t sound like a bargain, but I promise it is. There were scones with clotted cream and jam, which if you haven’t had, I cannot begin to explain the decadence of. I washed it down with a proper cup of British cream earl grey tea. I love Seymour’s Parlour, because the décor feels straight out of an Oscar Wilde book, and it only seats 10 people, so it’s cozy. You definitely need a reservation though, so make sure you make one two weeks in advance. I spent the rest of the night wandering around Marlyebone, alternating between bookstores and boutiques.

Being alone did feel lonely at times, but I spent a lot of the time listening to some of my favorite podcasts, which always gives the feeling that you’re part of a conversation. That sounds really pathetic and sad, but if you’re an extrovert forced to vacation alone, it does the trick. When I wasn’t walking, I was reading on my kindle in the corner of a pub or restaurant. The British are a reserved and introverted people, so I never got any weird looks while reading alone in a pub like I would in the United States or Spain.

Saturday—British Museum, Trafalgar Square, West End, Book of Mormon

I slept a cumulative two hours on Friday night/Sunday morning, and I felt it when I woke up. I didn’t fall asleep until 1am and was awoken by a group of men who came in and turned the lights on and spoke at full volume at 4am. Once again, avoid the 14-room hostel at all costs.

I attempted to revive myself with a full English breakfast and a cup of strong coffee. It did the trick for most of the morning while I explored the British Museum. I love museums, and I love audio guides, especially when they’re free like they are at the British Museum. The collection consists of Egyptian, Roman, Assyrian, and other antiquities as well as some 17^th and 18^th century artifacts. By far the two most impressive things I saw, which are the two must-sees of the museum, are the Rosetta Stone and the sculptures from the façade of the Acropolis. The British Museum is a bit of a controversy, because Britain has refused to return many of their antiquities back to their country of origin. Some people would probably have skipped the museum out of protest, but I think it’s valuable to appreciate the artifacts wherever they are despite your politics on the issue.

After the British Museum, I walked to Trafalgar Square, but barely made a full lap around the area before I ducked into a pub for some warm tea. Up until Saturday, the weather had been quite mild, but now it was a true blustery London day. That night I headed to the Prince of Wales Theater to see the Book of Mormon. I am not much of a theater person, but I loved the music and lyrics. And I related to it having had a Mormon best friend growing up. However, it was hilarious to watch the mostly European audience’s reaction, since most of them are not familiar with Mormonism. I think a lot of the jokes went over their head.

And then somehow that night after the play, I was packing up at the hostel. The three days had gone by before I could even realize that I was lonely. I guess that’s what planning literally every second of your day will do. Maybe this article won’t be relatable to you, because you love being alone. Or maybe it won’t be relatable, because you know that you’d never do something like this anyways. But I hope that if you’re someone who wants to travel and has no one to go with, this article gives you some hope that you can travel alone even if the idea fills you with more fear than excitement. I’m not saying it’s easy, or that it’s more fun than traveling with someone, but it’s possible. And that’s what matters.