National Portrait Gallery | London, England

To be honest, before this trip, I had no idea that the National Portrait Gallery existed. Which is so strange, because everyone knows I'm obsessed with portraits. We have eight vintage oil portraits in our apartment. It's our goal to have a wall very similar to the one above. In my free time, I'm constantly looking for vintage oil portraits and don't think I'll ever stop. So it made perfect sense that we stop by.

If I had to choose between The National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery, I would definitely pick the Portrait Gallery. It's not as busy and it's easier to spend time admiring any piece you want. There are so many different kinds of portraits and I was sad that we couldn't spend more time there. I'm so glad we went and it was perfect for me because it had heaps of portraits! 

The National Gallery & Trafalgar Square | London, England

Trafalgar Square and I are old friends. Even though we've been before, it's always lovely to see. Despite being mere feet from The National Gallery, we never ventured inside. Why? No clue, it's something that I would be all about. It's also free, which is my favorite price. Thank goodness our dongsaeng (Korean little brother) Junnie wanted to go, because it's possible, I would've missed out again. Below are my thoughts on Trafalgar Square and The National Gallery. 

The National Gallery is wonderful and full of great paintings, but you know me, I love paintings. Most of the tourists crowded around the famous paintings, like Van Gogh's Sunflowers, which is beautiful, but there were so many other Impressionist paintings that were more impressive. I didn't even get a chance to really stop and admire Sunflowers, because there were so many people. They were just all clamoring around to get a photo and I ended up doing the same. It's kinda sad when it becomes just another photo op and not something that can be admired. It's okay though, I was able to spend time with some other lesser known paintings.

Also, did you know that in the UK they pronounce it Van GOFF and not Van GOH? Apparently, we're both wrong and it's vun KHOKH. Well the more you know, I guess. I'll be spending the rest of my life saying it properly! 

I will say that the one thing that I didn't like about Trafalgar Square was the amount of street performers. It did take away a bit of the charm of the area. Walking inside and looking at all the beautiful old paintings and then seeing Yoda or Batman levitating is a bit strange. The square was obviously packed full of people, but it was to be expected given that it was the holiday season, so I guess it was prime money making time. Either way, it wasn't my favorite. 

Big Ben and the London Eye | London, England

In 2006, Markus and I made our first international trip together. We just had our second wedding (another story for another time) and we were able to plan a honeymoon abroad. For as long as I could remember, I wanted to go to London and Markus being the amazing guy that he is, agreed. we spent a short six days there, but it was a life changing trip, it was the start of ten years of traveling and adventuring with my best friend. I didn't think we would be make it back to London, but we managed to visit two more times in ten years. I do have to admit that my love of London has diminished a bit over time. I still think it's a great city, but the charm fades with each visit. I think it has a lot to do with the other cities in the UK, but more on that below.

We didn't plan on going back this last winter, but our dearest and closest Korean little brother Junnie moved to England and we couldn't pass up the opportunity to see him. Despite leaving Korea over four years ago, we still keep in touch with Junnie and talk quite often. I'm glad that we fit in this short trip to London. Not only did we get to see a dear friend, but we also came full circle with our first international trip. 

When we first visited London, I didn't think anything could possibly be better, but then we went to Edinburgh and that all changed. I still think London is great, but there are so many other cities and towns in the U.K. that don't get as much exposure. I feel the same way about London as I do about New York City. It's a great place to visit, but I don't think I could ever live there. There's just too much going on and it's very fast paced. I do like a city feel, but I want it to feel a bit more accessible and not so busy. 

In order to make this visit feel different than past visits, we decided to do some things we didn't do in the past. Despite visiting two times before, we never walked along the Thames and never saw Big Ben and the London Eye at night. Thank goodness we were able to get that night view this time. It was absolutely stunning at night and there is definitely a different feel than during the day. Even though, we've seen Big Ben countless times, it's still nice to stop by. Even though we've been to London a couple times, there's always something new to see and is city that will continue to surprise you.