day tripping in the big smoke:

my boyfriend decided to have a birthday, so we trotted off to london to celebrate.

I love london but at heart I'm a bit of a country girl. I studied my degree at central st martins in the heart of soho so I have a lot of good memories from my years there.

these days I like to pop down and enjoy what the city has to offer without the stress of deadlines and studying, joy!

we decided we wanted to go for high tea, who doesn't like tea and scones? we looked at a million and one from the ritz to claridges. 

then we discovered the mad hatters afternoon tea at the swanky sanderson hotel, oh my it's so fun!

if you are looking for a memorable treat whilst in the big smoke I highly recommend you pay them a visit and join them down the rabbit hole.

from rainbow sandwiches, to exploding lolly pops and magical little cakes the whole experience is playful and relaxed. if you don't relish the rather stuffy atmosphere offered at the traditional london high teas then this is the one for you. 

after we had come down from a huge sugar high we strolled to soho to meet up with some friends for drinks. 

we love old compton street so we popped to la bodega negra 

on arrival it appears to be a sex shop/peep show. don't be fooled by the facade; downstairs it's a very cool mexican restaurant with plenty of atmosphere and tequila cocktails (phew)

we grabbed drinks in a few other friendly establishments before we made out way to hix soho bar where we managed to nab a seat after the evening rush.

the cocktails here are to die for; slightly grown up (not a sex on the beach in sight) and averaging about £15 a tipple I went for a twist on a bloody mary with tabasco and gin.

the morning after we decided (rather guiltily) to squeeze in some culture at a few museums, plus I was really excited about the prospect of seeing some dinosaurs (dork fest) 

after all the dino excitement we ate a highly calorific lunch, did a spot of shopping and made our way back home.

all in all a perfect few days (I hope you've all survived my rather soppy photo diary aha!) I wouldn't normally post about a trip away but I thought some of you may be tempted to try the afternoon tea... 

any recommendations for my next trip? 

caroline xx