HI it’s Makenzie. Well my mom woke us up bright and early today at 8 am and rushed us out the door so we could make it on the tube to the meeting place where she would be meeting other ladies to tour the local markets here in London. We were going to follow the tour to the first stop and then explore the various markets on our own. Little did we know it would turn into an adventure!

First stop, Petticoat Lane! Mostly filled with probably contraband goods for very cheap. Check out my new coat, I bought it yesterday when were at Portabello Road. I was SO cold and wet yesterday it was a welcome friend. Still feeling a little conflicted about it so compliment it so I feel better. BUT I DIGRESS.

Cheap cheap cheap-ola stuff. Made dena and I feel a little depressed.

Breakfast time! Samosas from the food truck.

NEXT STOP: Brick Lane. We asked directions from a well dressed young man on the street. He also recommended an indian restaurant with a cheap lunch. REMEMBER THIS BECAUSE IT WILL BE IMPORTANT LATER. We went to an art gallery and THE COOLEST market called Up Market.

Up Market was filed with ethnic food stalls, homemade Etsy style stores, and little vintage stalls. I would definitley recommend this to anyone visiting London. It was filled with trendy, attractive young people and delicious food and whimsical crafts.

SO we finished looking and decide to go to Sheraz (the restaurant The Stranger recommended). Just as we ordered, who should walk in but the guy and a girl with him! We decided to all eat together and it was so much fun. It seemed like we talked FOREVER about the similarities and differences between Britain and America and our studies and our families. Max and Camilla were SO nice and kind and we all instantly connected. It was so fun to make friends!

He he! Our friends! This photo is also proof that I am not always the tallest person in the room. Max and Camila are from near London and were in the city for the afternoon and they let us tag along on their fun day! We felt a little like we were crashing their day but Dena and I had a great time and I hope they did too. So onward to more vintage stores with Max and Camilla!

I forgot what this game is called but according to Max it’s “the Indian version of Snooka” I’m not sure if he said “Snooka” or “Snooker” because it’s kind of hard to understand if words end in “a” or “er”. PS that word means POOL to us Americans.

Here’s me trying out a really cool chair until I realized it was a market and I probably shouldn’t just sit in random chairs. Just then the shop owner came and hassled us asking if we were actually going to buy anything. He told Max (in the suit) that their were some $10000 things in his warehouse if he wanted to check them out. YEAH RIGHT. (And by $10000 I mean ten-thousand-pounds but I don’t know how to make the pound sign on an american computer)

NEXT STOP FLOWER MARKET, just like My Fair Lady! Unfortunately it was just ending but we still got to get a good feel for it. See that cool thing in Dena’s hair? It’s a hair wrap! We did hair wraps on each other last night. This trip is kind of turning into a middle school sleep over/a pseudo romantic get-away combined. So yep.

Shots of the crowd. There were so many people everywhere and everyone was so well dressed and vogue.

Does this seem unusual? WELL IT’S NOT. There were so many people dressed hard core vintage. Max explained that dressing like this is a thing here in London? Good to know.

HE HE HE remember when I said we made friends? Guess they didn’t actually like us and tried to ditch us. GOOD THING I SPOTTED THEM TRYING TO ESCAPE AND CHASED THEM DOWN.

BIG JOKE BIG JOKE THEY DIDN’T ACTUALLY TRY TO ESCAPE. I WAS JUST RUNNING FOR SOME REASON.

LAST STOP: Vintage Emporium. LITERALLY THE COOLEST THING EVER. I would defintley put this on the top 5 things to do in London. Inside: everyone dressed like pin-up girls, 1950’s greasers, etc. Down stairs: vintage clothes and by that we mean clothes from the 1800’s and early 1900’s. There was also an americana band playing inside complete with banjos and madnolins. They made us miss Texas! Dena went up and talked to the cuties in the band. Eek! It was such a neat place. Dena had her eyes wide open with excitement and Max said she couldn’t be more American if she tried. Thanks, that’s a compliment! After having hot chocolate, it was time for Max and Camilla to leave London and time for Dena and I to head home for dinner. It was so great to meet them. It’s cool that even when you’re completely lost in a foreign country, you can still instantly connect with people. So yep.

Dead bird leg I spotted and made dena take a picture of on the way home. PS those are Dena’s feet.

COOLEST DAY.

OK BYE.

MAK.