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A Love Letter to London

A Love Letter to London

Posted on: Sunday 2 April 2017

When I finished university in 2012 (which, erm, where'd you go five years between then and now?) I left London along with hundreds of other students who couldn't afford to stay there without a student loan or a job. I was gutted to leave London and although I didn't have a life plan as such, the one thing I was sure of was that I wanted to end up back there as soon as possible. But life happened and moving back to London became a long forgotten dream. And I don't mind that. I don't want to move back to London now, but every time I go back I fall more in love with it and it's just one of my happy places. I went back there a couple of weekends ago for BlogConLDN and being there again made me want to write a little post of thanks to London for being such a babe. 

The paragraph above was written the morning of the London terror attack and it feels a bit weird to not acknowledge it in this post. I am so so proud of London and its people for staying strong, not being afraid and supporting each other when it was needed the most. That's all I'm going to say about it because I want this post to remain a positive one about all the things I have to be thankful to London for.

woman with milkmaid braids surrounded by blossom trees

For helping to shape me as a person. Living in London was the first time I'd ever lived away from home and I learnt a lot both about living by myself (well, without my parents) and about myself as a person. By my third year I felt like I'd changed quite a bit, grown up a lot and was becoming the person I am now. If I'd stayed near home or moved somewhere smaller I think that would have taken me a lot longer because London throws you in at the deep end of situations and experiences. I became independent and more confident and now I'm not afraid to do anything on my own (apart from talk to anyone I don't know on the phone...)

For always entertaining me. There is always something to do in London, you'll never get bored and there are new things popping up everywhere. One of my favourite things to do is wander around the galleries and museums, which are mostly free, hence why I went so often as a student! When I was there a couple of weeks ago I went to the London Cat Village, which wasn't there when I lived there (probably a good thing otherwise I might have wasted a lot of money on going) so there really is something for everyone and I could spend weeks just entertaining myself in London.

For the memories. I have both happy, hilarious and downright crazy memories of living in London. There was the time I walked all the way back from Trafalgar Square to Lewisham because it was a nice day and I didn't want to waste it on the bus (two and a half hours later my feet definitely regretted that decision), there was the time I got asked out for dinner by the happiest bin man I've ever met (it made a nice change from the lewd comments you usually get thrown at you on the streets of New Cross) and there were the countless hours spent wandering aimlessly around streets, galleries and museums just soaking in all the London-ness.

And for what's to come. Although I'm not planning on living in London again, I'm definitely planning on visiting a lot and I still have lots of friends there so I know there are plenty more memories to be made there.

Do you love London?

Amy x

Comments

  1. I do love a good London visit but I'm certainly not as much of a London-fanatic as I know some people are. I think I'm too much of a village girl and big cities like London freak me out after a while. Still, I do hope to go back and visit again soon.

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    1. I actually love the idea of both city and village life - I need two homes haha! xx

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  2. I'm a countryside girl through and through, and Oxford feels like a big city to me, despite being medium sized at best! I find London totally overwhelming and I don't think I could live there for more than a week! The number of people is just too stressful for me haha! It's great to hear that you had such wonderful experiences in the captial though! It's wonderful that living there has really given you confidence and independence, and that it introduced you to the BF as well! Thank you for sharing!

    Abbey 👾 www.abbeylouisarose.co.uk

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    1. I think it's got so much busier since I left, I really notice the amount of people when I go back now. I did live further out though so it wasn't too bad!xx

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  3. Ahh I love this Amy, I am such a London girl so it's mega easy to take it for granted but it really is an incredible place!!

    Elle
    www.theellenextdoor.com
    xx

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    1. It really is, make the most of it lucky lady! xx

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  4. What a great blog post Amy, it was really interesting reading about your time in London! I live just outside and I really love the city and all it has to offer!
    Have a lovely day :)
    Rosanna x
    Rose's Rooftop

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    1. That's so handy to have it close by - must be great to just be able to pop in! xx

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  5. What a lovely post <3 Do I love London? Yessssss! I love London so much that I have visited twice already this year and going there for the next 2 weekends!

    Steph xx

    Steph's World | Lifestyle Blog | www.stephsworld.com

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  6. That's such a beautiful love letter, indeed! I love London and like you, also lived there because of university and yes, it has so much to do and see there, and we grow a lot! It's so nice that you met your partner there and yes, people must stay strong. I am glad that you got a nice job and enjoy Hull as well! Hope you have a very beautiful week!
    DenisesPlanet.com

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    1. Glad you got to live there too! Hope you have a great week xx

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  7. Wow...what a beautiful post....London is lovely indeed....!! Xo, Neha

    http://www.theinstylejournal.com/

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    1. It really is! Thank you so much for reading xx

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  8. It's always interesting to see other people's perspective on the place I call home. I think because I grew up here, and in the less fortunate parts actually, I fail to see the beauty in it. I do love living in the city and the convenience of it all, the diversity and everything else, don't get me wrong! it's just hard for me to understand why so many people love London to the extent that they do! After reading posts like this one though, I can appreciate this city from other people's eyes and it's a wonderful thing to know it has helped shape you as a person. :)

    www.lovefrommaira.co.uk

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    1. It's easy to overlook the beauty of somewhere when you grew up there - I actually prefer the outskirts of London to the centre (although obviously it's beautiful) because that's where I lived (in South East) - I guess you don't really know how much you like a place until you've left it! xx

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  9. I love London, it's an awesome place and amazing you get to study there. I would like to live there for a bit, maybe 6 months or so just to experience London life but I couldn't see myself there long term!

    Corinne x
    www.skinnedcartree.com

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    1. Yeah I definitely couldn't do long term, but it's a great experience if you can do it for a short time! xx

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  10. We live a twenty minutes from London it's an amazing place. It's so easy to forget about everything around us. I love living in the city but I really want to move down near the beach now.

    Tania || www.taniaalexandraribeiro.com
    xxx

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    1. You're so lucky to live so close! Living by the beach would be lovely though and I suppose you could still be quite close to London! xx

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  11. London seems to be a place away from home for a lot of people. I definitely love visiting but I'm not sure I could live there permanently. I love city life but now I live in the country, I'm not sure I could cope in somewhere so crazy like London! I tend to just go on shopping trips nowadays!

    Sian x
    http://theenglisheverygirl.blogspot.co.uk/

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    1. I don't think I could live there permanently again, but it was a great experience :) xx

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  12. I feel really similarly about London! London was the first place in the UK that I lived and I was there for 6 years. I went to grad school there, I met my husband there and I truly learned to be independent. But actually the years and struggling for rent ground my love down and we moved. Now that we are living in Yorkshire, I love knowing that London is always there to go back to visit. I actually love and appreciate London more now that we've left! x

    www.rhymeandribbons.com

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    1. I feel exactly the same! I love living in Yorkshire as well :) xx

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  13. This was such a great post to read. I haven't been to London yet but I will visit one day. I've been only at the airport, while I was flying to USA.

    You look amazing in this photo.

    Nina's Style Blog

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    1. Thanks so much! You should definitely visit one day :) xx

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  14. I was just sitting down to have breakfast when I saw the news break in saying there was a terror attack in London. My heart was (and still is) broken. London is such a beautiful city. While I've never had the opportunity to visit London, I still feel a connection. We're all people no matter where were from and we all are effected by pain.

    Sending you warm hugs from across the pond xx

    Gracefulcoffee.com

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    1. Hope you get to visit one day, thank you Edye <3 xx

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  15. Love this post! London is one of my fave places to visit! It's such a beautiful city. Such a good read xxx

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    1. I love visiting London, need to go back soon! xx

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  16. Im hoping to go to university in London! I think ill fall in love and never want to move back to Lincoln though xxxx

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    1. I'd definitely recommend going to university there! It's a great opportunity to live there for a bit :) xx

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  17. I've not actually had a proper trip to London. I've only been there for some events and to see the National History Museum. I really want to go and explore it one day as it looks beautiful! This is a lovely post too btw, really enjoyed it x
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    Emily x
    www.missbeautyemily.com

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    1. Aw yeah you should definitely go for a proper explore, it's great! xx

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  18. Aw this post was so lovely to read! I have never lived in London but a lot of my family and friends are from in and around London so I go quite a lot, and I'd love to live there one day! I swear those years after you graduate uni fly by don't they!

    Love Izzy | www.ADoseOfChatter.com

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    1. They definitely do! That's good that you get to go a lot :) xx

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