Daily Details: July 24

Today was our first free day in London. After catching up on some much needed rest, we decided to head off to the National Gallery to see a few famous paintings there. Our visit was extremely enjoyable and we saw more paintings by the famous artists that I love. We were fortunate enough to be able to see a special exhibit there that features impressionistic paintings that were done by people such as Monet and Corot that were just study pieces, never meant to be put in galleries, but beautiful nonetheless. We also saw several Van Gogh paintings, most notably, his sunflowers. There were some fantastic Turner pieces as well. My second favorite piece in the museum was one that I studied very meticulously in AP Art History in high school. It’s called Arnolfini and His Bride, painted by Jan van Eyck. To see the painting in person was a real treat. My VERY favorite painting came as a bit of a surprise to me. We were just walking through one of the galleries, when I realized I was staring at a painting that I knew every square inch of. It was a painting done by Renoir, entitled “The Umbrellas”. My mom had this picture hanging in our home during all my growing up years so it was very moving to see the original staring at me, when for so much of my childhood, I was staring at it.

Being famished after our museum visit, we headed over to the London Hard Rock Café. I was surprised to learn that it was the first Hard Rock Café ever—I thought they were an American thing. I loved experiencing the vibe there, because it was a COMPLETELY different experience than the one in Paris. Naturally, it was full of memorabilia from the Beatles, Elton John, The Rolling Stones, all of which was awesome to see. I got to see one of Elton John’s outlandish pairs of glasses that he was so well known for. Although I cannot say this for certain, it is more likely than not that my Uncle John made those glasses for him, as he designed and made most of Elton John’s famous spectacles. When I see my Uncle John the next time, I’ll have to show him the picture and ask if he designed them. I ordered the same food I had in Paris—yes, it was that good, and once again enjoyed every bite of it. Filled to the brim, we were off to our next location—Harrods.

No visit to London would be complete without stepping inside what is perhaps London’s most exclusive and high-end department store. From the moment you enter, it is clear to see why it is so talked about. I have NEVER seen any department store that compares to it in even the slightest degree! I felt like I was stepping more inside a palace than a store. All of the architecture is exquisite, both on the inside and the out. The displays are masterfully created and the workers are all impeccably dressed in adorable and classy uniforms, each different depending on the department they are in. In addition to selling furnishings and clothing like most department stores, Harrods also has a whole floor dedicated to food. Although all of it was incredible, the most mind-blowing section was the candy area. I felt like I had stepped into a Willy Wonka factory. Every kind of candy you could think of was lining shelves all the way up the walls and was beautifully packaged. An ice cream counter was in the middle of the space and the creations that came from it looked positively heaven-sent. Words cannot adequately convey how much I wanted to just buy the whole entire store and spend my life in there.

After tearing myself away from the candy section, we headed upstairs to take a peek at what the clothing has to offer. Upstairs we were greeted by signs showing the different designers Harrods carries—Prada, Gucci, Versace, Valentino, etc…I was absolutely blown away by the price tags on everything, naturally, but I did see the sexiest pair of high heels I have ever seen in my life and will probably ever see. The furniture section was even more of a delight though, and we spent quite a bit of time there, absorbing all of the fantastic modern pieces and the timeless, traditional pieces as well. Although you might not initially think so, Harrods was an inspiring place for an interior designer to go, and I got some great ideas from having visited it.