London

Had a bit of a twenty something moment today. I was in a meeting with several of my coworkers and somehow it came up that I was 26. You'd have thought I'd just confessed to murder by the expressions of shock and confusion that followed. Apparently I'm immature for my age. Thanks team. It did remind me why I started this blog though- to bask in the age where you can put off all that settling down business. The only issue is that now I'm on the downwards slope out of my twenties and into a life of responsibility. Clearly my attitude is still back in the vicinity of 23 so hopefully this acts as proof that you're only as old as you feel you are...

26 does sound awfully grown up though. In Europe when you turn 26 you stop getting discounts at art galleries, museums and other tourist attractions. I wonder who decided that 26 was the age where you earn enough to pay full price? Clearly someone who doesn't work in radio.

When I landed in London, the first stop of my wee OE, I was still 25. I'd like to say that I took full advantage of cheap admission prices and saw everything there was to see but I'd be lying. Truthfully, we did very little in London. It was just so exciting to be there that we didn't need to.

One of the first things that Julia and I discovered on our trip is that travelers fall into one of two groups; those who list tick and those who don't . We fall into the latter. List tickers are those people who spend hours getting to a tourist destination only to spend five minutes actually there (four of which are spent hiding behind a camera lens). I just can't be one of those people.

Sure, taking photos is important and getting the cliché shots is fun but you also need to just be in a place. It sounds corny but London is one of those places that you can just wander around and be amazed by everything that locals don't even notice. Classic example of this was me rushing to get a look at a squirrel just outside of Buckingham palace. Apparently this is comparable to someone fascinated by the sight of a sheep in rural New Zealand.

The first full day we had in London wasn't planned and for that reason it was fantastic. There is nothing like the feeling of being on the other side of the world with nothing to do but explore. It is truly liberating. Where list tickers would be frantically trying to navigate the underground or paying some tour company too much, Julia and I were wandering about aimlessly, getting schoolgirl excited as we caught our first glimpse of Big Ben and stumbled upon Trafalgar square.

Even the grim weather was an attraction for me because it felt like London should. Bundling up in a coat and trudging around with hands shoved in my pockets, I didn't feel like a tourist, I felt like a Londoner....right up until I had to pay for anything that required change (cue me holding each coin up within an inch of my face so I could see how much it was worth).

We were lucky and had our own personal guides for the rest of our time there (you can't really be a kiwi without at least one expat mate living in London can you?). They were also kind enough to let us crash so we didn't have to haemorrhage cash for a poorly rated backpackers. This was especially great for us who were still thinking in Kiwi dollars (tip: convert your thinking to the currency immediately after you arrive or buying a coffee will bring a tear to your eye).

My London experience wasn't completely unplanned mind you. My now Londoner friend Kylie is very organised and had us buy tickets to the West End version of The Lion King months in advance. This was a very good thing. The tickets were really reasonable and the show was a-mazing. If like me, you're a nineties child then you are 90% guaranteed to be a Disney fan and this production will not disappoint. Had to refrain pretty hard from singing along to “I just can't wait to be King”.

If you're looking for a list of other 'must dos' in London though, this is not the blog for you. In fact, I can sum up all you really need to do there in just two words: look up.

This picture of St Paul's Cathedral is just one of the many reasons why: