Today we’re having breakfast at Pret – and once again with our favourite breakfast items: a warm ham and cheese croissant for me and a cinnamon roll for Gabi. Afterwards, we make our way to Covent Garden to meet Clare, Sheridan and Amy. They are queuing here for roses from BTS, the Korean K-pop band that Clare and Amy are big fans of. The queue stretches right across Covent Garden.

We make a quick detour to a shoe shop and chat with Sheridan until it’s their turn: from a huge wall of roses, a representative pulls one of the flowers and hands it over. I go to the other side to take a photo of the handover and suddenly hear my name. It’s Meike, whom we haven’t seen in ages! She has been living in London for several years and was standing a little further ahead in the queue. She is also a big BTS fan and has even had her drawings of BTS exhibited in South Korea. After queuing for so long, she doesn’t have much time left, but there’s enough for a quick chat and a photo.

We continue shopping a little longer and finally arrive at the Seven Dials area and the Banana Warehouse via small alleys and passageways. We want to have lunch in the Seven Dials Market. The many small food stalls in the former banana warehouse really make our mouths water: we could eat something from every stall here. Gabi and I finally decide on a burger with macaroni and cheese as a side dish and a Philly cheesesteak with French fries. Both are really delicious.

From here, we slowly make our way towards the Strand to watch the Back to the Future musical together. After almost five years at the Adelphi Theatre, the show comes to an end in April. Another musical is replacing it, and Back to the Future is starting a tour of the United Kingdom. It was Gabi’s idea to see the musical here one last time. Even though she’s seen it (too) many times before. That’s love!

And it’s great that I get to share this experience not only with her, but with five lovely ladies. I don’t hear my name in the lobby, but I do hear: “Aren’t you the one who got a piece of the banner?” Hihi, yes, that’s me! Four years ago, we passed the Adelphi Theatre just as the huge banner on the façade was being replaced. It looked really exciting, with two people abseiling down from the roof. I spontaneously asked the person in charge what would happen to the old banner and whether I could have it. And he actually gave me part of it! And today’s performance is magnificent too. I am really enjoying the show and could watch and listen to it here every day.

We then stroll across London towards our evening meal: Clare has booked a table at a South Korean restaurant near Leicester Square. Here, every table has a table grill on which we cook various cuts of meat and prawns. We eat kimchi fried rice with this.

With full bellies, we sit down in our hotel bar and enjoy tea, coffee and cocktails. Time flies by far too quickly, and soon we have to say goodbye to Clare, Amy and Sheridan. The two American women are staying with Clare and going on various endeavours with her. We all want to meet up again next year at the latest, hopefully sooner.