London, here we come! We are looking forward to a long weekend in the city that has become a second home to us and seeing our friends from the UK and the USA again.

It has been six years since our last flight, and that one was truly awful. So we are all the more delighted that everything is going amazingly well this time. That is until we sit in the airplane and wait to take off: Due to a problem with the air conditioning, the plane has to return to the gate and be inspected by a technician.

Fortunately, the repair is successful, and we finally take off almost two hours late. When we land, of course, the good spot at the finger dock is no longer available and we park somewhere far off on the tarmac. We are getting picked up, but that also takes extra time.

At least everything is going smoothly from here. We buy sandwiches at the small supermarket in the arrivals hall and eat them on the Heathrow Express. We take a taxi from Paddington Station and soon arrive at the hotel. It is located right on Leicester Square. Since we are travelling without a car this time and do not need a parking space, this was the obvious choice.

The hotel is so posh, we are even shown to our room! From here, we set off on our own tour of discovery. The view from the bar on the top floor is truly magnificent, and there is a wellness area with a small swimming pool in the basement.

With its central location on Leicester Square, the Lego Store and the Japan Centre are just around the corner. We pay a quick visit to both before heading back to the hotel to rest a bit. In the end, we don’t buy anything. The selection of bricks at the Lego Store was actually quite disappointing.

In the evening, I set off again to get dinner from the Japan Centre. Gabi eats chicken katsu curry and I try the ramen noodle soup, which is new to their menu. I’m very satisfied. After a cosy evening, we go to bed early.