During the latter part of 2021, there was quite a level of excitement across the globe. The 70’s Swedish pop group ABBA had announced the dates for their “ABBATAR” concert in London, England for the following year!! Since I am a huge ABBA fan, I purchased a ticket for the concert date of July 9, 2022!! The music group was not performing in person, but via “ABBATAR” whose images danced and sang in lifelike fashion, while their recorded music played loudly in the background . A visit to Stonehenge and the ancient Roman town of Bath, England was on my itinerary as well.
On that July 8th, I boarded my flight to the United Kingdom. The airline provided a nice vegan meal consisting of white rice, mixed veggies in a tomato sauce, with a side salad and a bowl of mixed fruit.
Prior to landing, flyers were served a fruit salad a beverage of their choice. My selection was an orange juice.
Upon arrival at London’s Heathrow Airport on Saturday, July 9th; I opted to purchase a take-away lunch at a convenience store there. My meal was a tasty vegan faux “Chicken” salad sandwich with a bag of chips and some coconut water.
Form the airport, it was an easy transfer by subway to the Covent Garden neighborhood of London where my accommodations were. This clean and safe area had it all: shopping, restaurants, and a city park. I strolled about the streets for a while, perusing the shops and boutiques.
I came across a sight that it “typical London”, a red classic telephone booth!!
I came across a huge outdoor and indoor market with lots of shops and eateries.
Floozie cookies has a bakery shop within the market. They offer a variety of cookies stuffed with jams, fruit compote, and other fillings. I purchased a flavorful, vegan, raspberry-filled cookie.
After settling into my accommodations in the Covent Garden neighborhood, it was time for a quick prior to heading over to the ABBA Arena for this evening’s concert. My dinner was a wonderful baked potato topped with avocado, greens, and tomato with a berry juice.
I hopped on the underground commuter rail and took the train for a good half hour ride. Then, a twenty minute or so walk brought me to the ABBA Arena at Queen Elizabeth Park in London. The arena was built specifically for this concert event. There were several gift shops set up both outside ad inside the venue. Concert-goers could purchase ABBA t shirts, brochures, and other memorabilia. I purchased an ABBA concert program book with photos and an ABBA plastic beverage container.
The concert hall was packed! Thousands of ABBA fans awaited the concert to begin!
The time had come!! I was super excited to see the ABBA ABBAtar images upon the stage!! They looked so lifelike!! The mages had a constant change of outfits, in the styles of their heyday. Images of Agnetha and Frida were singing and dancing, Bjorn was strumming his guitar, and Benny was playing his piano. It was an amazing experience watching these authentic-looking ABBAtars perform with all of the recorded music that ABBA fans have loved for decades.
Many of us in the audience were singing along. I was dancing non-stop and singing joyously at the top of my lungs!!
After the amazing concert, I headed back on the train until it arrived back at Covent Garden. It was time for me to call it a night and get some sleep before the next day’s sightseeing activities.
I awoke bright and early and ate a tasty onion bagel with faux meats and lettuce for breakfast. I had picked it up at B Bagel Soho on the prior day.
While awaiting the train, I glanced over in the far right direction and noticed the London Bridge and the Big Ben clock from the distance.
I got off the train in the London neighborhood where my guide would arrive by tour bus. Our itinerary for the day was a visit to historic Stonehenge, followed by an afternoon in historic old Bath. On the bus ride, I munched on a tasty banana bread snack purchased the prior day at a bakery.
Upon arrival at Stonehenge, visitors are taken by shuttlebus to the main walkway of the historic site. I was quite impressed by its size and the placement of stones. During the seasonal equinoxes, the sunlight shines through between the stones.
A small village of neolithic houses lies near the foot of the Stonehenge structure. It is believed that the workers who erected Stonehenge, lived there.
Wicker beds, clay pots, and hearths were located inside of the huts.
Adjacent to these huts, is a small museum that tells the story of Stonehenge and its neolithic village settlers.
After a couple of hours at this revered attraction, we boarded our tour bus and headed towards our next stop; the ancient town of Bath, England. The town has a more modern section with boutiques and various businesses. Our tour guide gave us some on our own to explore the town. I walked around both the modern streets and the more historic cobblestoned streets with older buildings.
For lunch, I dined at Oak Restaurant in Bath. My wonderful meal consisted of a beet root tartare, courgettes(zucchini slices), and bread with olive oil.
I then headed up a hill and over to a very historic road. For on this particular narrow street, was located the oldest home in Bath.
Sally Lund’s stone house was built in the year 1482. It is now a restaurant, However, guests can peruse the premises to take a look inside if they are not dining there.
My tour guide had told us to be sure to make a stop at the infamous Pulteney Bridge. It was designed in 1769 Georgian architecture style and is one of only four bridges in the world to have shops across its full span on both sides. I paid a visit to take an obligatory selfie by its walls.
My free time to explore the town had come to an end. The time had arrived to meet back up with our guide for an interior tour of Bath Abbey. It is also a former Benedictine monastery. Founded in the 7th century, it was also a medieval cathedral for a bishop and is known as one of the largest Perpendicular Gothic architecture structures in southwest England. Its colorful stained glass windows are stunning.
Upon completion of the Abbey visit, we followed our guide to the Roman Baths for a tour.
The Romans of Great Britain arrived at this location to worship the goddess Sulis Minerva. They were also interested in bathing in the thermal springs waters.
Guests to this attraction may visit the Roman Baths and explore the ruins of the Temple of Sulis Minerva.
There is also a museum containing a bronze head sculpture of the Goddess Minerva, and other artifacts from this period in Roman history..
We also strolled upon the original Roman pavements within the temple ruins.
We also saw several underground rooms that were used as changing rooms for those Romans bathing in the ancient spa waters.
My tour of the Roman Baths complex and the ruins of the temple was really fascinating.
Now it was time for me to experience an authentic British Afternoon tea!
I found the elegant Georgian Tearoom on one of the charming old cobblestone roads in town center.
I chose a lovely British Earl Grey tea with almond milk. British tea s often served with milk.
The tearoom setting was lovely. Beautifully patterned wallpaper with paintings of local countryside scenes decorated the walls. The tablecloths and tea sets were charming. I enjoyed both the tearoom ambiance and the tea itself. What better place to have Afternoon Tea, than in the town of Bath were Jane Austen lived and wrote and drank tea herself!
There was some remaining individual time before we had to board our tour bus, so I headed to the oldest part of town and gazed in awe at the ancient structures and buildings along each road.
The time had arrived to board our tour bus and head back to our original departure point in London. I knew we had arrived back in the city, when I noticed those red double decker buses traversing the roads.
The time for my final meal in London had arrived. I dined at the elegant, all vegan, Mildred’s Restaurant in Covent Garden. My dinner was a delicious alma bowl of quinoa, corn, avocado, greens, beets, and almond cauli al fresco with tiger sauce and omega seeds. My dessert was a butterscotch banana pudding.
As it was Summer, I was craving an ice cream to complete the evening. I walked around the Covent Garden neighborhood until I arrived at Udderlicious. They offer a few vegan flavors. I selected the vegan honeycomb sugar biscotti ice cream. It was delicious!
It was now time to get some shut eye before going to the airport the next morning for my return flight back to the United States,
The airline gave me a wonderful vegan meal during my flight. My meal consisted of rice, baked potato wedges in a tomato sauce, salad, a bread roll, and mixed fruit.
I really enjoyed my visit to England. The ABBA concert, Stonehenge visit, Roman Baths tour, and vegan dining all made it a spectacular trip!