5 Reasons to Visit the UK

Hello Wonderful People!

I've written many a post about all the different places I've visited around the world, but I've never written about my beautiful home country. So, I'm going to venture into the unknown (yet very familiar) and write a few posts about the good old UK. To start off my UK themed posts, I'm going to tempt you all with 5 very good reasons as to why you should visit my home country!

History
If you are into history, then you will be in heaven in the UK. Our history goes waayyy back. We have fancy stately homes, cute black and white building, churches dating back centuries, grand castles, crumbling castles, Roman ruins and Stone Henge. You name it, we probably have it. I have a few personal historical favourites in the UK. Warwick castle is amazing, it’s huge and there is so much to see! Plus if you go in the summer they always put on outdoor events like jousting and archery! Chester is a cracking place to go if you’re into the Romans and the streets have so many amazing old black and white buildings, it’s a beautiful historic city. London is obviously packed full of history, but this is the ideal place to go for all things Royal (obviously). Stratford-upon-Avon is the place to go if you want to check out good old Shakespeare, it is his birth place after all. Wherever you go in the UK, you are absolutely guaranteed to have some local historical attraction, what more could you want?

London
Now I may be biased as London is my capital city, but it's an amazing (yet very pricey) place! You have pretty much got everything here; history, modern buildings, pubs, restaurants, shops, theatres, football stadiums, the Queen; you name it, London probably has it. There are your typical must see things in London; the Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, the London Eye, Harrods etc. But you should also try and see a show in the West End, explore the side streets and take a boat trip down the Thames. I would also recommend taking a visit to Camden Market, it's one of my favourite places in London! There's an amazing market in an old horse yard/ stables and it sells everything from furniture, to clothes, to art. Plus there are loads of food stalls that are amazing. Ahhhhh, I love London... Someone buy me a house there?

People
Again, I’m probably pretty biased as I’m English, but there is no denying we are a great bunch of people. We love a good old drink (tea or alcohol), we are super polite and we love a good queue. I hate to admit it, but we live up to all the stereotypes. If you want to experience super friendly Brits, then head up north. While London is an amazing city, you won’t find much warmth from the people there (you will find a few cracking queues though). Northerners however are known for being friendly (having lived in the North West my whole life, I can testify to this), so head north for smiles and banter. Wherever you are in the UK you won’t struggle to find a good old queue. Beware though, we have a strict queuing etiquette and if you push in line you will suffer greatly for it. Only joking, we are far too polite to actually say anything to a queue jumper. Instead we will angrily stare at the back of their head and maybe ‘tut tut’ their behaviour. Karma will get them.

Food
We are definitely a nation of food lovers, and we have a fair few cracking national dishes that everyone needs to try! Fish and chips is an obvious one, and you’ll find a chippy on most high streets. Order your fish, chips and add a side (my fave is either mushy peas or gravy) simples. Sunday dinner is another classic, however as a veggie I miss out on the roast, but the trimming are always amazing and you can’t beat a good Yorkshire pudding! Pie and mash is a personal favourite of mine and it’s a pretty stereotypically northern dish! The fillings are usually meaty (steak and ale, shepherds pie, cottage pie etc) but there are also veggie options available and a side of mash makes this meal perfect! Pasties are also a popular meal and originate from Cornwall, cheese and onion is a personal fave! We also do a cracking pudding. Think apple crumble, sticky toffee pudding, bead and butter pudding, jam rolly polly, apple pie all accompanied by either ice cream or custard. YUM.

Pubs
Let’s be honest, us Brits have a reputation for drinking. So embrace this wonderful part of our culture and head to the pub. We love them that much they are even allowed to be open 24 hours a day! Fantastic. There are loads of really cracking pubs all over the UK, some of them dating back hundreds of years. Take my local for example, that’s been open since 1614! If you think about it, you’re actually educating yourself on British history when visiting the pub (at least this can be your justification). The UK is also pretty famous for our beers, and there are so many to choose from! You’ve got your big name brands; Boddingtons, Guinness, John Smith, London Pride etc, but we also have tons of local breweries! Ask for a pint of the local ale and you’ll be in for a treat!