Sky Garden

Hope everyone had a good St. Patrick's Day! There was a parade in Trafalgar Square on Sunday but it didn't start until noon, which is Riya's nap time. And I figured by the time she wakes up and we get there it will be too much of an adult party. So we skipped it.

On the actual day I booked us tickets to visit one of London's newest skyscrapers, 20 Fenchurch Street aka The Walkie Talkie. Why is it nicknamed the Walkie Talkie? Well thats because it kind of looks like one:

SOURCE

Its only 34 levels high and the 5th tallest building in London. I don't see how it qualifies as a skyscraper, but that's coming from a former resident of Dubai with the world's tallest building :) There are 2 other skyscrapers in London, The Shard (relatively new) and Heron Tower.

Anyway, since the beginning of the year, they have been offering free tours of the Sky Garden that they built on the 35th floor. Booking is required and they have a full bar and cafe so you can eat and sip while you look at the city of London. Unfortunately it was a very hazy day but we stepped out anyway. The set up was pretty and the views would have been nice on a clear day. Sadly we didn't get to stay very long as Miss Riya wasn't having it:/ I don't know that its worth going back to but I can definitely see the appeal if you go with a group of friends to sit and chat and stare at the beautiful city. Since I wasn't there very long, the first few pictures are from the web to give you an idea of what it's like inside.

Indoor garden

My fav bridge is right there! 

The view on a clear day...

Right then, I'm going to be off the grid for the next week or so. We move into our flat on Saturday and then it's non-stop deliveries till the end of the week. Wish us luck!

The Bridges of London

Did you know there are over 30 bridges in London crossing the River Thames? I've already seen a handful and I have a favorite. This week I visited 2. The first was the famous London Bridge. There is a lively Borough market that happens south of the Bridge that I was keen to visit, but I realized Sunday morning that it is closed on Sundays. Major bummer. But I'll be baaccck! As we approached the London Bridge, I have to say I was a bit disappointed. There was nothing special about this Bridge. Why was it so popular? And why have we been hearing about it our whole lives in the form of a nursery rhyme? Apparently it used to be the only bridge that crossed the Thames river back in the day. I guess that's pretty significant.

Near the London Bridge are two other must see spots: The Monument and The Shard. The Monument to the Great Fire of London stands where a massive and destructive fire occurred in the 1600's. There is a gilded urn of fire at the top of the structure.

The Shard is the tallest European skyscraper. Riya and I have plans to go inside next week, so more on that later.

While standing on the London Bridge I caught a glimpse of a beautiful bridge across the way. I quickly learned it is the Tower Bridge and was determined to visit it during the week. It was just as beautiful from afar as it was in person. It was ornate and colorful. Apparently it used to be greenish and it was repainted in the 70's to blue, white and red in honor of the Queen's silver jubilee. While walking up and down and marveling at the structure, I felt right at home. I missed having history at my fingertips. A lot of thought and planning went into building this bridge, which was one of the first after the London Bridge. It was also featured in the 2012 Summer Olympics. If you have a few minutes, you should read about it.

View from London Bridge

The Tower Bridge also has an exhibition area with glass floors so you can actually see 140 feet below into the River. The way to get there was not stroller friendly (argh) so we had to pass it up this time. But I'll be baaaaack! 

Riya @ 18 months

Riya is officially 18 months old today! There is no doubt that we have a toddler on our hands. She is a walking-talking-demanding little lady!  It's been awhile since I dedicated a post to our little darling so I figured her 18 month birthday would be a good time to catch you all up.

First Word: apart from "mama/dada", "ya" and shaking her head "no", she has consistently started saying "Appy" which I'm equating to "Happy." First thing in the morning in fact, followed by a wet kiss on the cheek:) I've been working on one syllable words with her for the past few weeks so I am very surprised. It's a fitting first word, though pretty complex for an 18 month old if you ask me. The word definitely fits her personality. When she's not teething, she is always happy and giggly:)

Favorite Foods: this tiny little girl is a carb-a-holic! Bread, pasta, and potatoes are the top of her list. I'm not worried too much about her carb consumption since she doesn't stay still for a second. She needs the fuel. Apart from carbs her appetite for various foods fluctuates. Its funny how a past favorite becomes a cast away over night. Consistently, she has been fond of mixed berries and grapes in the fruit category, and sweet potatoes and squash in the veg category.

Likes: 

1. Pointing. As she digests more of her surroundings, she has started to point things out. It's so adorable and a really good way for us to communicate.

2. Old MacDonald Had a Farm. She is currently obsessed with the song and the Baby Einstein Animal Farm video. She loves to throw her hands out and dance away whenever she hears this song. It's also a good way to diffuse her when she gets frustrated.

3. Climbing. Its a whole new world now that she can walk and almost run. She loves going to the park and climbing up and down the slide a 100 times. And when we are itching for a break but don't want to go outside, we walk around our building and she climbs all the stairs to her heart's content. Our new home won't have any stairs in or around the property, so let's see how she copes with this!

4. Balls. The obsession continues...but now she can actually kick the ball. Will be so fun when it gets warmer to go to the park and kick the ball around.

5. Hide and Seek. She loves to hide behind the TV or behind a blanket and wait for me to call out to her.

6. Splashing. She loves to splash in the bath and Luca's water bowl. She also enjoys dunking her puzzle pieces in there. Of course if I provide her own splashing bowl, she is not interested. Kids!

7. Bottle caps. She loves taking them off and screwing them back on. Oh and when we're in a pinch, a contact lens case will do just fine.

8. Stuffed animals. She has really grown attached to the Teddy Bear we brought with us and wants Bear near her at all times. It's so adorable and I cannot wait till she realizes she has many more stuffed animals waiting to be unpacked!

Dislikes:

1. Diaper changes. Is it time to potty train yet?! It's become a wrestling match every time I have to change her diaper. The minute I put her down, she rolls off and walks away. It's gotten to the point where I have to change her diaper while she's standing up and distracted by something else. Good times.

2. Long bus rides. Seems like 20 minutes is her tolerance level and after that, I have to find a way to keep her occupied. Same goes for long car rides.

Height & Weight: I haven't had a chance to get this checked out but once we are settled in our new home, I will be taking her to the doctor for her 18m shots. But my guess is 29" tall and 20-21 pounds.

Teeth: Sadly we have not acquired any new teeth since she was 13 months old. Despite having several strong rounds of teething, we are still holding strong at 6 (4 on top and 2 on bottom):/

We spent our morning going to Primrose Hill to get panoramic views of the city. I had a good work out pushing this 20 pounder up in the hill in the stroller. It was quite cold and windy at the top but Riya loved walking around and got insanely happy when she saw a bunch of dogs.

Doggy! 

Snacking at watching dogs = happy chick

And here are some of my favs from the last 6 months-

Google and Buckingham Palace

This past Saturday, Riya and I finally got a peak at the elusive Google offices here!

It was another beautiful day and so we headed out to 123 Buckingham Palace to check out Ram's office. After running into a few public transportation glitches (not 1 but 2 buses terminated early and then we just had to walk), we finally arrived at the front steps.

At the moment there are 4 Google offices in London. Plans are underway to combine all of the offices into one building. Apparently, the recent plans were not good enough and they are back to the drawing board! Only the best for the best! The London office is one of the top offices next to Mountainview and New York. The facilities all vary slightly but it's all there- nap pods, ping pong tables, fuse ball, lounge and snack areas, and who can forget about all the yummy gourmet food. Of course the London office would not be complete without a red telephone booth! Sadly, I did not get to eat there but in the next month or so, Riya and I will have a lunch date with Ram. 

Riya caught sight of a balloon early on during Ram's tour, so she got side tracked and was really upset when the balloon just disappeared...hee hee. We weren't sure if pictures were allowed, so I just snapped a few, but these are pretty representative.

One of the many cafeterias on site

Gaming area 

Lounge area

It was cool to see where all the cool stuff happens!  Afterwards we walked over to Buckingham Palace. Because, well, it's right there. How lucky is Ram?! Now that I think about it, lunch dates will be mandatory so we can increase our chances of seeing the Royal family!

Anyway, as we got closer to the Palace, we saw mobs and mobs of people. Apparently I got my dates mixed up because they were all there to witness the Changing of the Guards. We didn't have a good view since we arrived late to the party so we decided to just snap a few pics and skip out. I don't mind saving this bit for when we have guests in town:) I have to say, Riya's future home is really pretty!!!

It was so hard to get a good shot of the guards. They look so tiny next to the Palace! 

The London Eye and Aquarium

I'm happy to report we had an action packed weekend! Not only was there gorgeous weather all weekend, but we have also overcome our bout of teething for now (no new teeth to report though) and my happy giggly baby was back!!! Riya also decided to start doing one nap a day, which made exploring this weekend so easy.

Friday we set out to go to the London Eye and the London Aquarium which is right next door. The London Eye is Europe's tallest Ferris Wheel and viewing point until they outdid themselves with the Shard (Europe's tallest skyscraper). Although I love Ferris Wheels, one look at this one and I was good with both my feet firmly on the ground. I still saw amazing views of Westminister and Big Ben cross the bridge.

After a quick photo shoot, we headed towards the Aquarium just as it opened its doors at 10am. It was quite pricey at 19 GBP (advanced ticket rate) but Riya was free, so it balanced out. They have several levels and lots of very cool things to see but we only managed to stay there for about an hour.

It took a minute to get used to the darkness and once Riya adapted, she happily started walking around and pointing at all the fish. When she was about 8-9 months old, we took her to the Dubai Aquarium and she wasn't very interested. I got to see a whole other side of her curiosity this time around. She was so cute walking everywhere and directing me:)

I did make sure we hit up the Arctic area and see the Penguins. I love Penguins. We will have to go back another time to see the Seahorses, Rainforest, and all. All in all it was a great start to our fun-filled weekend!