London Travels: Warner Bros. Studio Tour London

(This post was written right after my mid terms ended...but it never got completed so here I am today on the final day of raya hols trying my best to catch up on posts before trials approach :-(((( I miss the freedom of post-mid year feels zzz.)

warning: the pictures are of horrendous quality so brace your eyes because we only had my iphone as a camera. (and it also doesn't help that there are odd filtered pics here and there so please mind that)

Hi everyone! I can't imagine there to still be active readers here but if you are then thanks :D I'm back after a hella long week of midterms which are actually still going on since I have lit & sivik on monday but hey..... sejarah and add maths is done right?

Anyway I'm back to update my London and Paris trips and then blog on 2016 recent events cause I got one ask in askfm to update about my current life instead of hols but I MUST finish blogging my trip cause I seriously want to look back at this when I'm old and grey. So, here's day 4 (skips day 3 for later) of my London trip where my sister and I headed to Warner Bros. Studio Tour in London. Specifically Watford, Leavesden and we were staying at central London ie. Lambert North so it was a loooooong train ride.

Fun fact one: I've only watched the harry potter movies (a gazillion times, in fact) and I love them! Despite being a total bibliophile, I don't own a single book but have requested for the full set for my 17th birthday this October. Holy shit. I've had this blog since I was 14 and I will be turning 17 this year. Wow ok. (sorry lost track a little) I actually do not agree with those die hard book fans of Harry Potter and how they adamantly insist that people who find pleasure in watching harry potter solely (and not reading the books) are not "sincere" or just "following the trend" but truly, truly the movies are an art in itself! so adorable it is to see the evolution of the movie making industry throughout the eight movies and I personally enjoyed the fourth movie (Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire) with the first movie (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone) being a close second to my favourite. I may have different favourites when I have read the book though!

Fun fact two: My sister and I went off to Watford all on own as my parents were not fans of Harry Potter (well my mum isn't anyway) so they decided to go off separately.

First we got on the train from Oxford St. to Watford station and disembarked only to board the Harry Potter Tour bus where the driver was INCREDIBLY friendly. Honestly, everyone in London was super friendly and they kept thinking I was only 12 when I was actually 16 LOL :( Upon arrival, we were greeted by the most gorgeous signboard EVUR. Too bad I didn't get to take a pic with it cause I was too stressed out handling the ticket conversion and getting all the "gear" but I did manage some snaps of Gurupriya when we FIRST saw it

Ticket claim seriously did not go well for I mixed up the instructions and assumed that we were retrieving our head pieces once we entered the studio but nope!! I got suspicious as we roamed nearer and nearer and everyone else seemed to be fuddling with their ear pieces and I was like ??? better check with someone.

So I found a nice young girl probably no older than myself and asked her if I made a mistake and she was like "oh no" I completely understand why though. My dad booked a HORRENDOUS timing for us to visit the studio as 2 other schools (yes, SCHOOLS) both a primary and secondary school were having a field trip there. Hence, I was bombarded with the NOISIEST line of young school girls & boys chatting excitably away. People watching in London is beautiful and this was a lovely opportunity to observe how the schools in London functioned but I was too pre-occupied with my predicament of not having the equipment which I paid for.

The girl was so unhelpful at first though and told me that I had to crawl through the line to get it - ??????. I was shell-shocked and frantically looked at my useless sister for help who just stood there annoyed. THANKFULLY the girl understood why I was so flustered and told me to just wait there as she heroically passed the lines to get some of the head pieces for me.

I WAS INCREDIBLY TOUCHED. Considering the fact that I am writing this post about 5 months later and still remember her gesture truly proves how much I gratify her actions. Honestly, whoever you are, thank you so so much. But this isn't my only encounter with friendly people/workers/Londoners in general. Can you imagine how Malaysian or Singaporean workers would've treated me if I were to have committed the same mistake here? HAH I turn hysterical imagining the complete impossibility of me receiving the same treatment from the workers here. What I CAN imagine though are snarky smiles and remarks or annoyed and tired grunts. Oh, how ironic cause don't our Sejarah books teach us that us "Asians" are "innate" with "budaya ketimuraan" or if literally translated, the Eastern culture. WHATEVER stereotypical expectation that may be.

       

the super troublesome digital guides :(

Anywho, we FINALLY entered the studio and was first greeted by the Main Hall. Oh, the beauty of it all in reality is too ravishing to be described with mere words typed out on a pixelated screen. Sincerely, I was blown away by everything. However, if there was a single complaint I had of the place, it would be the complete lack of lighting. It gave off a mystical, whimsical look- sure - but the lightning really did not play a part in helping us achieve a good shot which, lets be honest, is second to the main objective of enjoying the whole experience.

We just navigated through the entire labyrinth of a place with the help of our digital guide and here are some of the (somewhat salvageable) pictures we managed to take!

btw: me fiddling with the stupid digital guide that was honestly the cause of 9/10 of my problems that day. Not only was I in charge of an impeccably irritating (and by impeccable I mean she NEVER FAILS to annoy the shit out of me) little sister, I had to ensure all electronic belongings were in check. Throughout the tour. Gosh. 

gryffindor common room!!!

good god I extensively remember how hard it was to get the picture above (kinda gave up as you can see how blurry it turned out) The large clock was actually moving which was pretty cool but it gets irritating when you need a shot with about 100 people waiting for theirs.

 All I could think of was Snape and Harry Potter and the Philosopher's stone and how Snape so savagely and viciously burnt Harry.

The detailing of everything there....my oh my. Absolutely stunning. Spot the Yule Ball sign! From my favourite movie out of all the eight. Where the Ron and Hermione ship started sailing. yas.

dat lighting. beautiful.

little ron and harry. sobs.

no doubt one of the coolest exhibits ....and we weren't the only ones who thought so...zz

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA ICONIC. HONESTLY. You see, the exhibit was really interesting and of course everyone and I mean EVERYONE was rushing for a picture. My sister and I finally made it to the front area and lo and behold this guy could NOT stop with his selfies. It took so long to the point that I gave up and just took the above picture of my sister. Her frustration is hella vivid. I LOVE IT. 

MINISTRY OF MAGIC!!!! soooo stunning. INFINITE HEART EYES.

Stupendous lighting. :-)

got one of the workers to take this pic of us on the display of the hogwarts express. ahhahaha sorry ur skills aren't appreciated. :-(

There were mini stalls at the Hogwarts Express exhibits which were all so gorgeous with various Honeyduke sweets and Harry Potter merch but holy shit. The prices were exuberant. My parents gave us quite alot of cash that day but I already felt bad cause the tour itself costed a fortune not to mention the whole Europe trip so I restrained myself. They had beautiful leather diaries each engraved with the house symbols and gorgeous clothing but I had to stop. :-( just got a nice tee for dhanya, a raglan shirt for myself and a sweater for my sister. We also got a original Harry Potter poster which was quite a good bargain I feel. They were also selling Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and lots of other Harry Potter extras and I was so excited to get my full set but found out they costed more in London than in Malaysia. It was rm420+- there whereas in Malaysia the highest price would be no more than rm300. :-(((((((

Iconic hogwarts express wall picture!!

Weasely residence! please ignore my gross face. 

One of my fav fav fav exhibits; 

so grand and gorgeous!

Paper version of hogwarts!!!!

Outdoors we visited the set of Harry's home on Privet Drive, the crooked wooden bridge, knight bus and bakers cottage alongside a couple of other props provided.

One things for sure, the wind was blowing like mad. and London's cold and chilly winds know no bounds. They were frightfully cold and honestly, I miss it.

\

Evidence of the strong winds ^^

The knight bus is definitely one of the best things there!!! SO CUTE. 

gurupriya why you look so pissed HAHAHA i think it was due to the cold. Gosh my lips were so chapped at this point in time.

here is an EXTREMELY sad pic of me and the wooden bridge cause of my sisters incredible photography skills. + being the whiny 11 year old, she kinda gave up on pictures after a while hence why I didnt have a single good shot on that day :(((( tip: if you are an elder sister, please get rent a one-day photographer if you intend to visit this place all by yourself with your younger sibling. just trust me on this.

that zoomed in quality tho. 

Did you know that they only limit 5 people at once on the wooden bridge because of its unstable structure? It isn't just the illusion of it that made it crooked but was in fact, crooked! So they have to maintain it by positioning a worker there to only allow 5 at a go.

asked a nice lady who was lining up behind us to help us get the shot! meh skills but I appreciate her kindness. 

Then we headed in to get a break before we proceeded to Diagon Alley and the Hogwarts Exhibit (WHICH WAS STUNNING BUT LETS SAVE THAT FOR LATER SHALL WE)

they served it in 2 portions - one being the small with the plastic cup (which we got) and the other being a big which came with a souvenir "mug" which looked cheap and plastic hence why we opted for the earlier.
butterbeer well.....lets just say its not for everyone. My sister (who at first was so persistent in getting the larger cup) absolutely resented it with the reason that it was too sweet. I found it oddly pleasing. The taste well, think of butter. And coke. It's sorta like the mixture of the two w- fizzy butter? It doesn't sound good when I put it that way but if you're anything like me you would find the taste confusing but enjoy it nevertheless.

taken on the table we sat at.
let me take this opportunity to write on the souvenirs we received which you can see ^. They were the basic pictures which costed 40pounds. Ok let me explain, we got them at the green room (where all the pics I possess are blurry as heck). Here, we had the chance of experiencing flying with a broomstick and it was magical. my sister didn't like her video but I did so on impulse, I got 2 pics with semi-meh harry potter backgrounds and the holy pendrive which consisted of my flying experience. SO COOL. but lets be real, total waste of money. Which is why I felt guilty througout the trip. HALO 40 pounds i bloody 280myr. hahahhahaha god the regret.

ok moving on...
back touring!!

DOBBY MY LOVE </3

And now...Diagon Alley.

Let me tell you, Diagon Alley was gorgeous! There was SO MUCH too see. With its adorable shop names and whimsical get-ups, it felt as though a fantasy was made real. Wow how cliche but I kid you not, the experience was breathtaking. Then again, the lighting, not so much LOL.

i look GROSS im sorry but this flash pic is just to show you how bloody dim it was in there. and beautiful. 

puking pastilles at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes at 93 Diagon Alley!!

Ollivanders!!

after loitering around and being flabbergasted by everything Diagon Alley, we finally approached the end of the tour where the grand Hogwarts exhibit was and HOLY CRAP IT WAS STUNNING. The arabesque detailing of the castle standing in frigid, wintry air where cold winds reverberated around really set the aura. And of course,it had to have the worst lighting. Pictures DO NOT do it justice and I guess it is just a majesty that shall only live in my memories. 

And thus, nightfall dawned upon us (nightfall in London equated to around 5pm) and we exited the tour. It was an enthralling experience one that I will forever hold close to my heart and I have my parents to thank for giving me such a privilege. It also served a great reminder that Hogwarts will always be a place I can call home may it be if I return to the Studio or through books. 

before exiting, we saw three hand moulds of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. 

and so we went a little berserk at them.

goodbye Harry Potter Studios :( till we meet again. 

waiting for the bus outside alone on the chilly streets of London with our souvenir books! ^^^

And so that marks the end of our third day. (I shall blog about day 3 next) This whole post took me approximately 5 hours because of the transferring of photos :-((((((( anywho I shall blog once again (perhaps soon, or maybe  not idk HAHA) hopefully this long-ass post makes up for my absence cause I have been a lazy blogger. I hope to be more active soon but bye for now! and thanks for reading.

     

London Travels: Oxford Street, Primark, Big Ben

Update: finished filming the first part of my vlog!
The filming is still quite shaky, editing pretty choppy and quality slightly suckish. BUT I truly believe it is a big step up from my Singapore vlog LOL. I'm still yet to master the music transitions so please excuse that. Hope you enjoyed!



Hello my fellow readers.

I highly doubt there will even be anyone here cause my blog is really dead but for those of you who are I thank you for sticking and bearing with me!! You have a special place in my heart. yup you!! JUST YOU.

If you do not follow me on any of my other social platforms, then this will be news to you. haha.
I recently returned from a two week trip to Europe with my family where we went around London and Paris. I had no intention of being sentimental and gooey in this post but I can't help myself cause dreams really do come true!! I have ALWAYS wanted to go to Paris since I was a child cause I loved this tv segment Madeline. Has anyone else ever watched it? I'm still yet to chance upon other people who have!!

anyway, I still remember the show very very vividly. It was about a small girl named Madeline who was pretty notorious, hence she attends a boarding school in Paris and the show revolves around her mischiefs and fun all around the beautiful city. oh- and the eiffel tower is in the theme song I believe. So it has intrigued me immensely for quite some time now. I also easily reminisce back to the COUNTLESS number of times I have asked my parents about the electricity tower approximately 500 metres away from our house in association to the eiffel tower. I was so confused but gradually understood the difference as I matured with age.

London came up in my life agenda a little later. around 2011 I believe, when one direction caused their first uproar. I fell IN LOVE with their accents and even MORE in love with their culture as I read around here and there. tell me, which 12 year old would have known the biggest misconception about London is Big Ben. And by that I mean, did you know that Big Ben is only the GREAT BELL of the clock inside the Elizabeth Tower? So basically people have overlooked the name of the tower and over time labelled both the tower and the clock under one name- Big Ben. I knew that when I was TWELVE guys. 12.

So yes, you can see why I was so so so eager to go on this trip. Not only am I reliving my 6 year old fantasies but I just love travelling in general and this was my farthest trip yet.

we disembarked from PIA to KLIA around 4.00 am 27th of November. And from KLIA to Heathrow around 10.10. It was an 18 hour journey overall, including transit. My dad booked a direct flight from KLIA to Heathrow instead of the usual transit in Dubai cause he found it more convenient albeit slightly costlier. The journey was OK I guess. The food was horrendous, the flight on-shows got boring after a while, the small compact space got into my brain as I had a headache and rushed over to empty seats to lay down. Just before touch down, a small Korean boy had air sickness all over the seats.(I knew he was korean cause I heard his parents constantly asking him if he was okay, in korean and I could understand AND I WAS SO PROUD!!!)  I was in aisle so I could watch with dismay- and admiration as the head stewardess was pretty good. The usual. I love-hate flights. The trepidation of flying sucks, the process of flying sucks but being in the air off to a strange, foreign land is cool.

from penang to kl

as we waited for our flight to Heathrow, my family decided to have breakfast in Old Town. They do incredible breakfasts and supper. I do not recommend going there for lunch or dinner though, I do not enjoy their meals during those times.

finally we boarded!!
from when we first entered the flight..................

to when I just woke up and had a meal. LOL I look so terribly pale.

I vlogged more than took pictures so please excuse if they are lacking. we finally reached Heathrow and took two trains to Lambert North where our apartment was. yup, apartment. so much cosier and practical than a hotel to be honest.Lambert North is a really really good area considering it seemed like the center of all of London!!

My first impression upon London was amazing. And I wasn't even out yet. You see, during the subway ride, a very British couple entered the tube and sat right opposite us. They were probably 55> and were the cutest little things!! The lady wore bright red lipstick and had on a festive little party dress. She was sitting and applying NAIL POLISH. ON THE TRAIN. She caught me staring and smiled and asked if her nails looked ok. I incessantly nodded my head in awe and she laughed saying it took skills to do so. The man was also super adorabs. He wore a LEGIT British top hat and took selfies with his wife (presumably). SO.SO.CUTE!!

 Then two young ladies entered the same tube, talking on top of their lungs. Or shall I say, gossiping. I learnt a lot about their lives during the ride cause they chattered non-stop. REALLY LOUDLY. I learnt about their love lives, whose boyfriend sucked, what he did to her and what she did to him. You know. Then gradually more and more people filled in and I zoned out slightly and stopped my people watching for a moment only to be interrupted by a teenager probably my age or slightly older who stared at our suitcases as he entered and said "colourful suitcases" to my mum. How sociable are the people here?!

after an 18 hour journey. excuse how shabby we look cause we just weren't bothered by that point.

anyway, we reached north lambert safely and checked in to our house where the hostess Sherry gave us some information.

mine and my sister's room. It came with 2 rooms, a bathroom and a kitchen. So my sis and I took one and my parents, the other.
we were all KNACKERED from the flight and instantly had a warm bath after having a slight taste of London's freezing cold air. After that, we had some instant noodles to wash off the disgusting flight food aftertaste and slept. told you we were worn out. that's basically day 1. hahaha.

MAGGI MY LUV.

The next day, all of us got up bright and early (4am but it wasn't bright lol) cause 1) we were in London!!! THE CITY OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, SHAKESPEARE, GOOD PASTRY AND RED TELEPHONE BOOTHS. and also mainly 2) we were hella jet lagged. - I'm actually typing this at 2:00am on the dot cause I just woke up from sleeping thanks to my seemingly incurable desynchronosis. anyway, my sister and I were the first ones to shower and get ready and eat bfast so we were impatient and decided to go on a morning stroll alone.

It was the loveliest walk I've ever been on and the bustling streets of London were already alive at that point ie. 5am. People were hurrying about with fast-paced talks on phones, black cabs fumbling up and down with equally jet-lagged and starry eyed tourists and the workers in a bank opposite us looked so forlorn and serious I couldn't help salute. It is absolutely lovely to people watch in London. We walked all the way to Westminster Bridge Road where there was a red telephone booth which caught our attention. as usual, headed over to get some pictures and decided that was enough for a good chilly morning. When I turned to head home, two young guys on bicycles who HAD BRITISH ACCENTS - although probably a Bath accent - asked me how to get to bloody Victoria Station. I just stared at him for a right old minute and simply apologised for not knowing. He instantly recongnised my unfamiliar English accent and sheepishly backed away. This happened one a many times here in London whenever I roamed the streets alone. I think it's because I look like a Londoner considering my Indian descent which does largely populate the city. (although I can't rectify so cause I didn't seem to think as such during my stay)

headed home and our family finally traveled together. we took the tube again from Lambert North to Oxford Street.

I'm no photographer but I'm incredibly proud of this perspective shot!! 

 We planned a day in Primark cause my whole family wanted to shop and TRUST.ME. even for my frugal little Indian family, Primark is clothing HAVEN. The prices are pretty reasonable in accordance to TODAY'S currency exchange rates and they can even be regarded as cheap!! even I, a person who absolutely resents shopping had to love the place. I couldn't stop picking up stuff. they were ALL. TOO. CUTE. in the end I bought myself a couple (I say couple, there are a lot) of new shirts, a sweater, a new coat and a new set of PJ's. my family went to town too!! My mum is really vain and enjoys shopping immensely for your information hehe. So we practically ended up with 3 huge shopping bags.

However, Primark was closed when we arrived cause like I said, we were up super early. They only open at 8am and thus marks our first street roaming.

 had a lovely stroll along the brimming streets as we watched the sun rise and entered a Sainsbury to grab some snacks for an additional breakfast. Nope, not sorry.

random shot in Sainsbury's where we picked up possibly THE BEST CHOCOLATE FILLED DOUGHNUT I HAVE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE. and if you have been following me for quite some time, you should know that I have had my good share of doughnuts. and Sainsbury's do incredible ones. Please trust me on this.

after primark, we walked along and found a shop called "Kingdom of Sweets" which seemed really interesting but was easily transparent enough to show how tourist targeted it was. No price tags on any of the items. It frustrated me deeply cause I wanted to buy the Reese's peanut butter and Bertie Bort's Every Flavoured Beans from Harry Potter but I am kinda stubborn and refused to entertain such establishments. My sister on the other hand, gladly bought a whole jar of sweets for £2 which was kinda interesting.

(spot my little sis's Primark bag hehe)

 not long after, we headed back home for some chill time. And after a while, headed back out again. This time we walked to see the ever-so-famous Big Ben in the Elizabeth Tower (winks a gazillion times) and also the London Eye as they were located barely 7 minutes from our homestay.

 where is big ben!!! I only see us!!

after admiring the magnificent tower, we walked further ahead to get shots of the London Eye which was situated right opposite this bad boy. The London Eye was OK not as stunning as I presumed cause it looked just like the Singapore Flyer I went on previously. but at night MY OH MY. It is NOTHING compared to the flyer. It is beguiling in the winter's night, especially.

we walked on and continued taking pictures of everything. believe me when I say London is so beautiful that I couldn't stop taking pictures of every single building. may it be a house, may it be a shop lot, may it be a historical site; they are all ravishing and it takes at least 2 days to get used to such beauty.

picked up leaves for my travel journal!! which got lost in the process of packing for Paris LOL its ok this picture is enough I guess.

there's actually a hilarious story behind these pictures. You see, the jeans I was wearing that day was for some odd reason really loose and kept slipping down. So I halted my mum and sis and asked them to help cover me as I trudge my pants back up. But my dad, being the designated and dedicated photographer he is, couldn't stop taking pictures of us doing so HAHAHA. too funny.

more with big ben although we walked away from it quite a distance but stumbled upon a lovely area for shots.

continued on and came across a GORGEOUS cathedral. can't quite remember its name but it isn't St.Paul's.

 there aren't that many great shots of it cause by this point we were just exhausted and ready for dinner and a good sleep. It was only 3pm in the picture above but we walked home at 5pm when the skies were literally as though it was midnight. It kinda screwed everyone over cause it felt like we were supposed to be tucked up in bed when in reality it was only half the day gone.

bought some takeaway from chicken palace, a random diner near our house!

The chicken wings were FANTASTIC. 

and thus day one came to an end. It was a productive day but we did go to bed early for we were awake alarmingly early that morning and the fast changing skies were of no help too. hehe. Stay tuned for day 3! 

Thanks for reading and I'll see you soon.