Oh London, we will be back to take in the rest of your beautiful city.

Standing in front of Kensington Palace.

By SARA VANDEN BERGE

I had this moment in London when I was sitting inside a charming English pub eating fish and chips with The Husband and our best friends and thought, “Holy cow. I’m sitting at a pub in London eating fish and chips with some of my favorite people.”

The magic of the moment I had dreamed of for as long as I can remember wasn’t lost on me inside that pub or while we made our way through the city, taking in spectacular sites like Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Kensington Palace and the Tower of London where we saw The Crown Jewels.

The country is still smarting from the death of Queen Elizabeth and we found proof of that when talking to the locals. Our tour guide got all choked up when telling us about the day of her funeral when he sat glued to the television for nine straight hours.

We even saw a horse and carriage still transporting the loads of flowers that had been left downtown in honor of the queen to the compost yard.

So much of London is tied to the Monarch and seeing the historical sites and learning about its rich history was surreal.

If you go, hire a private tour guide. With only eight hours to explore the city, our driver made a mad dash to take us to the places we wanted to see.

We whizzed around in a cute little black cab that could turn on a dime on those narrow, jam-packed streets; it was worth every penny.

With incredible architecture that has been preserved for centuries sitting next to modern towers that reflect the city’s wealth, London is nothing short of breathtaking.

And its people are delightful.

With London down, we are on our way to Belgium where we will be taking in the city of Bruges.