Jul 13, 2009

London: Day Two


When I said I wanted my ashes to be spread at Fred Segal it was only because I hadn’t been to Harrods yet. Even on a random Sunday, the crowds lined up outside Harrods 30 minutes prior to opening and the entire city block sidewalk was packed with people waiting to go inside and indulge themselves in London’s finest shopping establishment. The windows of Harrods plainly boast “There’s only one fashion sale” which I found to be a complete understatement when I walked inside and was greeted with Marc Jacobs and Miu Miu handbags marked at 50-60% off.  


The store is ridiculous in every way possible. For women, there’s enough designer apparel, accessories, shoes and beauty products to spend hours pillaging through. Plus, there’s an entire Christian Louboutin shoe section where the shoes are rightfully displayed on black pillars to showcase that they are in fact true works of art.

Men have their own Man pub, electronic centers, musical instrument sections and in-house barber shop. And kids + babies have entire designer shopping sections by Dolce & Gabbana, Dior, Armani and Ralph Lauren. They even have Fendi Onesies!

As if that wasn’t enough, Harrods also had a Pet Kingdom which put the icing on the cake for me! For 92 pounds (or $149 USD) your pet pooch can have it’s very own zebra fur collar. You can pick up a pet rabbit for 55 pounds or perhaps an exotic short hair cat for 800 pounds. If that’s not your style, how about a Cairnoodle which is a mix between a Terrier and a poodle). I was dying when I was the Pet Shop Bakery which serves Pooch Petit Fours, doggie donuts, Pup Popcorn and Canine Cupcakes.  


Harrods also had a full bookstore where I picked up a copy of How to Run a Fashion Label by Toby Meadows. We also enjoyed the fact that Harrods had an electronic store filled with flat screen TVs, home theatre systems and laptops, a music store with cds and DVD’s, a musical instrument store filled with guitars and pianos, and a lighting section dripping with crystal chandeliers in all shapes and sizes. And then there was the Food Hall... I never thought I’d be able to get Dim Sum, Sushi, Sandwiches, Deli Meats and Cheeses in a Department Store. It was unbelievable and of course, the assortment of chocolates looked more like a scene from Charlie & The Chocolate Factory rather than a retail outlet. Also, I just want to point out that the foundation stone of Harrods Store was laid on September 13th, 1911. (This happens to be the same day and month of my birthday which I think is a sign that I was destined to shop at Harrods, even 71 years before I was born).  

I was so excited about Harrods that I entirely skipped over our journey to get there. We took a nice long walk through Hyde Park, which is a huge park located across the street from our hotel in Central London. The entire park is over 350 acres and has been around since the 1500’s. Click here to view the park history. The park has great fountains including the “Joy of Life Fountain” which makes up part of the Princess Diana Memorial Walk and the Statue of Achilles, which was sculpted in 1822.  


We also stopped by Buckingham Palace to witness the changing of the guards and consult our city map to determine our next move. The palace and fountain in front are absolutely beautiful and we lucked out and went on a sunny day!


Stay tuned for my Day Three recap of Primark, Top Shop, Selfridges Department Store and Uniglo! Plus my stories of riding the tube and visiting Notting Hill!

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1 comment

JessicaLee said...

I am so jealous. I knew you'd have fun, but thanks to these blogs, I feel like I'm there with you... the minister on your honeymoon... imagine that. ;) That pup store is adorable! I can't wait to hear the rest!

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