When I say fish and chips, it typically refers to a dish featuring freshly battered cod or haddock fried in vegetable oil, paired with thick-cut, floury chips. To eat it like a true Londoner, drench your meal in salt and malt vinegar, and add sides like mushy peas, tartar sauce, or a pickled gherkin.

In fact, I can remember vividly the best fish and chips I had was in 2022 when I wrote: “Along the way, we stopped in Exeter at a pub called Travellers Rest and had THE BEST fish and chips I’ve ever had, the fish was fresh and flaky, the batter light and crispy, crunch with no oiliness.” And the peas weren’t mushy!

However, although we have eaten this dish twice already, one thing my grandson and daughter-in-law were looking forward to was the fish and chips experience at Jellycat’s, located in the Selfridges department store. Before our visit, I was under the mistaken impression that it would be a real cafe, with food. How wrong I was! My son’s family had been to a Jellycat’s pop-up store in Los Angeles, and had waited in line for six hours! So this time my daughter-in-law had made an appointment, but even so, we had to wait perhaps 15 minutes. I soon learned that the store is filled with plush, stuffed animals, and the “fish and chips” experience is a clerk pretending to fill your order using plush objects.

It was a hugely busy day, starting with the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. We were told to arrive early in order to get a good place to view the ceremony, which we did from the Victoria Memorial. Still, there were thousands and thousands of people there.

Next we took the Underground to Horizon 22, the highest public viewing platform in Europe, situated on Level 58. It offers 300-degree panoramic views of London, and its high-speed elevators take just 41 seconds to whisk you to the top.

After Jellycat’s, we got back on the Underground to Kings Cross rail station to Platform 9-3/4, famously known to be the magnificent train platform where students can make their way to Hogwarts. Of course, we waited in line for more than half an hour to have a photo taken.

By this time, we were all totally exhausted, and returned to the apartment for another big day tomorrow.

In two days, I’ve taken over 27,400+ steps!