I got to travel to Europe again this year! I did a spring trip to Amsterdam and then London (taking the Eurostar train to get from the continent to England). I ended up going to Amsterdam because the Rijksmuseum was holding an exhibition on Vermeer; the most of his paintings that had been gathered in any place at the same time, ever. I really wanted to see it, and plane tickets were relatively cheap. My parents suggested adding on London and I'd been wanting to go back there as well, so I did- not knowing that the coronation was going to be happening while I was there. I really don't care about/pay attention to the royals at all haha so it was a big surprise to me and did mess with my plans a bit, due to some closures and protests.
I still had an amazing time, and it was something completely new for me to see both of these places in springtime! The tulips in Amsterdam and the bluebells at Kew Gardens were incredible to see; I've genuinely never experienced anything like it before. I also saw wisteria for the first time! It did rain very often though- on my first day in Amsterdam (one of days I spent entirely outdoors), and almost every day I was in London. Just something to be aware of I guess! A good cardigan and spending time in museums helped.
I wanted to go for a sax/lavender theme more or less for this trip, to match the spring flowers and Dutch pottery I knew I'd be seeing a lot of. I also added a couple other favorite spring/floral pieces, and of course Bunnies in London- cannot pass up a chance to actually wear it in London again!
I'd actually paid extra to get the Peter Rabbit dress shipped to me ASAP (I bought it in 2022 but it was a preorder so it took a while to ship) because I'd applied and been granted a private viewing at the British Museum of their Beatrix Potter artwork (most museums will let you see parts of their collection that aren't usually on public view if you make an appointment ahead of time) and I wanted to wear it to look at the Peter Rabbit paintings. The dress arrived just a few days before my trip, and then while I was on the Eurostar to London I got an email that my viewing was cancelled because there was a strike at the museum that day. I was honestly devastated- while I absolutely support the museum employees striking for better labor conditions because without them we wouldn't be able to view this art at all, I am obsessed with Beatrix Potter's art and had been planning this for months. Having the one day of the strike be the same day as my appointment was terribly bad luck. The museum wasn't even closed that day, just no one was in the department! I'll have to see them next time though; I want to do a separate trip to the Lake District to visit her home/museum, so I'll just have to add a day or two to see her artwork at the museum then. And I did have a lot of fun wearing the dress for the first time either way :)
I'd been to Amsterdam once before, years ago and in the autumn. I remember it being very rainy and dark, but beautiful. I loved being able to explore the city on my own this time and seeing a bunch of new places. I was also able to truly appreciate it, since I'm much more interested in art and history and architecture now than when I was a child.
I was last in London a couple years ago, before covid. That was actually the first trip I ever took where I wore lolita! My style this time around wasn't nearly as sweet so I think that's why I had a much nicer time interacting with the people- my last trip in London was definitely the worst as far as 'interactions with normies' I've had in Europe (could just be a matter of bad luck of course, as this time was totally fine!). There are so many amazing musuems in London and they're mostly free which makes going there much more affordable. For me at least, the cost of museums adds up fast. I got to see a couple artworks for the first time that I absolutely adore, it was wonderful.
I arrived pretty late on this day so I basically just checked into my hotel and collapsed into bed. I have a photo of my view- I only had to stand on the bed and zoom way in to get this pic XD
I rode a double decker bus for the first time! They're really fun actually- sitting on top by the front window you get a really neat view as the drivers go down narrow London streets. And it's a lot nicer than riding the Underground... while the trains come on a much better schedule than in Chicago, the L is a lot nicer in my opinion. You get gorgeous views on the elevated trains and they're not nearly as loud.
I visited the Tate Britain this day; they had an exhibition on the Rossettis, so in addition ot the other artwork there was even more Pre-Raphaelite treasures here. I'm torn between the Pre-Rapahelites and the Impressionists for my favorite art movement, and the Tate has both Millais' Ophelia and Waterhouse's The Lady of Shalott. I definitely teared up getting to see Ophelia in person for the first time- a couple years ago I copied this painting in a photoshoot, and it's still one of, if not the favorite photo I've ever taken. I'd love to do something similar for the Lady of Shalott- I love the story and the poem so much- but finding a boat and sewing the dress is a bit harder so I don't think it'll happen soon.
I then took a Thames River taxi from the museum all the way up to Greenwich; it's a really beautiful boat ride, that takes you past a ton of iconic London sights so I'd highly recommend it. Greenwich is very pleasant, with cafes and bakeries and a nice walk up to the observatory with a lovely view. Unfortunately I was a bit too distracted by the bakeries and ended up missing the last entrance in to the observatory by just a couple minutes! I got to stand on the Greenwich mean line anyway though, as there's a bit of the official golden line that's just outside the museum. The trip up and the area are really nice though so I don't think it was a waste at all, I'll just have to keep track of time better next time I'm in London so I can actually see the museum :)
I started the day off by going to the Victoria and Albert Museum. I enjoyed it- the massive hall of cast sculptures especially- but to be honest I found the fashion collection a bit disappointing. Considering how much everyone talks about it and the size of their collection I was expecting to see a ton of things on display, but there was only a little. I saw more historical fashion at some of the museums in Amsterdam. I did see the lolita coordinate that's on display though! It's a Baby set. I liked her bloomers a lot but the print isn't one I'm really a fan of (but tbh if it was I'd just feel sad it was locked away in a museum where no one could wear it). The description for the coord was completely benign though and not inaccurate to lolita fashion in my opinion (mostly because they avoided saying anything about lolita beyond saying the outfit is in the "so-called Sweet Lolita style") so I think that's the best we can hope for.