This post has been written for the theme “26 Places, 26 Memories” for the #AtoZChallenge.
W FOR WESTMINSTER CITY, LONDON:
London, the capital of England, is divided into boroughs or cities for easy navigation. The City of Westminster covers most of Central London, and is densely populated. This part of London includes Buckingham Palace, Palace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament), shopping areas like Oxford Street, the theatre street of Shaftesbury Avenue, the tourist hub of Piccadilly and Soho; making it extremely popular with visitors.
I lived in London from 2011-12 while pursuing my Master’s degree. My travel series contains many posts on England, because I consider it my second home; having accumulated wonderful memories from my visits to this country. The story I’m narrating today took place in April 2012, when I was a student.
WILD WINGDINGS AT SOHO, WESTMINSTER CITY:
Soho is the liveliest part of London, with an array of bars, restaurants and kitschy night clubs. The most exclusive party places are located here, the kind where you aren’t granted entry unless you’re on a guest list. One such place was ‘The Box’, which two of my Danish friends and I decided to visit, one fateful night.
We began with drinks at a cocktail bar in Soho, to save on the exorbitant prices of the club. Around 11:00 p.m. the three of us stood in line for entry to the club. Fortunately, we didn’t have to wait long. The bouncer recognised one of my friends, who was a model, and allowed us to cut the line and enter.
Excited, we quickly bought drinks and joined the mass of humanity dancing to eclectic music. ‘The Box’ is a chain of nightclubs originally from Manhattan, New York; best known for its ‘variety performances’, including cabaret and various unique stage acts.
As the night progressed, we realised the advantage we had as three young women. We got free drinks from a waiter who took a fancy to one of us. Later, when I saw a turbaned Sardar, a fellow member from my religious community, I ecstatically introduced my group to him. He in turn, warmly welcomed us to his private VIP table by offering free drinks.
At about 2:00 a.m., a special star performance was announced. The famous American rapper Snoop Dogg arrived on stage! We couldn’t believe our luck. His performance hadn’t been advertised and we had no idea we were in for such a treat.
Later still, my friend charmed our way to the exclusive ‘Green Room’; an area demarcated for VVIP’s where drinks flowed free and security was at its highest. This part of the club was divided into three rooms and was scarcely populated. We first had our fortunes read by a fascinating drag queen, who predicted that I would study further before getting married (her prediction proved wrong!).
From there, we sauntered into the next room and gasped with surprise. Snoop Dogg was sitting on a bed receiving a shoulder massage. Completely star-struck, we giggled and told him how much we loved his work, only to receive a tired smile in return. Not wanting to bother him, we didn’t ask for photos!
After an eventful and enjoyable night, we left the club close to 6:00 a.m.; to scarf down food at McDonald’s on Piccadilly Circus, which had just opened for the day.
This night is the reason I love London- it’s the only place in the world where I could party with two Danish girls, a Sikh man and Snoop Dogg on the same night 😉
Come back tomorrow for the letter X and another story!
Memories of many fun nights with my friends in London, 2011-12
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A for Amritsar, B for Bhopal, C for Cambodia, D for Delhi, E for England, F for France, G for Gwalior, H for Hemkund Sahib, I for Italy, J for Jim Corbett National Park, K for Kamakhya Devi Temple, L for London, M for Munich, N for Naples, O for Odisha, P for Prague, Q for Qila Mehrangarh Jodhpur, R for Rishikesh, S for Singapore, T for Tarifa in Spain, U for Udhampur in Jammu & Kashmir, V for Velassaru in Maldives
Haha another wonderful anecdote, Noor. You had a great time and your pics in all the posts say it all.
Thank you Vartika!
Lovely post and I seems you had so much fun on this wonderful place.
Thank you! It was loads of fun!
My bestie studied and worked in London for a decade and I had been there for a trip to visit her. Just shared your post with her since it brought back so many memories of fun times during my trip.
Thanks for it sharing it Sonia! So glad it reminded you of good times 🙂
Loved the title as much as the weave. Must have been such a fun night. I am an early sleeper and always missed such parties in all the 22 nations that I had worked.
Glad you liked it Roma! Life has made me an early sleeper too, so no more of these nights for me!
Another good experience. Looks like you both had fabulous time there Noor.
Thank you 😊
London is my absolute fav. I have been there aplenty of times and Westminster Abbey is still unexplored 😛
Haha next trip then 🙂
You had a great time for sure. Another wonderful memory shared 😊
Thank you 😊
I so want to visit here! Just love this place
London is absolutely fantastic!
i have to go there now!!
Quite a night you had at the Box. You lead an eventful life in London.
Yes it was quite eventful!
Hahaha!! That was a good read Noor. You girls certainly seemed to have charmed your way to a few delights that night.
I loved London when we visited last year. We found it a Tourist friendly easy to navigate place. 🙂
London really is amazing 😉
I love London too, and have great memories of my visits there. Nothing to beat your one-hell-of-a-night thought! .Snoop Dog!! Wowww!
Sad I have no pictures, no 🙁
London is just awesome!
Interesting read Noor. Loved ur pics…London sooner than soon….
Glad you liked it 🙂
Amazing and unforgettable experience indeed, enjoyed reading.
Thank you 😊
Hmmmmm…London aana padega…Hahaha…good one…looks so elite in the pics.
#ContemplationOfaJoker #Jokerophilia
Glad you liked it!
London is absolutely a lovely place.. Been to London 5-6 times when I was in UK. Girl trips are always best 😀
Your travel diaries are a great motivating force to me! You girls might have had lots of fun:)
Yes we did!
Oh My God!1 You met Snoop Dogg!! How cool is that!! I am mighty impressed!! Seems like you girls had a rocking evening. Great pictures, Noor!
Thank you! It was really very memorable?
London is a beautiful place.. It is on my must visit places list. Your pics say it all that you had a gala time there.. Loved reading your post
Thank you
You know what Noor! You look the best amongst all !! Yes, the article is nice and pictures are beautifully shot. But, I loved your looks amongst everything. So elegantly dressed while radiating positive and wise vibes. Being a travel influencer, normally I focus on the content of a travel article. But truly, I couldn’t get off the vibrancy of your looks in this one!
btw, I had been to London last June and visited Westminister Abbey A number of times. Loved the place and aura there
Thank you 😊
So many glad memories of that night in London with Danish friends. I’m enjoying reading your series:)
Thank you 😊
Wow you saw and spoke to snop dog in real life! How exciting! I really enjoy listening to his songs. 🙂
😊
Loved the blog, beautifully written, and I am damn sure, the evening would had been a damn dope experience for sure because of Snoop Dogg.
It really was!
I love this post, infact every post in ur #BlogchatterA2Z series. This is such a fun post to read and I can imagine the fun you had.
Thank you!
wow… This is really an awesome incident, I can relate how we feel when we see our favorite celebrity . This post is well written and I am waiting for your next post from letter x.
Thank you! The post with X is up now!
For a girl who still dreams to travel the world someday these stories make me more excited and give me feels as if I should go right away. I have not read all your stories but planning to read all your travel stories as soon as I can.
That is really so sweet Nazish! I’m so glad you enjoy my stories. I really hope you get to fulfil your travel dreams soon 🙂