I traveled to Europe for the first time in November 2019, with London being the first European city I've ever visited. I chose London to be the first European city I visited since it's an English speaking city with a culture similar to that of NYC - plus the number of available cheap, direct flights from JFK. I explored London over four days with the goal of visiting all the major attractions in the city.
London is a very juxtaposed city, with ancient landmarks and buildings over a millennium years old mixed with sleek, modern skyscrapers and trendy shops/restaurants. The main area in London (i.e. City of London) is not very large, making it easy to get around with the tube (i.e. subway) - taking around 30 min to get from anywhere in the city to anywhere else.
Besides exploring the City of London for most of the trip, I also took a day trip to Cambridge University. My cousin that studied there also happened to be visiting London that week and gave us a tour of some of the popular spots on campus. After spending a few days in London, I took the Eurostar train from London's St. Pancras station to Paris' Gare du Nord station.
Places Visited:
Tower of London
Tower Bridge
Buckingham Palace
Palace of Westminster/Big Ben
Eye of London
Cambridge University
Tate Modern
Borough Market
The Apple Market (Covent Garden)