London Town

(Note: Words in italics denote new fave British sayings)

Well I'm back safely after a fantastic trip to England this week!  I've never been anywhere in the United Kingdom before, but let me just say it's soooo charming.  I arrived in Stansted airport (commonly considered the red-headed stepchild of London airports) and after an hour train ride I arrived in the city.  I was surprised that everything went so well, I didn't get delayed, the acquisition of tickets was simple, and once I arrived at Liverpool Station I just bought a weekly bus ticket for traipsing merrily around the city.  Easy peasy.  I wonder if it was so easy because everything was in... English?  Hard to say.

touristy, i know.  but i do it for the readers.

I had several hours by myself before meeting up with my friend so I hopped on a double-decker red bus and stared out dreamily at the old shops, pubs and tree-lined streets of London.  It's so cliche to say this, but it really is just like the movies, just as you imagine it would be -- classic English architecture, dark wood paneled shops, cobbled streets, and a skyline dotted with impressive monuments.  I felt as though I were in a dream, at least one in which I felt fancy for choosing to drink tea with milk and using an accent to say things were rather splendid and quite lovely.  I went to find the British Museum, easily the largest museum I've ever visited with an incredible collection - among the most notable works are the Rosetta Stone (just saw one of the only copies in the Torino Egyptian Museum a few weeks ago!) and the Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon in Athens, so cool to see them in person after studying them for years!  And the beauty of London museums is that they're all free.  Thanks for that, Parliament.

Trafalgar Square, National Gallery.

I decided to pop in for a tea at a local cafe and had to look hard at my currency to decide which equated a pound sterling.  I figured why not try out my novice British accent during this encounter: milk with that tea?  Why yes, indeed.  And where might I find the lou?  He didn't even blink which must've meant I can get away with this.  Delightful!  I met my high school exchange-student friend Franzi at a pub later -- she is currently back in Germany at Uni (university) and we hadn't seen each other in about 5 years.  Of course it was like no time had passed at all and we had a blast catching up.  We stayed with friends of hers from a semester at the London School of Oriental and African Studies, as it turns out she is now fluent in Swahili and is writing her Master's thesis on education in developing African countries.  Wow!

The European Reunion Tour.

We spent a day doing the requisite tourist excursions: shopping on Oxford Street, Picadilly Circus, London Bridge/Tower Bridge, the river Thames, the Tate Modern, the London Eye, Westminster Abbey and Big Ben.  We rode the London Underground and walked all over the city, making sure to include a necessary stop for fish and chips by the river.  There was so much to see, and I was thankful for every moment!  We were exhausted when we returned to her friends' house and went to a neighborhood pub called Prince George which was warm, quaint and above all authentic!  The next day we had traditional English fry-ups (breakfast) and I tried Egg, Bacon and Bubble (leftover mashed potatoes/spinach patty) while Franzi had baked beans and toast, haha.  Kind of missed Italy for a little bit :)

Nothing quite like Fall in England.

We walked through St. James's Park which was carefully manicured and lined beautifully with centuries-old trees bearing leaves of every imaginable autumn color - so gorgeous - then on to Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery before I had to take an hour-long train ride to Brighton.  I met a friend from Uni there at the seaside city of Brighton, a rather unique town with a famous pier and boardwalk on the English Channel.  She'd prepared a dinner party for me with a Tex Mex theme.  (Let me just say, I don't know how I've gone over 2 months without avocado.  Guacamole might just be sent from heaven.)  We walked around the city and caught up a bit before my train went back to London.  When I returned to London the next morning we walked around SoHo and Convent Garden then attended an Indian themed dinner party at a Scottish girl's house.  The night ended in us deciding to hang out in pubs until my 4AM train ride back to the airport.  We toasted our friendship and a wonderful adventure in the UK.

Brighton Pier and the English Channel.

The trip was almost perfect, except the last hour I realized my phone was missing.  At that point I had to catch the train and there was nothing to be done except mourn the loss of the beloved iphone that was undoubtedly nicked from my pocket on the bus.  Bollocks.  Of course now all I can think about are the great pictures I'd taken on the phone from our trip, but I've got to convince myself it could be worse.  I could've lost my passport :/  All in all it was an amazing trip and I loved every minute of it (except the last hour, which was complete rubbish) -- I can't wait to have the opportunity to travel again!

me and my mate Ben.