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I'm going to go with London City. I think that's where I am. Anyway, I haven't been able to blog too easily as my computer hasn't been hooked up to the net and I've been checking with other computers and such. I could have blogged had I remembered my password. I didn't bring an adapter for the UK so I couldn't really use my computer without completely killing the battery (just turning it on drains it a bit...needs to be replaced). I'm in a hostel for tonight and some kind gentlemen left an adapter in the outlet. I'm borrowing it. Hopefully he won't mind. I'm in a coed dorm with 4 beds and it appears as though the other 3 are guys. Plus side: they have a lot less stuff and the room is barren. Compare that to all the other hostels where the girls had crazy amounts of luggage and stuff strewn everywhere.
The past few days have been good though I think it's safe to say that 2 days is not long enough in London and it's stressful trying to fit in everything! The traffic is slow but even worse are the tourists on the street. I know
I technically am one, but I certainly haven't felt as much like one. The tube is great but I was on the tour bus a lot today so I could see above the ground. I decided I don't like Hanley's (did I spell that right?) toy store very much because there are floods of humans and it smelled bad and I just wanted to walk down the street! I ended up walking in the bus lane for a bit just so I could get by. Ugh!
I was disappointed to leave Edinburgh, but I finally got a chance to meet my friend Mel who I have known through skating sources for 7 years but this was the first we met in person! It was not so great getting to Katie's. I made it everywhere ok but I think for next time I'll mind when I book my flights and make sure I'm not getting to my destinations at midnight. I had to take the train from the airport to Katie's and she told me to change at Clapham Junction. The guy who sold me the tickets tried to help me out by having me change at Dorking which would
get me there over a half hour earlier and would cost me less. What he didn't tell me was that when I had to change trains, I'd be dropped off in the pitch black at a station with no lights and no directions to its adjunct. I hit the info button to ask where to go and the guy said, "I wouldn't know that." Ummm...really? Seriously? Ok. Whatever. I'll walk down the pitch black steps and find it myself! I asked a couple people on the street and made it ok. I only had 13 mins to find it. When I arrived in Epsom, it took about 20mins for a taxi to come to the lineup (there were a bunch of us impatiently waiting) and then when we got to the college, we weren't sure where to go but luckily Katie came out to meet me! Her place was a welcome change from the hostels I've been in.
I decided to do a bus tour because I haven't done one and I just wanted the ease of everything and to see the city without tiring myself out walking because I'm on my last legs. It takes a long time
to get anywhere on the streets, but I saw a lot. Was disappointed I didn't get to go in more places, but I did accomplish a lot for just 2 days. Yesterday I went in the tower of London which was pretty cool and I saw the crown jewels. I didn't get into the city very early or to the tower with much time to spare so I didn't get to stay in there nearly long enough but I saw a few key places--the chapel, the jewels, where they tortured/executed people, the prisoners' tower, part of white tower...and I bought the guide book which I found interesting and helpful. My bus tour came with a river boat cruise so I took that back down to Big Ben before heading back to Epsom. (That was a train ride back and forth which wasn't too bad...about a half hour or so).
Today I tried to get up earlier but had to repack everything and find my travel alarm so I didn't get going as early as I probably could have but that's ok. When I got down into the city, I chose the wrong direction to work my way in because
Big Ben
Not as big as I expected.I ended up missing out on the ticket I bought to see St. Paul's Cathedral--I actually did get to see the inside, but none of the cool stuff like the crypt. Hopefully Faye can use the ticket!! So anyway, I started off by finding my hostel, dropping my stuff off at a locker and then finding the first tour bus outta there. It took quite a while, but I eventually made it to...where did I go first? Oh yeah, Horse Guards. I kinda feel bad for the horses...and then the guards...for having to deal with all the annoying tourists!! I spent some time standing next to one of the horses and he? she? kept looking at me... but I didn't start a trend by petting it. I think the guards probably get annoyed by that even though so many people do. I then decided to try to walk to the shopping district which was where I went wrong because it took so much time to walk down the street and penetrate the wall of people. The shopping part was great, but I never made it to Buckingham Palace's Gardens, the memorial fountain to Princess Diana, the inside of Westminster Abbey--that's
Coolest performer ever.
Christopher or Emily, I suggest doing this as your next day job. what I really wanted to see. I would have gone to St. Paul's then that or reverse if I had known how impossibly long it would take to walk through the shopping district. Oh well. I'll just have to come back, right!?
I met Faye & Jake for dinner which was really nice. We took the tube down to Covent Garden which used to be a market where they sold produce I believe. Anyway, there are a lot of restaurants down there and we chose one...Prince of Wales...and ate the most amazing British Pub Cuisine we could have wished for!! LOTS of food and she shared so we could have a taste of all the British pies and fish and chips. Quite fun! We walked around a bit, stopped in a couple of stores (including Lush!) and then walked over London Bridge to see Tower Bridge at night. I really wanted to see Big Ben at night but that would take a while to get to and the logistics weren't anything I was too terribly interested in that late at night. Again...I'll just have to come back!
So I'm finishing up on the internet and hoping I can
sleep with the pub right out my window. I also hope I can get back into my room because the last time I tried, I couldn't get my card to work. That was also the first time and now I know a trick or two thanks to someone down the hall. Tomorrow morning I fly out from London and go home. LOTS to catch up on and do (papers for Spain and for capstone, family's coming for the week!). Rest assured that even though this is my final entry from abroad, I still have lots to say about the trip. I want to do a recap on the places I stayed, the cities I visited, the places inside them, what I want to see in the future and all that good stuff.
Cheers! (and thanks if you've been reading!)
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