London

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London here we come govnor. Well this was the stop to catch up with all those Londoners i had met on my travels and see a bit more of it than the first time i was here about 7 years ago. London is a great city and i can see why so many people flock to live there on working visas and passports etc Its a big divers city with many things to do i wasn’t especially fussed about the attractions because i had seen them all before. The first day we did a walking tour for a couple of hrs cruising past Buckingham palace and around pallmall etc Was a good introduction to the city-one thing is for sure in London you are never short of something to eat or a place to have a drink.
I personally needed to dry out a bit after Paris and those sessions at the fith but alas it didn’t happen the second night we caught up with Matt who we met in Athens he was working in the hostel he is only 18 but a great guy again it was really good to stay in touch and catch up with someone who i had met travelling a few beers a dinner later we said our goodbyes but i am sure we will catch him again he lives in Melbourne man i think there will be a few people to catch up with there.

So the next day we did a the natiional gallery which is free in fact most of the museums in London are free but they make up for it with expensive attractions oh i forgot to mention we stayed in Piccadilly circus so really we couldn’t have been better located. We cruised around for a bit the weather was being kind as far as London goes earlier we had booked to see a London show called Stomp where they do tapping and use brooms, bin lids etc for an hr and a half performance. It was amazing highly entertaining and seriously funny it was like a min comedy show.

That night we had arranged to meet another guy i had met Brad who was in Cambodia at the start of my trip at a little but unconventional English pub which looks all English from the outside but plays punk music and has an alternative crowd kinda cool. So we had a few beers with him and swapt stories etc before he had to depart never caught up with him again as planned but thats the way it goes. By this time we had some new room mates a couple of young Aussies from Sth Australia who were good value they had been working in a summer camp out of new york with rich kids.

The following morning we had arranged to do a day tour of Salisbury and Cathedral Stonehenge and Bath it started early and finished late. First off was the town and Cathedral very pretty town and a most beautiful church although we were both well and truly over them by then next of was Stonehenge and the main reason for the day tour the rest was a bonus-it has a mystic about it almost eerie given its age aprox 2500bc or so. The size of it is not what i expected given that i have seen the Pyramids and Petra etc it was a little underwhelming. I am sure in different lights it would look truly amazing pity we couldn’t get closer than the 10m or so. Finally we went to the very beautiful city of Bath famous and so named for the roman baths that still exist today although slightly renovated.

This is a place i could have spent a little longer lots of liitle shops and manicured parks also a lovely river flowing through its centre we had some scones and tea as we wernt doing the baths before setting off on the long journey back about 2.5 hrs that night was a quite one as we were knackered. I had arranged with my friend Ali who i had met in Thailand and caught up with in Barcelona to go and visit and stay the night at her flat in Watford which ended up being fun as she had 6 Austrian friends of hers staying that night as well. So we got the train up there and had a blast the Austrians spoke good English and were great fun it was one of theirs 30th birthday so they were in the mood to party not much sleeping that night but the good news i didn’t have a hangover in the morning.

We cruised off all together in the morning as they only had the weekend to smash up the sights and we met Jo old boss in Perth Graham and his family who i had heard lots about but never met they treated us to lunch which was very generous and it was really nice for Jo to see her old boss. I think we cruised around for a walk in some different areas went to Harrods to be a tourist then went back to the hostel the boys were back from where ever and it was decided to hit the club Ministry of sound for the night and early hrs of the morning ended up being awesome the tunes were great and the guys had to drag me out of there. The funny part was the boys picking up a couple of girls and with my help sneaked them into the hostel funny stuff, really it was their fault we left early but you get that.

So just for more adventure we went to the Nottinghill carnival the biggest festival in Europe and early on it was okay but by the end it was just nuts too many people and too much agro around which was a laugh considering it is a reggae festival and supposed to be chilled out so we checked it out decided there were too many people and it wasn’t for us which iis just as well as i was a bit tired and hungover from the night before. Last night in London was a quite afffair before setting off to Canada. In all London was a fantastic time catching up with past travellers and seeing the city.

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