Parting is such chocolatey-sweet sorrow .....

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Geo: 51.5002, -0.126236

I decided to go all out for breakfast - what better way to spend my last few moments in Paris than to stuff myself with pastries? I skipped the baguette, and bought a croissant and a viennoisie. It was a shame as the croissant was only OK and the viennoisie wasn't so great - it's just bread with chocolate chips. Naoual told me they were great - I should have gotten a pain au chocolat, instead. Of course, I probably just picked a crappy bakery.

Grabbed a ham, cheese, and tomato sandwich for the road. Got to the airport via the suburban train (RER) - there's not much information available telling you which terminal you need to go to. I ended up wandering around aimlessly for a bit before figuring out where I had to go. It turned out that I needed to take a bus to the terminal.

I made the mistake of not buying a pain au chocolate before going to the airport. I could have bought one at the place where I got the sandwich, but I was worried that I would crush my little pain au chocolat on the ride to the airport. She's very delicate and bruises easily, you know! I saw some crappy-looking (and expensive) ones for sale at the main terminal. I took a risk and decided to wait until I got to the departure gate. But it was a mistake! They were sold out!!! Noooooo!!!! Why? Why??? WHY!!?!??!?!?!?!?

A similar thing happened to me two years ago in Paris - I was unable to see my little pain au chocolat before I left. But leaving her behind this time was even more difficult - it is a love affair that knows no bounds. We are soul mates and are destined to be together - one day, I will hold her in my arms again. I will caress her, kiss her, and then devour every last morsel of her. Do not feel sorrow for her; her only joy in life is self-sacrifice. She only feels true happiness when she gives every bit of herself to me - every last delicious flaky bit of crust, and chunk of chocolate. My love, my life, I will see you once again!!! I will wait for you, no matter how long it takes!!!

I arrived in London and checked into the hostel. I went for a walk in search of food - had a chicken wrap for 2.5 pounds. I thought the price wasn't terrible for London, until I saw how tiny the thing was. London is the only place I have been that makes Switzerland look affordable. Grabbed a brownie at the Tesco - I needed a sugar fix. Afterward, I felt terrible ... I had cheated on my little pain au chocolat ... but it meant nothing, I swear!!!

Off to Covent Garden - no matter how many times I go there, I never tire of it. I saw some amazing photos for sale - they had all been photo-shopped to add some pretty amazing effects. A combination of art, photography, and graphic novel. Some elements were added, some enhanced, and some were subdued - pretty incredible. I wandered around a little while - normally, I don't like touristy markets, but Covent Garden always manages to impress me.

Returning to London was a great feeling today - my whole trip had come full circle. Also, I was supposed to meet Emilie tonight - I was very excited to see her again. Did a little shopping and walking before meeting her. Covent Garden is a great area to go for a walk.

I was a few minutes late in meeting her in the basement of the market - I hoped that she would still be there! I wandered around and saw no sign of her. Then I saw her at the top of the steps - I was so excited that I actually ran up the steps two at a time to greet her. Though we've only been friends a short time, seeing her again felt like I was meeting a friend that I've known for ten years, and hadn't seen in over five. I'm not sure if that makes sense or not.

The last few weeks of the trip have been great - seeing John and Nugget in Florence and Paris, Naoual, and now Emilie. It's been a great way to end the trip - visiting friends. Emilie and I hung around a bit and listened to a great opera singer (Covent Garden always has great performers). Minutes before, there was an amazing string quartet playing.

After, we walked around and talked ... it's very unusual for me to feel so comfortable with someone I have known for such a short time. She gave me some perfect gifts - a simple French book (Le Petit Prince) that she recommended as a good way to start learning French, and a London fridge magnet. She remembered me telling her that I wanted enough fridge magnets from my travels to cause my fridge to tip over due to the sheer weight of them all.

We wandered over to St. Martin's, Trafalgar square, Leicester square, Piccadilly Circus, and finally back to Covent Garden. I had seen a burger joint earlier - we went in search of it. I was dying for a burger - it had been a long, long time since I had one. I went for the bacon cheese burger with a side of fries. Good stuff! The damage was almost 8 pounds - almost $18 CAD!!! It wasn't even a true sit-down restaurant - you order at the counter, find a seat, and they bring you the food. Still, it wasn't that bad of a price for food in London.

I had bought a birthday card for Aude (she was coming to visit Emilie for her birthday) and asked Emilie to help me write a short message in French for her. I ended my message with the comment "I hope you enjoy the pate". We were shopping for groceries in Croatia and I had picked up a can of cat food, and asked her if she wanted to try some pate. I still need to buy some "pate" for Emilie to give to Aude when they see each other.

Emilie is throwing a surprise birthday party for her friend Audrey tomorrow, and invited me. It should be a fun way to end off my last night in Europe. Emilie had an early class tomorrow so we went off to the tube. I got back to the hostel, chilled a bit, and then went to sleep. The room is frickin' hot!!!

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