I arrived yesterday at 9-ish am local time and took the underground to my hostel. From there I wandered over to Shepherds Bush, which Pip advised me is the city's Little Australia (a London Tourism website advised me that the neighborhood is affectionately known as "Da Bush"). Later in the day I took the underground to the Westminster stop and sightsaw/sightseed? I saw the Parliament building and Westminster Abbey, and walked to the Thames on the North Side Riverwalk. After walking up and down the Riverwalk, I crossed a Jubilee bridge (cute name, right? there are two matching ones on either side of train tracks) to the South bank of the river and visited Trafalgar Square.
There was a man dressed as the Grim Reaper reading names over a microphone, standing on a high promontory next to the National Portrait Gallery. Officials brought him down...
Some of the boys from the hostel and I went to a pub for dinner and pints last night. It was very fun, but, having been awake since the day before, I was exhausted and headachey. I wound up falling asleep that night after 28+ hours awake. A personal record, I think.
Today two of my roommates, Tom and John, and I met Joanna and visited her school (UCL) and the British Museum. Afterward, Tom Joanna and I saw Buckingham Palace (though we missed the changing of the guards) and some lovely parks. Jo and I then walked to Trafalgar square and the Riverwalk on the South bank, eventually crossing the Millennium Bridge, which to me has the divine association with the 6th Harry Potter film. By the time we got on the train back to her house we had been touring for nine hours.
I'm putting in some serious walking time and sightseeing effort, and have been thoroughly exhausted as a result. The beds at the hostel are clean but less comfortable than sleeping on a hard wooden floor, and Tom snores so loudly that you'd think it was a cartoon impersonation of snoring. I figured out a way to plump up my pillows so that they're thick enough for me to fall asleep, thankfully, but what I really need to invest in is a set of earplugs.
Oh, my! You should have gotten the earplugs people use on the NYC subway system. They probably have them in London as well. Sounds as if you're fitting right in...NOT shocking. Keep enjoying, be cautious, and most of all, keep blogging! If you really don't feel you need a phone, don't get one. UP TO YOU. I love you so much! Have some Yorkshire Pudding and a couple of popovers (with LOTS of butter) for me!!!
ReplyDeleteMommy ;)