Hello from the SAS lounge at Heathrow! This is my last official round-the-world on-the-road email update - unless free internets and something exciting happens during my few hours in Halifax. Next task will be posting the pictures I took and doing a final round-up of things seen and unseen.London was terrific. I forgot how much I love this city. Know what I don't love? That the dollar just about hit an all-time low against the pound. Luckily, I'm staying with friends. This may sound horribly xenophobic, but it was a relief to be in a country of English-speaking smilers (regardless of the quality of British dentistry.) I spent the night at the Heathrow Hilton. All I wanted to do was sleep - but why, oh why did they book me in a handicap room? I demanded a new room and they complied - no roll-in shower for me!
Victor fetched me the next morning and off we went to their house in Royal Crescent. The last
time I visited the Melleny/ Montgomerys, I was in college on my way from Ireland to Scotland. My task was to witness their *very* long will. Anyway, after catching up with them, I spent the day wandering around Holland Park. That evening, I met up with Grainne and Kevin who live a few blocks away. They had arranged for me to stay at their friend's house which is also in the neighborhood. Quite convenient having a friends with an extra house a few blocks away, eh? The next day, I played tourist. You still need to mind the gap in the Tube, and it's still the easiest to navigate, best labelled subway system.
That meant crossing over London Bridge (not falling down), the Tower, Buckingham Palace, Kensington Gardens and all sorts of highly civilized things. I rejected the option to see a show (much to
the relief of my friends). I ducked into the Victoria and Albert in search of a quick bit of culture. Oh - and b/c it was free. I'm relieved that they still have the hot pink Swatch phone I had as a phone-chatting teen You'll be glad to know that their exhibit on NY fashion includes a pink Juicy Couture suit and highlights from Sean John aka 'P. Diddy''collection. There were stacks of people gathered round commenting on what a travesty it was to include his crap. Obviously, this was a ploy by the clever curators to inspire discussion and debate about What Is Fashion. Blah blah. I still think broken dishes are lame, and didn't much like the exhibit on Surrealism. Same holds true for all medieval and ancient art, regardless of country or origin or materials used. I mean, once you've seen the Hermitage...
I joined my friends, Kevin, Grainne, Grainne's sister and Grainne's sister's boyfriend for dinner and drinks near Hyde Park. We had this odd experience of standing in the middle of a dead-end street outside a group of pubs that was packed with bond traders and other financially minded Londoners. In part this was because the smoking ban went into effect on July 1.
That meant crossing over London Bridge (not falling down), the Tower, Buckingham Palace, Kensington Gardens and all sorts of highly civilized things. I rejected the option to see a show (much to
the relief of my friends). I ducked into the Victoria and Albert in search of a quick bit of culture. Oh - and b/c it was free. I'm relieved that they still have the hot pink Swatch phone I had as a phone-chatting teen You'll be glad to know that their exhibit on NY fashion includes a pink Juicy Couture suit and highlights from Sean John aka 'P. Diddy''collection. There were stacks of people gathered round commenting on what a travesty it was to include his crap. Obviously, this was a ploy by the clever curators to inspire discussion and debate about What Is Fashion. Blah blah. I still think broken dishes are lame, and didn't much like the exhibit on Surrealism. Same holds true for all medieval and ancient art, regardless of country or origin or materials used. I mean, once you've seen the Hermitage...I joined my friends, Kevin, Grainne, Grainne's sister and Grainne's sister's boyfriend for dinner and drinks near Hyde Park. We had this odd experience of standing in the middle of a dead-end street outside a group of pubs that was packed with bond traders and other financially minded Londoners. In part this was because the smoking ban went into effect on July 1.
It was also b/c the weather was gorgeous and no one wanted to be in a dank, dark pub. (Incidentally, those guys' suits are WAY nicer than anything I've seen state-side). The strange thing was that they had men in neon vests who kept pushing people into the street so as not to block the pubs' entrances. I counted the sound of eleven dropped pint glasses, so clearly it was the place to be. It was a great way to spend my last night in London and round out my trip.
Incidentally, Grainne and Kevin hold the record of friends-seen-in-most-cities (Boston, Cape Cod, Hartford, NYC, DC, LA, Dublin and London.) Anyone up for the challenge to cross paths with me in more places? Let me know...
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