An American in London - Finale

Awoke on Sunday morning witha terrible headache from the nights festivites. Oh and the sun was streaming in through my window around 5:30am....way to early for me. I was meeting my friend Joanna for lunch at Waterloo station at 12:30 for lunch so I had to hop to to get there on time. My time mangement skills have gone array since my arrival in Europe. I somehow end up running late and then proceed to get lost inside Waterloo station, but finally meet up with Joanna.

We walk towards the river and chat along the way. We end up eating at this pizza place right on the river and get to people watch while catching up. It was a very good lunch, I´m glad I got to talk to a friend. We laughed about the culture across the pond and she told me about Scotland. I´m thinking next year Scotland will be on my itinerary. She had to get back to studying for her exams so I ventured out on my own.

I took my time walking down the river from Millenium bride towards Westminster bridge. Surprisingly it was a very nice day out. Still cold, but sunny and little cloudy. Passed the London Eye and decided that I didn´t really want to wait in line, considering that London weather is so unpredictable. I got some good shots of the street performers and Parliament. Crossed the bridge and walked around Parliament and Westminster Abbey.

I had already done the tour last time, and just felt like walking London. I walked around the abbey and got some shots of the street and of lost looking tourists. I hope they came out well.

I hadn´t really planned my day out but decided to take on the Notting Hill and Hyde Park district. Managed to take the right tube this time and walked down to Notting Hill. Instantly fell in love with that area. The houses and the side streets were beautiful. The trees along the sidewalk and the cute shops with enticing window displays. Stumbled upon Portobella road and spent a few hours browsing the market. Met the most interesting shop keeper that sold tiny versions of famous statues. Naturally I was fascinated. I love miniture stuff. Spent some time talking with him and his wife about the statues. Almost bought one, but decided against it considering the state of the dollar.

I was supposed to call my friends work cell phone when I was headed to Kensigton gardens to meet up with him and hang out. But my phone was acting up and none of the calls went through, don´t know what was going on with that. I´m able to receive text messages at no charge to me(so people feel free to text me) but sending them cost me. As does outgoing calls. I´ve only talked to my mom and sister since my arrival, so please don´t feel left out if I don´t call to chat. DO feel special with text´s. :)

I wandered through Kensington Gardens and was trying to find flowers to photograph. Sadly, I found none. Lots of large picturesque trees surrounding a lake, but no flowers. I ventured over to Kensington Palace and would have toured it had it not been for the even that people were setting up for. It looked like a black tie affair, because most of security was dressed in tuxes and outside the gate the performers were getting ready. The performers(or the two that I saw) were on stilts and had bird feather looking costumes. Very cool. I made my way around the lake and sat and watched a group of guys play futbol. I also got to see a dad and his young daughter feeding the swans on the edge of the lake. Nice pictures to follow.

By the time I left Kensington garden it was getting dark and I decided to take the bus back to Picadilly Circus and then catch the tube out to the flat. Picadilly Circus is absolute chaos to me. The noise coupled with the vast amounts of people is too much for my senses.

My favorite sight are the flock of Japanese tourists buying outrageously priced souvenirs.

A note on Japanese tourists: they have a stereotype of always hanging their cameras and money pouches around their neck. I have not been dissapointed on this trip. Every Japanese man has had a camera similar to mine dangling from his neck. It´s screaming "Please steal me!" My uncle is Japanese and he does the same thing. I asked him once why he travels with his expensive camera around his neck, showcasing to the world his valuable possesion. He said that if it´s in the front and not in his bag then people aren´t likely to steal it. Doesn´t make sense to me, but hey, to each their own.

Finally get back to the flat and grab dinner at the pub where we had made friends with the bartender the night before. He remembered me and I got my pint for free! Got back to the flat and I needed to rearrange my suitcase and stuff because the mini cab was coming for me at 4:00am to take me to Stanstead airport for my flight to Seville. What time did I actually get to bed? 2:00am.