London Part 1: I'm Broke

Ciao Stranger, 

*Note: Most of this was written the day of

Tuesday

Today, we left Paris and make our way to London, England. I have to say, I’ve come to really like this city. I’m not sure if it’s Len’s great hospitality with an awesome crib or the wondrous city itself, but I feel slightly unwilling to leave. We got up early and went to the train station to take the Eurostar, a fast speed train that goes underwater between the UK and France. At first when I heard about it, I got all eager but honestly I couldn’t even tell…I fell asleep 30 minutes into the ride and when I woke up an hour later and looked out the window, I realized I could read all the street signs again (no longer in French). Oh well, it was a comfortable nap I suppose.

 

I walked out of the train station patting myself on the back for making it so far into the trip with no hiccups along the way. I jinxed myself. As I was paying for my Oyster Card (no, I did not splurge out on food or jewelry, it’s the name of their transportation card), the lady at the counter kindly refused my money. Free? Ha, I wish. Apparently the cash I had was an older version and no one accepts it anymore. Okay there UK, in Canada, we just got a new bill as well, but you don’t see us refusing to take the old bills. Money is money! Also, is the UK’s economy booming lately? Why is their currency so outrageously expensive? You think you’re getting something for a steal, but after you do the math for the exchange rate…oh wait…shit. I felt so exhausted after running around trying to get some acceptable money that I wasn’t willing to spend any of it. Just to show you what a cheap ass I was, I got my brother and I BOTH “kid” transport passes. Because taking the tube/bus is so expensive (4.70 pounds =$8.50 a ride), I went ahead and told the ticket vendor the following:

 “Hi Sir. He (my brother) and I are both 15 years old, and we would like to buy the uh…kid passes? For 4 days please.” .

Did I pull this nonsense off? Did he really think I was 8 years younger than my actual age? Who do you take me for? Of course I did. 3.7 pounds a day with unlimited bus/tube/trams? Heck yes! NO SHAME! *bows*

Building of the St. Pancras train station we got out from, which is right across the street from King's Cross station. Not bad at all. Inside King's Cross station, they had a fake 9 3/4 platform sign where Harry Potter fans can take the generic running into the wall picture every tourist seems to have. 

  

Eventually we got to the room I booked on airbnb in one piece. It’s small, but it’s nice to finally sleep on a bed again. After putting down our luggage, we went out to Piccadilly Circus to see what downtown London was all about. Quite similar to what I had imagined I suppose. With a bit more flare to it. I think the picture below captures the essence of London quite well: people and buses in motion with no time to spare.

 

Here's some things I noticed from the few hours I’ve been here:

      1. Everyone seems to be in a rush heading to somewhere. I feel intimidated to even ask for direction. In the tube, half the people are reading the newspaper. Very dramatic change, especially from Italy, the land of the chill. No wonder their train is called a tube, see for yourself how it looks from the inside! 

 

      2. You can hear 10 different languages as you walk down the street in the centre (possibly from the tourists)

      3.. I always imagined London to be well-kept and posh everywhere you go. This is not the case, at some places (quite a lot from what I've seen), it seems pretty sketchy, as in I would never walk around there by myself at night. Actually, I would feel a bit uneasy even during the day.

      4.  Primark (kind of like Forever 21/H&M) is dirt cheap. If you’re on a budget, go there and stock up on everything. 1 Pound for a hat? 25 cents for a pair of gloves? How do they make any profit??? Is a 2 year old kid making these things?

      5. They have a lot of similar stores as the ones in Canada (Ex. Aldo, H&M, Claire’s, Footlocker, GNC, GAP…) so I feel as though I’m in a bigger and busier version of Vancouver.

To end the day on a good note; on our way home, I stopped at the local grocery store and picked up a pomelo for dinner. YAY!!! It was kind of dry but it’s been two whole months and I’ve missed you so! Eddy got some chicken wings. 4 pound dinner for two, booya!  London, just be thankful not all the tourists are like me, otherwise, say hello to an economy crisis!

Wednesday

Because the Sandeman walking tour in Paris turned out so well, I signed Eddy and I up for another one in London. I'm not sure if travelling is taking its toll on us, or the weather is too shitty, but I've lost my motivation to take as many pictures as we did in Paris. Nothing looked particularly unique in London and even the tour was quite mehish. Eddy and I were pretty much sulking the whole time, comparing every aspect to our previous destination. Only upside: we can both understand the language 100%. The most interesting picture I took all morning may have been this from Trafalgar Square. Look! I found a blue cock! 

We were lucky enough to see the changing of the guards as well. Why aren't they wearing the red coats you're so familiar with? That's their summer uniform while the blue ones are their winter one. But honestly, I can't stop laughing at their hats. They're so silly looking, who can take them seriously in those things? I would just want to pat them on the head and cuddle with it. Did you know it takes one bear to make one of those outrageous 3kg hats? Absolutely ridiculous.

And this my friends is Buckingham Palace, the very place where Prince William and Kate kissed on the balcony after their wedding ceremony. I didn't even realize this was it until 10 minutes afterwards when the tour guide mentioned it. It was a bit of a let down, especially after seeing something as majestic as the Palace of Versailles.

Stopped by the houses of parliament and saw the Big Ben and the corner of Westminster Abbey. There was a protest going on at the time, something about a teacher's strike. Then it proceeded to rain. I think I may have experienced all four seasons in one day. It was sunny when we left the apartment, then cloudy, windy, rainy, and finally, hailing. I do not appreciate this kind of weather London.

For lunch, Eddy wanted the most British thing we could find: fish & chips and bangers & mash. What did I think of the meal? Yuck. I've had much better fish & chips in Vancouver. The only thing worthy of putting in your mouth were the mashed potatoes. Looks like I'm going to have to lower my eating standards in London...

After lunch, we walked to Oxford street and I had to go into Selfridges, because I'm a shopaholic and I had to see with my own eyes what this place was all about. It reminded me of Lafayette in Paris but better organized. You want purses, shoes, chocolate, wine, or candles? There's a whole section just for it. There's even fancy cafes and oyster bars there. Check out their selection of cupcakes! Makes Cupcakes and Sprinkles (in Vancouver/LA) look like a joke. I did not get one because I'm not a big cupcake fan.

There's even a grocery store in the back with foreign imported goodies from all around the world. You might have a hard time reading the price tag but those pop tarts costs around $10. And those cake mixes you can find for 99 cents a box? They're 4 pounds here. RIDICULOUS. If you want to work on your jaw dropping expression you can come here, otherwise, save your money and go elsewhere...like Primark?

I had heard a lot about Leicester Square, also known as the Chinatown of London. Made me feel like I was walking around Richmond! Chinese restaurants and Asian bakery stores lined up one beside the other. Rome, watch and learn. This is what a proper Chinatown should look like.

I could hardly contain my excitement. What is this I see?! JIANBING?!?!?! Come to mama! This was definitely the highlight of my day. Sure it didn't quite taste like the ones from Beijing but it's the closest thing I've got my hands on in the last 2 years. I may have cried a little when I went in for my first bite. Thank you London, this alone was worth the trip.

Because I am in London and I've been told by various people that I should check out one of the musicals in town, I decided to get all fancy pants and picked the classic "Phantom of the Opera". I've never seen the movie before so I had no idea what the plot line would be like. Eddy didn't want to spend the night listening to people sing so he went back first while I sat by myself in the theatre, taking in the glorious voices of the talented performers. Damn, they're good. I have never appreciated musicals before but this show have changed things. No I will not be splurging out on more musicals regularly but once in a blue moon for something as truly impressive as this? I would without a doubt. Tip: Don't be naive and think that the handful of ticket booths along Leicester Square are actually selling you "discounted" tickets. If you really want the cheap last minute ones, go to the theatre on the night of the performance and buy it there.

After a dramatic standing ovation ending to the show, I booked it out of the theatre to try and make it back to the apartment as soon as I could. The centre of London may be safe with its streets filled with tourists drinking the night away but I can't say the same for the area I live around. Because I was rushing to get back, I got on the wrong bus and ended up at a dodgy neighbourhood. Realizing what had happened, I started freaking out, ran out of the bus, and asked for directions. While I was crossing the street absent mindedly, I looked to the left, saw that there were no car coming and crossed the street. Halfway across the street, a car less than a feet away whizzed by me. Wait, what just happened? You see, because I was completely flustered over getting lost, I forgot that in the UK, they drive on the other side of the street. So instead of looking left, I should have in fact checked my right side. If I had taken one more step, I would have been hit by that car on the highway. Let's just say when I got back to the apartment, Eddy thought I had seen a ghost as I was still shaking from imaging what would have happened if I had walked just a bit faster. People, please check both sides of the street before you cross it, and don't make stupid mistakes like me and get yourself almost killed.