It was a Friday morning. I woke up determined to make it through my morning class, hit the library, and catch up on reading before the weekend began so I'd have less to do later. Well, I went to class. At this point I was feeling the long week catch up to me and had to force myself into the library. It helped that home was two tubes away (I was still in the hostel then) and it was easier to walk next door to read than fuss with the underground. After a solid hour-ish of struggling through work I couldn't take it anymore. I was tired, getting hungry, and starting to imagine that the genomes my book was describing were little characters in their own soap opera (that's when you know you need a break). I was done, but I didn't want to go back to the hostel.
Suddenly, I decided to be... daring,
brilliant, spontaneous, courageous, crazy... take your pick. I
remembered that I had looked up a gluten free food place in south
London, but couldn't reach it before because I needed an oyster (tube
card). Lucky for me, living so far from campus made it impossible to
get around without one and I had purchased a week's pass of unlimited
tube rides in Zone 1. Perfect. The only problem was, the place was in
Brixton Village Market, in Brixton, in Zone 2. Dun,
dun, DUN!!! Being under the impression that I would be grievously
punished for trying to enter Zone 2 (they check your pass as you
exit) I devised the brilliant plan to take the tube to Vauxhall (end
of Zone 1) then bus it to Brixton. It would be cheaper to pay for the
bus than buy another ticket. I was going to be a public transport
expert by the end of this adventure!
Finally, after successfully navigating
the overly complicated bus system I was in Brixton! I walked through
so many little markets and kiosks and creepy back alleys, but none of
them were Brixton Village. I saw fish stores, clothing stores, stores
that were only large enough to fit the sales rep and his questionable
stock of cell phones, but no Village. I was just about to give up
when I saw (I am not kidding you) a small door-like opening in a wall
tucked behind some vegetable stands with insignificant lettering
above it reading “Brixton Village Market.” Blame all of the
library time or the fact that I was starving, but I looked at that
hole in the wall and thought, “seems legit” and walked on
through. To my surprise, through the hole stood a quaint, fairly
large and beautifully laid out covered market that seemed so much
safer than from where I just was. In no time (and a lot of searching
because they shove their stores so close together it's easy to miss
one) I found my store! It was large enough for a bare-essentials
kitchen, a small display case and a few tables and chairs around it
on the street. Long story short... BEST GLUTEN FREE FOOD OF MY
LIFE!!! I ate a quiche and salad with ROSE LEMONADE!!!! To die for! I
even bought a Victorian Sponge Cake for later! (see pics and go here for the food pic: http://instagram.com/p/fnylsxE7rf/) It was well
worth the sketchyness!!!!
I made a note of the wonderful area and
found my way back to the tube, poised to go home. However, part way
home on the underground, the tube came to a station that the tube
woman announced as “Green Park. Change here for the blah-blah
lines, blah-blah, and Buckingham Palace.” Re-energized and still
feeling unusually spontaneous, I jumped off of the train in search
for the sight of a life-time! Two years ago, when I visited London,
we drove past Buckingham Palace, but didn't get a good look. This
time, foot-loose and fancy-free, I was going to get my fill. As I
walked through Green Park fantasizing about meeting Prince Harry and
becoming royalty, I saw my first squirrel of London!!! I'm not
superstitious, but I knew then that my journey was blessed. In no
time the gold of the gates that stand between the palace and the park
glinted, lighting my way. A few steps latter, there it was! So
beautiful and ornate! I climbed the stone wall to get a better view
and take pictures. What a beautiful sight on such a wonderful day!
Having worked up a bit more of an appetite I thought how poetic it
would be to eat my Victorian Sponge Cake while basking in the view of
Buckingham Palace. So I sat there, nom-ing on my cake, feeling free
as a bird.
Once my pastry was finished I hopped
down and explored the grounds, getting as close to the gate as I
would dare (or as close as the guards would let me). I walked around
taking pictures for what seemed like forever. Just as I was content
with my travels and about to head home, I turned and saw BOTH Big Ben
and the London Eye in the distance. New mission! I walked around the
borough of Westminster for hours looking at all of the different
sites and taking copious amounts of pictures. I visited Big Ben, I
waved to the London Eye while standing above the River Thames, and I
even stood next to Westminster Abbey herself. I was loving my day
being a tourist. Taking in the sites and staring stupidly gaping at
the statues was just what my Friday needed. Soon, evening fell and I
decided it was really time to head back to the hostel.
The next morning, filled with the joys
of the day before and still wildly impulsive (not sure what put me in
such a good mood that weekend) I decided to run through Hyde Park. I
knew if I went far enough I would hit the palace again! In all
reality, I knew I wouldn't get that far, but it was a good motivator!
I started off and immediately realized how beautiful that park is!
Seriously, Hyde Park is a MUST SEE in London (not one you'd normally
think of, but worth it). I ran through beautiful trees (a rarity in
the city) and dogged ducks and geese as I proceeded to get lost in
the maze of the park. I would turn a corner and see a pond, then turn
again and a brilliant golden statue of I-don't-know-who would pop up
out of nowhere. Then turn again and hit a monument for Princess
Diana. Suddenly, as I was running it began raining. But here's the
thing about London...
London Fact Number Eleven: It doesn't
actually rain in London. Not
REALLY rain anyway. It's like someone turned on the mister. Only once
has it rained since I've been here and that's because a tropical
storm blew through. Otherwise you're just walking through a substance
akin to really thick fog... moving in a general downward motion.
Needless to say,
the weather didn't dampen my spirit.
Finally! (This is
the last adventure I swear!) A friend of mine from the hostel,
Italian girl (name removed on purpose), and I went to visit a friend
of ours from the hostel, Greek girl, who had recently got a job at
Costa (aka. Heaven/coffee house)!!! However, she conveniently works
right next to Harrods! I had only heard of Harrods in passing and
vaguely knew that it was a big deal, but I was NOT prepared for the
GLORY that was to await me when we walked inside! First of all, it's
about 5 stories high with 6 floors of shops that I'm sure only the
queen herself can afford to shop from!!! Kitchen ware, to art, to pet
stores (with real pets not just the merchandise!!!), displays
entirely dedicated to the new royal baby George, to gift shops, to
TOY STORES (see Lego Santa Pic), to fancy dinners, to a HUGE
chocolate store!!! EVERYTHING!!! And that was only in the 4 floors we
could stand to see!!! Harrods is another MUST see in London!!! I've
never been so overwhelmed in my life!!! I felt like royalty and joked
with Italian girl that if my future fiance really loves me he'll
bring me back to Harrods and (instead of letting me pick out my
engagement ring) let me pick out whatever I want from the chocolate
shop! Yeah, it's that good.
I
left from the story feeling slightly dizzy and thus concluded my
weekend of adventure! And what a way to end it!!! I hope I haven't
bored you too much. More pictures, so that helps! I'm working on more
fun things to write on as my adventures keep expanding at an alarming
rate! Thanks for reading this far! :D
P.S. MANY more pics to come on FB!!! (And yeah, I took them all. Pretty good huh? :D)
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