Curry and Dippy

March 27, 2010

Kelsie is here! And after two and a half days of wandering around London, we are dead tired. I think Kelsie is taking a nap on the floor and I’m up here in my bunk, trying to remember all of the great things we’ve done. We’ve had a bit of trouble picking out exactly what we wanted to do for Kelsie’s weekend in London. There is so much to see and eat and experience! But I think we’ve done a good job with picking the best stuff!

Kelsie got in on Wednesday night. She rode a bus from the airport to Baker Street and I had a bit of trouble getting to that station… I got lost. But I soon found my way, her bus arrived right on time and we were on our way back to the flat. And of course, it was raining. Welcome to London.

We woke up at the crack of dawn on Thursday… Not really, it just felt like that. We had a lot to do and wanted to get going early. After showing her a bit of Kensington, we hopped on the Tube bound for Westminster. And this is where our grand walk began. We saw Westminster Abbey, Westminster Bridge, the London Eye, Big Ben, and the Houses of Parliament. Next we headed toward St. James’s Park and saw Buckingham Palace, Carlton House, the Wellington Arch (from a distance). Then, we headed down Admiralty Road toward Trafalgar Square and saw the National Gallery, Big Ben (from a distance), and a bunch of foreign embassies. After that, we walked to Leicester Square and Covent Garden where we stopped for a bit of a break before heading down toward the River Thames. We walked along the embankment for a while, seeing St. Paul’s, Millennium Bridge, Southwark, Temple, and King’s College. And lastly, before going to meet my history class, we took some pictures in front of the Tower of London and Tower Bridge, and stopped into the gift shop. And all that in four hours! We walked everywhere and it was great. It only rained like four times, but only a few drops each time, and it wasn’t too crowded anywhere we visited.

After all that, we met up with my history class for a bit of a field trip. A field trip on this program usually equals a short museum trip, walking around the town, or a meal. This time, we headed for the east side of London and, more specifically, a curry restaurant on Brick Lane… yum. I won’t start on my love of curry again, but my affections might have grown since I last raved about the Indian dish. I am in love with curry. And I think Kelsie is now too. It wasn’t the best Indian food I’ve had, but all four courses were still delicious! After our meal, our history professor led us on a bit of a tour through the East End and Kelsie tagged along. We learned a lot about the multicultural population around Brick Lane, the history of the area, and some major events that took place there. It has changed quite a bit over the years. The Jack the Ripper murders took place when the area was a hotbed for drinking, gambling, and prostitution. Just after WWII, immigrants flocked to the area because of its cheap housing and proximity to the city, where they worked. Today, it still has that very multicultural feel, it’s a bit poorer than most of the London boroughs, and is very popular with younger people who want to get out of the city. I loved it. But after an entire day of walking, I was dead tired after our little tour. We got on the Tube and headed home.

Kelsie, Hal, and I headed to the Gloucester Arms for Kelsie’s first pub experience on Thursday night. We ate chips and drank Strongbow. Perfect end to a great day.

On Friday we headed to tourist-favorite, always sunny town of Bath. This marked our last tour with our favorite guide Brit. I’m so sad. She may be a headache sometimes, especially after four hours of walking around in the rain or the longest bus ride of your life, with her cheerful voice constantly in your ear, but I love her. She made every trip we took so great with her little stories and suggestions. What is that movie where the girl says she is creating a memory?? Whatever it is, I’m creating a memory of all my favorite Brit quotes, funny stories, and great moments on the tours. What am I going to do in the future when I don’t have a personal tour guide in my ear, telling me all about the stuff I’m supposed to be looking at?? Bah! I’ll miss her.

Anyway, Bath was great. We toured the Roman Baths first, the town’s biggest tourist draw and possibly, the oldest bathtubs in all of the world. No, I don’t know about that last part, but these things were really old. They are supplied by a natural hot spring in the ground and have been a favorite of inhabitants of England for centuries, millennia! They are built of this sandy yellow stone, just like everything else in the town, and the water is this murky green. Just what I’d want to take a swim in, pea soup. Ha. It looked amazing though. Took a lot of pictures, drank a glass of bath water (yum), and bought a compass at the souvenir shop. Yes, I bought a compass. It was only 2 pounds, it hooks onto my backpack, and I really wanted one. I’m always backwards here. When the streets go every which way and you pop out of the ground in the form of a tube station not knowing which direction you are facing or which way is up… it was about time.

Next, we headed for a quick bite to eat at a little restaurant. I can’t remember the name, but it was decent. After that, Kelsie and I popped into Sally Lunn’s. Sally Lunn’s is this famous restaurant in the oldest building in Bath, apparently (I don’t know, they all looked pretty old), and they sell the “world famous” Sally Lunn Buns. Not only did they taste good, but Sally Lunn Bun is just fun to say. We were happy while we ate our buns walking the streets of Bath.

We headed up the hill toward the Jane Austen Centre after our food. The entire town of Bath sits in this little valley and buildings line both sides it. Anywhere you go, you’ll need to hike up or down some steep street. But it was fun. Reminded me of our adventures in Dublin… The Jane Austen Centre, because Jane Austen lived in Bath for a bit, was okay. They bookstore was well-stocked and they had a bunch of creepy mannequins dressed up as Elizabeth Bennett and Emma Woodhouse. We headed for the shopping streets after enough of that. They had a bunch of street performers and vendors along the road. It was fun. We even found this bridge that was lined with shops. You wouldn’t even know you where on a bridge if you couldn’t see out the shops windows to the river below.

And then we got on the bus for the ride home. Three hours later, we got to our flat. Three whole hours it took us to get home… longest bus ride of my life. I just wanted to get home and lay in my bed. But no There was traffic and rain and anything else that could slow us down. The ride wasn’t without its highlights. We saw more English countryside, but this time, it was the rolling hills around Bath. So beautiful. And we saw Wales from a distance. I made a new workout playlist on my iPod and organized our weekend in my head. Pretty productive!

When we finally did get home, we rallied. I drank a bunch of coffee, Hal put on some music, and we all got ready for a night out on Londontown. We got on the Piccadilly line and got off at Piccadilly Circus, of course. We headed for a pub first, (I think Kelsie is hooked), ordered a few drinks, and just sat around to talk. Mid-pub drinking, we got a call from a few of our roommates who wanted to join us and we said we would meet them in Piccadilly Circus. So, we got out of the pub and stood on the street waiting. We people watched, drank (because you can do that on the streets here) and stared at the bright fluorescent signs of “the ‘Dilly”, as Hal calls it. While we waited, a girl walked by with a giant string of helium balloons. Don’t know why she had them, but she did. And Hal stole three of four off the chain. And then proceeded to suck all the helium out of them and talk like a five-year-old girl for the next half hour. It was hilarious at the time. This group of Asian kids on the corner thought so, too. They were just laughing and finally asked Hal if they could take a picture with her. I think that is the beginning of Hal’s fan base… When she makes SNL and tells helium balloon jokes that picture will be worth thousands… God, we were laughing.

And the night kind of fizzled from there. We ran into major congestion getting back on the Piccadilly line. There were literally hundreds of people trying to get through five ticket takers. It was frustrating and hilarious. I think I even yelled at a guy who tried to shove his way past me. When we finally did get on the Tube, we got off at Holborn and tried to get into this karaoke club. Yes, karaoke. I was so excited for a little Mamma Mia or some Amy Winehouse. But no. They wouldn’t let us all in because Kels forgot her ID and Hanna got her purse stolen on spring break. Bust. It was lame anyway. After that, we found a bar that was pretty empty before catching a taxi headed for home. It was a good night. I think Kelsie got a feel for nightlife in London. We always have more fun walking around on the streets than we do standing in a crowded bar and you never know what to expect. I just love London.

And today. Kelsie and I were a bit slow getting going today. Might have been those Strongbows last night. Anyway, eventually we got ourselves together and walked across the street to Hyde Park en route to Portobello Market. The day started off great. The park always puts a smile on my face. But then the sky opened up and it rained. Boo. It couldn’t stop us. We still had a wonderful day walking around looking at all the antiques, clothes, souvenirs, and other crafts on Portobello Road. I bought a couple scarves, a dress, and a shirt. All for 20 pounds! Kelsie bought a dress and a scarf too. We knew that tomorrow would also be a big shopping day so we tried to conserve.

Kelsie, Hal and I took a quick look at a few museums this afternoon. We toured the fashion department at the Victoria and Albert Museum and then saw Dippy the Dinosaur skeleton at the Natural History Museum. Dippy is awesome. Best part of that whole museum.

Hal just went to buy some groceries and we are making a big meal for the three of us. Yay! I think we might go to a movie tonight, but not sure. We’ll see.

Be back soon!

Love,
Kelly