London and back!

Hi,

This past week was great- my friend Heather and I went to London! I havn’t been there for about a decade, but I remembered it still and I’ve always wanted to go back.

Last Monday afternoon, we took the train to Basel with Ashley (who was going to Turkey). We caught our flight and got to Gatwick…. at about 10 or something in the evening. Maybe later. Then we took the train to Victoria Station in London and Heather’s friend met us and showed us where we would be staying. His co-worker wasn’t in London that week, so we got to use her flat, which was pretty great!

The next day we explored the city and wanted to go on this walking tour, but we just walked everywhere ourselves. I can’t really remember what happened every day, but it was very nice. It was weird to see all the places I’d seen 10 years ago with my family and to be there again, seeing the same things, at a very different stage of life. Particularly Trafalgar Square and the Crown Jewels (which were AMAZING and as sparkly as ever) and Buckingham Palace. So, yeup, we just wandered around the city and got very good at using the Tube transport system, so we could easily go back and know what we were doing.

Really unfortunately, I didn’t get to see Sarah, Kiara, or Karyn, which was a big reason for going to London. They live quite a ways outside, and I thought we were going to meet in London, not me go all the way out there, even though I would have. Time was just a little limited. Also unfortunate was the London Eye! Yes, it was nice to see the whole city from way up high, but for almost $30…. no thanks. Well, I just won’t ever do that again. Just not worth it. But we went to the Tower of London afterwards and it was so amazing!!!! It was like its own little village, back in the day. A lot of historical artifacts and interesting things to read and the jewels, of course, and an exhibition on King Henry VIII. Very educational and interesting, perfect for my nerdy side (a very big side).

Something funny happened in London. Sort of. Okay, it was our last night there, and the night before, an unexpected guest showed up at the flat we were staying in. She was really nice and had a key and knew the flat owner,  and she needed to stay there that night. So we all went out for an amazing vegan dinner (I miss vegan restaurants so much…) and got back and went to sleep. The next day (our last day) Heather called her friend and apparently, the woman who stayed with us the night before was NOT supposed to have stayed there, and the flat owner was freaking out and really mad and apparently chucked out all our stuff and it was in storage. We found out about this at about 7:30 that night, so we went all the way from Soho back to the flat to try and sort things out (or at least get our stuff). Fortunately, she had not put everything in storage (which would have been locked by that time) and we just went and got our things from her place and left. Now, our flight left at 8 the next morning, so we spent the night in the Gatwick  airport.  But before that we went for dinner at Saf again (I absoloutely love that place, it is like Radha, just a bit more upscale. Yeah… I spent all my money in London on vegan food and fair trade socks. Actually. Oh well.) and took the train out to Gatwick. And then a bus to the airport. And then slept in the airport before check-in. It was freezing. Completely freezing cold! But we managed to get a few hours of sleep in anyway and then were off back to Basel, and then to Freiburg.

Final thought on London: I like that city, very very much, but I don’t think I will be making any sort of effort to go back this year. I will, however, be travelling through the English countryside and also visiting Ireland and Scotland, if all goes according to plan. It’d be awesome to work on an organic farm during my travels there (there’s an organization that does that. It’s great!). I really want to go outside of London and visit my friends (I think I’m actually in shock that I didn’t see them. Big frowny face.) and look at some smaller towns, but especially so in Ireland. We’ll see….

So, on Friday after we got back, I don’t really remember what I did. I was supposed to go out for my friends birthday party (first of two) but was so dead tired that I did not. Instead, I rested up for…

 

SATURDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes, yesterday was a really exciting day! It was GREAT! You know why??? Many reasons, but especially this one: I got a bike. Finally. I finally got a bike. I went to the Flohmarkt in the morning, about a 20 minute walk in very very cold rain…., and found this beautiful bike there for 45 Euros! (50 with the basket.) Her name is Peggy Su and she is pink and a “pegasus” (?) model (old school) and has a Donald Duck bell. The basket on the back is oval and pink, too, but a lighter pink than Peggy Su herself. I love her so much and she is beeeeeauuuuutiful! I just need to get some sort of contraption for powering the light at the front. So, I’m happy. I also found a really useful purple purse at the Flohmarkt, nearly new black boots for 6 Euro and some hair clips for 0,50 Euro. I think I did pretty well.

Theennnn… I got home, finished up a bit of laundry, and went grocery shopping with Alicia, which was really nice but really cold. It was exciting, though, because I found fresh kale for the first time being here. I just had a kale and avocado salad. That is exciting. Then, while I was about to pay at Lidl, I could not find my wallet. That’s because I left it on the bus. So, I kept busy trying not to freak out and I power walked back to our Wohnheim to try to get in touch with lots of important people who would help me cancel credit cards and the likes, when I saw a bus (same number we were on, opposite direction) and went to go ask the driver who I should call from the bus company for help. He asked me what my name was, which I found strange at the moment, and I told him. He had my wallet!!! YAY!!!!!!! Many thanks to God for that one. That would’ve been scary. And quite the pain.

 

Then we made food and watched Charlie Brown- the Great Pumpkin. I baked cookies for my friend who helped me fix my computer, but the oven on our floor does not work, so I went a floor above, but I don’t really know how to use the ovens here, and the girl who showed me how clearly didn’t either, so it was all un-preheated and well, they took a while but apparently they were edible, which is great. Oh, and I didn’t have baking soda. But I used a Dreena Burton recipe, which seem to be fool-proof (even this fool proof). And now I know to preheat the oven!

Later that night, we went to our friend Lois’ and got ready to go out, because I thought this was going to be the 2nd birthday thing for my friend Ashley (ohne Dreads). We went to the Mensa (one of the many student/uni cafeterias in the city) which had been converted into this giant club. So so so so so many people were there! It was really fun, because I like dancing and dance I did. It was excellent, because people were not allowed to smoke inside (a few did, but very very few. and one time it was weed, so that just smells like skunk and not cigarettes, which oddly enough I prefer). I didn’t want to stay that long, but I think we ended up leaving at about 3:30 am. I brought Peggy Su with me (not in the club…) and was going to ride back home, but Alicia does not have a bike, but she did have sore feet, so she rode Peggy back, and I walked beside. It was really really nice! Then I slept until 12:21 pm today, when I got a text from Janelle about going to pasta tonight. I missed church, which I’m not so happy about, but it was AMAZING to get to sleep and not use an alarm clock and actually just sleep and not wake up because of being stressed and not being able to sleep. Wonderful wonderful.

Then I read my Bible a bit and organized my room a bit and have been trying to answer an e-mail from Susi, but my internet is still not really working that well.And I tried to make up a schedule with Alicia for our courses, but that didn’t go so great so she made one for me. School school starts tomorrow. I can’t believe it. I was getting quite used to hanging around doing not much. Sort of. Well, for me it felt like not much. But school will be good! Hopefully not too much work, though…. mal gucken.

<3 emma

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