Travel Archives '06: London, or, Minding the Gap

It seems that rarely can a trip like this one start off on the right foot. In fact, there were a few moments there when I thought I wouldn't get to Europe at all. It seemed simple enough. Despite the fact that I was going to have to impose upon my parents to drive me down to Seattle; the prospect of saving a few hundred dollars seemed worth it. We had lunch with Gilliane, a friend of Heather's who will be joining us in Japan, and shortly therafter made our way to SeaTac airport. This is where things seem to have gone wrong. The Air Canada Jazz flight that I was taking to Vancouver (the irony doesn't escape me) was late, making an already short connection time even shorter. I landed in Vancouver just under an hour before I was to connect with my next flight to London. This was further complicated by the fact that the customs agents in Vancouver did not seem to understand why I had gone to catch a flight from Seattle to Vancouver when I live in Vancouver. I don't think I could have given a more clear and direct response, but obviously my suspicious nature and appearance generated quite a concern. I was ushered into the customs area for undesirables; where several customs agents held a conference to determine what should be done with this shifty-looking high school teacher from Maple Ridge. When they finally did decide that I wasn't attempting to compromise national security, I had about half an hour before my flight for London was to leave, which meant that I needed to check in and go through security in fifteen minutes in order to board the plane. It was difficult to remain calm in the midst of this. Needless to say I made it to London, where I had fully anticipated losing my luggage (which didn't happen, despite the odds at this point).

I was led by Anita and Ronak to the posh London borough of Brent, which is nestled in between the train tracks and a central motorway. I should also mention that it is home to London's first IKEA, as well as the largest Hindu temple outside of India. Their flat is about a fifteen minute walk to the nearest tube station that goes directly to Westminster. It was there that many of London's top tourist traps are located, including Big Ben and the Parliament buildings, Westminster Abbey, and a little further down, Buckingham Palace. I don't think I've seen so many Americans in one place at one time outside of their own country. I overheard one woman give her daughter and friends a brief history lesson on July 4, explaining the reasons for America's revolt against Britain. She pointed out that at one point in history, much of the world thought of Americans as scum, but their actions were necessary in order to secure democracy and freedom (I'll leave you to your own thoughts here). Later on in that same day, I also overheard a gentleman inquire about why there were no fireworks that night.

I found London to be a little overwhelming, not to mention dirty. Simply put, the city is big, and you don't realize how big until you're actually there. I found it virtually impossible to navigate the streets through sighting landmarks, as I could often not tell where I was in relation to other familiar parts of the city. Ronak's A-Z of London was a treasure trove of London cartography, so I avoided getting too lost. I did do a lot of walking; however; and my feet and back took a terrible beating.

I did manage to do a bit of a literary tour of some parts of London. This included catching a performance of Antony and Cleopatra at the Globe (it was an incredible theatre, and I valued the opportunity to view the play the way it was meant to be seen), the remains of what was Burbage's Blackfriar's Theatre, the gravestones of William Blake and Daniel DeFoe (located in a part of town Anita suggested shouldn't have gone to without calling her first), and I drank a couple of pints at the Ten Bells Pub on the East Side, which is perhaps best known for its centrality to the Jack the Ripper murders, and of course its prominence in Alan Moore's From Hell. Surprisingly the pub has avoided becoming much of a tourist trap, but in the process has avoided being much of a pub.