Belated I know but I will now sketch out my trip to London that I took from the 17th-19th July.
Me and Joe left the quiet comfort of Dronfield on the 43 bus at 9:13 am. As per usual I was in a rush, thought I was going to miss the bus, but thankfully got out in time for our journey into Steel City. Using my alter ego, Joshua Russell, I managed half fair. We arrived in Sheffield mildly fatigued but eager to explore and muse in London, however our mood was dampened when we hit capitalism, full on in the face; the ticket office was staffed by a grizzly old bloke looking as if he could match Dracula for his phobia of light, but we persisted; persistence wasn't enough though for the price to cut through the air with the force of a nuclear bomb: £60! Shocked though we were the ticket salesman had an air of glibness, the sort of look that all old people adore when they gain some sort of superiority over the young. Eventually reaching monetary sobriety we grabbed a sandwhich (don't get me started on station prices), adjusted our bags from cutting into our shoulders and walked over to the train. Whilst walking down the carriages I discovered how borgeoisie Britain is; nearly everyone has to live a contrived existence, with reserved seating, stern predictability; there is never any sense of spontaniety or adventure. Everything must be set in stone, everything must run like clockwork. Finally we discovered some unreserved seating, placed our bags on the floor and settled ourselves in for the 2hrs 30mins trip into London. Whilst Joe listened to the Smiths I pulled out a book of Ginsberg's poems, remaining enthralled for most of the way. We talked quite a lot about our busy Mon-Fri in Dronfield, physics, metaphysics and anything curious that suddenly occured to me. Time passed; landscapes flashed past the window; the confectionaries women walked down the aisle as if about to meet her end in an incinerator at the end of the carriage; we talked; we talked somemore; I went for a pee; I ate my sandwhich and hay presto we arrived at St Pancras (no not St Pancreas), London. Then we got off the train, the smell of oil and brute engineering filling the air. Friday was about to really begin.
Jesse was there to meet us, standing out from the crowd in his archetypal luminescent hoodie, a beacon to a hedonistic weekend. We warmly greeted him then rapidly got whisked away into the complexity of London's transport system. Ever prepared, Jesse had bought us oyster cards and trained us in the art of oyster card use. Apparently it wasn't a pass for a seafood restauraunt! We got the bus to Jesse's modest, inviting house in Hackney, bordering with Islington, dropped off our bags then set out to meet Jenny. After picking up the Enterprise we waddled to the tube and headed to Greenwich Park and the Royal Observatory. All of us walked through leafy, remarkably peaceful Greenwich Park, admiring a moments peace from franetic chaos. At the observatory high up on a hill we had panoramic views of London, a great way to see London in all its glory for the first time. After taking in the views we went around the Observatory's museum looking at telescopes, timepieces and the 0 meridian line. The Royal Observatory felt like a great place of progress, of endeavour, of reaching out, of satisfying human curiosity. Concluding our trip to the Observatory we staggered down the steep hill wondering if the Cutty Sark was repaired after a fire. Unfortunately it wasn't, so we checked out what other boat rides were on offer. We decided to get a boat that went on a trip on the Thames from Greenwich to Westminster. Sadly we missed the previous boat so had about 30 mins to kill. Filling the time, we drank Coca Cola from a glass with four straws, perhaps illustrating the preciousness of a drink, even though it probably ruptures your own personal economy. We boarded the boat and went upstairs so we could get impressive views as we cruised down the Thames. On our cruise we saw the Tower of London, Tate Modern, Millenium Bridge, London Bridge, Tower Bridge, London Eye, Shakespeare's Globe Theatre and Big Ben. Also we nearly had a heart attack thanks to the tannoy that was located in close proximity to my crotch: 'WARNING!! DON'T MIX ELECTRICITY WITH WATER' or some such drivel blurted out of the speaker.
Arriving safe and sound in Westminster, if not feeling like we had spent an Icelandic winter in the buff, we walked around the imposing gothic buildings. I was surprised to be informed of a man that has camped outside the Commons since the begginnings of the Iraq War! Yes, we all have the right to protest but what really is this man trying to achieve. Yes, he is fighting for freedoms and human rights but surely he must realise he is not going to achieve anything. The war happened. We can't change it. Unfortunatly, the forecast looks as though a hasty solution is impossible, so I advise this man to look to a brighter future rather than allowing his life to slip away under the steady gaze of uncaring politicians. Post musings around the Commons, we went into Trafalgar Square, where Nelson stood over us, poised, unfliching, mightily taking whatever the weather threw at him. We dabbled in the National Gallery for a short while, looking at old paintings that don't seem to move me as much as modernistic works, then made our way back to a Turkish restauraunt. At first I was unsure whether Turkish food would be my thing but I found it delicious. I've never eaten so much. Joe decided to try spiced turnip juice at the restauraunt at the point when mentioned made the waiter look like he had seen the end of time itself. I tried a bit and it was odd; warm, tongue-tingling, with a taste you wouldn't know what to safely drink it with. We sadly left Jenny after the Turkish restauraunt, we said our good byes and wished her well docking with the sci-fi convention on Saturday.
Thinking our adventurous Friday was over, me, Joe and Jesse made our way back to Jesse's house. However, on our way we heard live music in a bar that caught our ear. I bought a bottle of Becks and Jesse and Joe had pints. We waited a while for the next turn and they proved to be noisey yet mellow, discordant yet melodic, jazzy yet metal! An odd mix! There was an amusing moment though when a guy claiming to be Spanish approached Joe, shouting and screaming how the world had conspired against him. Additionally, there was a man that thought he was the invisible man walking into a wall in the toilet, hoping if he tried hard enough the wall would give him the benefit of the doubt and let him through. After our drinks and the finale of the music, peppered with amusing antics from alcoholics, we went back to Jesse's and watched highlights of T in the park. We went to bed in the early hours. I didn't dream.
Stay tuned for Saturday and Sunday.
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