Anarchy in Londontown - Days 1 and 1.5

Here I am, in a Chinese restaurant on Oxford Street. The Internet in my hostel has been a disappointment, almost eternally occupied and unusably slow. I've already learned a lot from my trip... here's my stream of consciousness in no particular order:

Traffic - Two parts to this really... the first being the left-side-of-the-road thing. I was worried that I'd look left and step out into traffic, but in London, everyone is always looking all around for traffic. One way streets, roundabouts, crazy cabbies... I've been to New York several times, but in New York you still have the right of way over a cab making a turn when there are no signs indicating a right of way. Not here. I've seen so many near collisions, three generations of families almost completely wiped out without so much as a honk. Double decker buses careening literally inches from cars and people without slowing a bit. The people traffic in Hobson, the neighborhood where I'm staying, is like Times Square. Crossing the street is a four-step process (that's four conrete islands, with people spilling off into the street due to volume), not including dodging around people on the sidewalk. I had assumed that people would hang to the left of the street (as people hang to the right in the States), but this is not necessarily true. On elevators in and out of the tube (whose nomenclature I now completely understand... more on that later), the signs say: "stand right, walk left", as is implied on D.C.'s underground Metro... I guess I assumed it was supposed to mirror driving and passing rules.

The London Underground - Wow. What a fantastic system. Heathrow to my hotel, on one train. I could have taken the express, but opted for the more scenic local route. I paid for a non-rush hour ticket (apparently there is no afternoon rush hour, as I'm valid after 0930), but if you ask me it's always rush hour on the tube. I haven't snagged a seat yet. As soon as I stepped inside, the naming "tube" made complete sense. The train is a damn tube. When I stand, I have to stand in the center of the train because of the sides of the "tube". And they aren't kidding about minding that damn gap... it's pretty massive, especially out by Heathrow Airport... and I love how they tell you over and over. Classic!

Jet Lag - I'm sure most of you have been jet lagged before, and most of you have been to London and places beyond, but the most interesting thing to me is figuring out which day it is. In Portland, the haze of winter is quite bright, the clouds reflecting light back to the earth in such a way as to provide enough Vitamin D to stay upbeat. In London, it's grey. All the time. Jet lag isn't an issue because I don't know, can't possibly hope to know, and I don't care. I made plans for a day I didn't realize had already passed, but other than that I'm simply a bit sleepy all the time, which could also be aided by the amount of walking that I do.

Fashion - by far the biggest difference, but this is no stretch. It's especially interesting due to the similar climate to Portland. Here, the fashion does not take second stage to the weather, where in Portland people just put on their camping clothes. Here, they will not sacrifice fashion to weather. The look is classic, and I appreciate it, but I look completely out of place in my maroon Columbia waterproof shell, t-shirt, and three-day beard. The tights, skirt, boots, and scarf look is everpresent on ladies (if not tights and skirt, then definitely skinny jeans... gotta fit into those boots!) Coupled with a fasionable natural fiber coat (usually with a larger and fluffier neck than normal, if not a simple scarf to shield the wind), you have an enticing ensemble that I have completely fallen for. The constantly brisk weather (a typical forecast while I'm here is high of 53, low of 46, breezy), encourages the coat to become the primary fashion item. That people here care more about how they look is obvious. All ages, all classes, all colors, all looking (drearily) sharp.

Cultural Tourism - Ok, so I saw Westminster Abbey, the London Eye, the River Thames, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, but what I really enjoy is sitting with a pint and watching Londoners walk by. The beer is so hopless and expensive here, though, not to mention sleep-inducing (which I really don't need), that I end up just walking all over the place, turning down the streets with the most people (hence my arrival on Oxford St). At night, I went in early as I wasn't sure about the safety of the area, but out the window of my room I kept seeing all this fine skirt-boot-scarfed birds walking around alone, so I took another walk to check out the area. My surname fits me well. The things I enjoy most are sitting in a pub watching football with the locals, or listening to four old men have a conversation in the local Indian restaurant. People here remind me of New Yorkers, which makes sense, given the sheer size and confusion of the city... more on that comparison after I have more input.


Hostelling has been treating me well. The Astor Museum Inn, where I'm staying, is in a fantastic location. Most of what I'd like to see is within walking distance, or a three stop tube ride away. The common room is kind of small, so I have to go to pubs or cafes to do my reading, organizing, and research. I miss the conversations that normally arise in the common room, but I'm out walking most of the day anyway. My idea of planning everything as I go could use some adjustment, as a lot of the research I've been doing while here could have been done at home without adding the stress of holding an itinerary, a stress that I was intentionally avoiding. The showers are clean, although it took me a few minutes to realize the light was on the outside of the shower room and how to turn the water on (ahhh... international travel). I've just booked my train ticket out to Somerset for Saturday's party, and I'm a bit nervous about leaving my backpack in the coat check room, but such is the nature of the lessons I'm setting out to learn. I've bought a ticket from there on to Bath, and hopefully I'll have enough Internet time after this note to check on the trains ongoing to Manchester. I've bought a ticket to Fabric's Friday night event, and continue to be amazed at the rave culture here (more on that after this weekends adventures). Travelling alone has its ups and downs. I can go wherever I want whenever I want, but sometimes I just want to chill out, and without a decent hostel common room that can be a bit boring. Also, I'm less likely to talk much since I'm the only one around with a Yankee accent.

Well, I'm off to Hyde Park, Picadilly Square, and perhaps the Tate Modern before the day is out. Tomorrow I'll be doing a few walking tours, and then who knows what... I've got a few ideas. Thanks for bearing with my rambling accounts, I'll be in touch.

Cheers!