Off the Couch and On the Road

I had a few days in London, and this time knew my way around so well it felt kind of like home. With the money running out faster than office workers on a friday afternoon, I focused on the free museums, parks, shopping centres and exhibitions and enjoyed the sunny, warm weather that London had bestowed upon me to make up for all the rain in Scotland.

It was onto Africa next, and I was both nervous and excited at the chance to join another group tour and not have to worry about the daily concerns of transport, accomodation and itineraries. They could figure it all out (that is the ‘excited’ bit), and I could sit back and try not to get mauled by wild animals in my tent (that is the ‘nervous’ bit). 

Joking! Kind of…

-Sarah

I can’t really say I’m a people person, not usually sociable with strangers, and so have not made many travelling friends (according to my definition of friends, anyway). But a few of the group I travelled with on the Indochina leg of my trip, most calling England home, were catching up over the weekend, and I could not wait to see them again.

We caught up for a few bottles of wine and an amazing dinner in Camden on the first night before having an early night, as we were all either sightseeing or working the next day. I (being unemployed) went to watch the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, which was such an amazing spectacle - kind of like watching a brass band performance and military show while your face is squished between two black metal bars and five people are climbing on top of you taking photos, regardless of which part of your ass is in the way. But it was great (their photos may not be).

I also saw the Queen’s Gallery art exhibition, as well as a tour of the Royal Mews - where the Queen keeps her horses, stables, carriages and the gold plated carriage weighing two and half tonne, made during Queen Victoria’s reign only brought out for very special occasions (due to be used next in 2010 for an anniversary of some kind).

That night was an early but big one - after an Italian meal and hitting a bar, we stumbled home after a long night and realised it was only 1am. If it wasn’t for the stmbling, roomates might have thought we just returned from dinner. But it was such a good night out, and we recovered the next day with a big breakfast (two in fact, I needed McDonald’s first) in Islington, catching up with the rest of the group who couldn’t make the night before, and we had a few drinks and a walk around town before I had delayed catching my train long enough that I was actually running really late.

I ran for the train, made it by five minutes, and slept like a hibernating bear the entire train ride north. When I woke, the London skyline had been replaced with rolling green hills, mist sitting low on the moutains, and I could feel the temperature drop even inside the train.

And of course, it was raining. I had arrived in Scotland.

-Sarah

PS The crew asked why their names had never been mentioned during the Indochina trip. I said it was my blog and if they wanted their names published they had to start their own damn blog, because this one my friends, is all about me. And then I felt bad, and slightly selfish, because not everyone is unemployed and in fact, because they are supporting the economy and I am just taking photos of trees and mountains, I shall hereby mention that Kate, Harry, Hamish and Markus (and the ones who couldn’t make it, Anna, Charlotte and Sakai) totally rock. They totally rock indeed. You want more? Start your own damn blog.

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