London

 

So I am officially in Dublin after spending about a week in London, and I can say for sure that there is never enough time to see everything you want to in London, but it was still a good time. The first thing I saw when I got into the city was Abby Road since it was incredibly close to my hostel. It was actually a really cool sight to see, the walls in front of the recording studio are covered in graffiti and messages from fans, it seemed like something the guys would have really appreciated. Plus there was a scrawl declaring that Wu Tang are the black Beatles, which is a bold proclamation that I appreciate.

I wrote this one for Sami, thanks for damaging my life by making me listen to that creepy recording.

I also took a day to see all of the more touristy parts of London. Somehow I managed to see the Changing of the Guard without knowing or trying to catch it, and then I ended up seeing a procession outside of Buckingham Palace and I still don't know what it was for, but there were men in silly hats playing marching band instruments so overall it was a good time. I also spent some time at Regent's and Hyde parks, both of which are beautiful.

Definitely the highlight of London were the pubs, and the drunk people within them. My last night in London I decided to just enjoy the pub right below my hostel since I had now talked to quite a few of the regulars there. Within an hour a group of five elderly gentleman started sporadically bursting into song in between finalizing football bets. When they noticed I was watching they proceeded to buy me a beer and started taking song requests, stopping to tell me stories about each other and warm me about how expensive a pint is in Dublin. After a while another group of regulars started buying me beers and talking to me about traveling. One of them had some impressive prison tattoos and was very disappointed when I left to go to bed. The train and ferry rides the next day were not particularly pleasant, but I love the English commitment to drinking in spite of health and consequences. This is the only place I have seen a group of elderly men get cut off for being drunk and disruptive. I love it.

Also, a guy named Cam thought my accent was beautiful and thinks I should stay in London so we can get a drink. Totally reasonable request.