After having a wonderful breakfast of corn flakes, a croissant, toast, orange juice, and coffee (you can judge the quality of a hostel by the breakfast they provide for you. This hostel: outstanding (except for the creepy sea captain portrait that stares at you as you try to eat. Very creepy). At most hostels, you're lucky to get a cup of coffee and a roll. This hostel gets Brian's 5 star approval), I planned out my entire day in London. First, I'd walk from the hostel into downtown London, then check out my Big 3: The Tower of London, The Tower Bridge, and St. Peter's. It was a great plan.
Of course, none of that happened at all. Plans steered immediately off course when I started walking and taking pictures of pretty much anything that exists here, because to me, it's all strange. I still can't get a hang of this driving on the left side of the road. Not that I'm driving, but I keep looking the wrong way while crossing the street and just about get plowed over by those out-of-control black taxi cabs. Thank goodness England realizes that there's dumb tourists like me out there wandering around, so they paint "Look to Right" and "Look to Left" on the roads. They make everything so trouble-free. I especially like "Mind the Gap" being uttered everytime you leave the Underground so you don't fall down the gaping crack between the train and the platform. I also like the "Please Mind Your Head" sign I saw today at the Wellington Arch. I took a picture of it because I thought it was hysterical. The Brit working the gift store inside the arch comes over to me and wanted to know why EVERYONE stopped to take a picture of this sign. I explained to him how, in America, the sign almost infers that you have a problem keeping track of your head, or you're possibly crazy. It was a true cultural exchange today.
Anyway, back to my story. I didn't hit anything I had intended. Instead, I wandered through Regent's Park (full of quite lovely flowers), passed by the London Zoo, then kept wandering and hit all the biggies: Hyde Park (no one at Speaker's Corner), Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, Piccadelly Circus, then I bought a ticket to see "Stomp" over at the Vaudeville Theatre on the Strand. I'd been wanting to see that show for some time. I love people banging on trash cans and using push brooms as musical instruments. Then I walked all the way back home late tonight, because I was too cheap to fork over 4 pounds (roughly $8.50) for a one-way trip to the hostel. Man, my feet are hurting tonight.
Tomorrow it's off to Madrid to meet up with my buddy Eric. I'll catch up with you all again from there. Cheers!
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