Chapter 113: London and Eye

nerd blog post #123

I got back to Paris last night after a great little vacay to London. It was relaxing and fun and I'm glad I went.

I arrived Sunday morning and Raffi met me at the train station with a sign (I love signs. They help you get where you need to go and also welcome you to new places.) and we headed to his place on the South bank to drop off my stuff. Then, we went to Surrey County to a little townette called Chesney or something to his uncle's house. His uncle is from Lebanon as well but has lived in England for 30 years. He's a very nice old man and threw a deluxe BBQ. There were chips and lots of meat and ice-cream and all the things I like most! His partner was there, as well as his son (Raffi's cousin), his wife and their two little kids. The baby was only seven months and I got to hold her for hours.. It was great. There was also a dog named Blue and I liked the dog a lot. So basically, beer, BBQ, treats, baby, dog and sun. It was a wonderful afternoon and evening.

The next day, I walked around a lot. I went to St Paul's Cathedral and walked up and down Fleet Street and had a coffee and read my book. (Side note: I have read many good books this Summer. Right now it's a recommendation from Marni called What is the What by Dave Eggers. A memoir about a Sudanese refugee living in the States. Excellent.) Raffi and I had a picnic lunch on his break at the Globe. I got to wear a Visitor name tag and had a great tour of the Globe, its green room, the offices... It's a really cool theatre and must be an incredibly nice place to work. In the afternoon, I went to the Tate Museum. I liked its content better than the Pompidou and the way it's arranged is really accessible. My fave London museum to date. Also a bonus that it's free! In the evening, Raffi and I went to a local pub for beer. We were joined later by one of the fellows from Australia - a really nice guy.

Actually, I met everyone in the fellowship and a few of the people who work there and they are all really nice. There are nine in his program who have been invited from all areas - one from South Africa, two from Australia, two from New Zealand, two from the States and two from Canada. The Canadians were sent from Soulpepper and both were pleased to know I'm friends with Murph! Shout out SoulPeppz!

On Tuesday, I met Doctor at his train station in the morning. It was great to see him and spend a day together in London - the first time! We walked down Baker Street and Oxford Street doing some window shopping in the fancy and less fancy stores. Then we went to a park and ate a micmic and lay in the sun for awhile. Eventually, we continued wandering and ended up near the Globe where we sat on a patio and enjoyed a couple of pints as the sun set behind the buildings. As always, the day went by far too quickly... We talked about our friends back home, life in Europe, and tentative plans for the future. I was glad I'll be seeing him in two weeks, otherwise one day would have been too short! At 7pm, we met Raffi and the three of us went out for a really nice Indian dinner in the neighbourhood. It was fun and delicious. Raff and I said goodbye to Doctor and then went on a long walk. We saw the London Eye (and also saw that we couldn't afford a ride...) and crossed the bridge to see the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. I must have walked 10kms that day and was utterly exhausted by the time it was over!

So yesterday I slept most of the morning, had a micmic lunch with Raffiki, and read a whole book. Doctor lent me one called Less Than Zero, which is by the American Psycho guy, and I spent the afternoon at the river reading. It was a good book. A bit depressing, but impossible to put down. At 7pm, I caught the train back to Paris. Pulling in, I put my sweater on, but quickly realized it was hotter at midnight here than it has been at any peak daytime. We're in a heat wave and it is sizzling hot!

This afternoon, I'm going to a carnival with Gel and Taylor and then I work tonight. Soon I'll be very busy as I've taken another job for these last couple of weeks at Rose Bakery as a waitress! Should be fun, and an extra bit of cash before I have no more money rolling in starting September. Rose Bakery work should start on Saturday.

I hope you're all doing well! I'm thinking of home a lot these days as the entire Hincks family is together in Toronto.

Much love,
Hincks.