London, England: First 2 Days

I'm glad my mother reminded me to document my happenings in this country, because if not, I may have continued to run through it footloose and fancy free.

Two days have already passed and I suppose the rest of the trip will continue as such. I expected to arrive here in a place of stark contrasts to the land I love--a parallel universe of sorts--but I quickly realized that the folk here are all of the same breed, just on a much larger scale. The "melting pot" as London is known for, only just scrapes the surface. Just the shear size and number of people in this city make it unreasonable to talk to every interesting person or beautiful woman you see on the street. There's no point in slowing down, might as well continue with your business.

i've found that people are so wrapped up in their own affairs that it is considered rude to even look around at other Londoners riding the tube, grabbing a meal, or walking the streets. However, this does not make the people seem rude, quite the contrary--a woman on the street was happy to assist a fellow student and I en route to our initial destination on Manson street. This city just offers so much that it is best to keep pushing on and leave the frivolous behind.

Last night a man with dots tattooed on his eyelids was very abrasive and rude to us. His accent led me to believe that he was some kind of German or middle-European. I was in the local 24-hour bodega last night after midnight (which sells booze at all times of the day) when Lisa, a student in the group, asked me to come outside. I came out to see this man right in the face of another abroad student, Chris, asking for money or just looking for trouble. When I approached, he asked where we were speaking. Telling him "We're from America," didn't seem to register, because he began asking if we were Polish. He grew more and more aggressive until the sensible side in me decided to lead the group away. Definitely the type of person I'd like to avoid over here.

Other than this, my 2 roommates and I went on a pleasant trek along the Thames and up around Parliament yesterday--a perfect tourist getaway! I snapped some photos of tourists in the shadow of Big Ben, some silly Pelicans in Westminster Abbey, the Beefeaters of Buckingham Palace and some portraits of the most gorgeous architecture I have ever seen.

I cannot even sit still because of my excitement. I'd much rather be out in London than typing in my room! Too bad I'm here on schoolwork ;). More fun to come!