Shallow Pockets Brimming with Reminders of Home

 

Babygirl came to visit me in London!! <3

Chels is currently studying in Paris and she hopped over for the weekend to see me [and the city, I guess].  GODALMIGHTY was it good to see her! A little taste of home. It made us both a little homesick I think... so I'm not sure if it was a good outcome but it was a GREAT few days. I needed me some Fairly Odd lovin'.

 Poor booboo though- her trip from France was hell [Parisians... being themselves] so I waited outside of Vauxhall's Tube stop for her for two hours! But it was worth the wait. We dropped our luggage off at Stephen's and hung out at the Pilgrim. Unfortunately we missed Matt's performance :( but it was still so wonderful to see all of them.

 

I really need to learn to take more pictures :/ I'm so bad at remembering.

 The next day both Chels and I were a bit sleepy and not too interested in the touristy side of London so we slept in, cooked breakfast, watched Wimbledon and then headed out to sort out my International Student Card as well as my UK bank account... only the particular location that I needed to hit was closed on Saturdays. Of course. So we headed to Camden so I could show Chelsea my favorite bit of L-Town.

Chelsea finally getting her English cup-o-tea! [Plus about 17 sugar packets, haha.]

 

Oh what is the name of this store... It's a beautiful, mainly hand crafted leather specialty store and there are chains all over England. I always take note of the name but can't seem to grasp it. Anyway- their display window is INCREDIBLE. Floor to ceiling glass lined with shelves of old-time Singer sewing machines. It's beautiful. I just wish I could afford the store!

 

 We had lunch while wandering the food and drink booths. Ritzy kebabs with chile sauce and Guinness and chocolate cake.  I took a picture of the kebab set up alone but the vendor was incredibly eager to be in the picture. Friendly folk in Camden Town.

 

I know different variations of this picture have appeared on this blog around three times but sincerely I am utterly in love with the place. <3

Later that night we went to Lock 17 and my friend Toonie got us a free table at a comedy show. Our table was tiny and shoved in a corner but hey! Free is free! Ironically enough we were placed at the very same table Stephen and I had in this post last March and I think this performance may have been even better. Chels and I were a bit cold so we got lattes with Baileys and fries with mayo and ketchup [thank you for serving both with fries, UK]. It was a lovely evening.  We ended up heading back to Stephen's, watching an episode or two of Take Me Out [UK dating show... it's my guilty pleasure] and then back to the Pilgrim for a quiet booth to catch up and relax.

Unfortunately Chelsea's plane was early the next morning so I made us some quick breakfast and walked her to the Tube. Oof, I was not ready for that good bye :(

I went back to the flat, made a real, big breakfast and got ready for a day of exploring. I just wandered London by foot, tried to find some white skinnies [to no avail- only TopShop had them and I just can't justify spending over £40 on white pants]. I also failed to find any decent postcards. It may have been the section of London I was covering but everything was just cheesy and touristy. So far Spain and France have one-over on England in the postcard department.

 

I went to a pub for a meal, a much-needed few phone calls home and some time spent with Lisbeth Salander.  It happened to be a German pub though and, while the beer was nice, the food was even worse than England's:

 

THIS is called Goulash. It looks and smells [and maybe a little bit tastes] like wet cat food. Mphhh.

 

Now I'm not sure if the bartender took pity on me because I was a foreigner sitting alone at a pub reading or if the bartender took advantage of me for the above reasons and decided to take a mick at me [that's English for "make a joke at my expense"] but she showed up with this curry 'shot' on the house. It kinda reminded me of a really thick but much spicier bloody mary mix... garnished with a spicy sausage? That's a first. But it was free so I ate it. Pretty sure I saw her turned around giggling at me. Eh- free food is free food.

Eventually I made my way back to collect my luggage and board the train to Macc. It was a worthwhile weekend. I'm very much anticipating how the 4th will be... I have been unable to find an American bar ANYWHERE near by so it looks like I'll be getting smashed and singing "Proud to be an American" all alone in enemy territory. Bring it.