my friend hannah came to visit. we wandered londontown, got lost, found treasures, picked berries, had picnics, wandered, got lost, found beauty in everything, cherished the warmth of the sun, made the best of nothing, journeyed to the ancient countryside, got lost, found a forest, slept in the forest, woke up with the sun and the rooster, wandered, took a bus, took a train, observed the prized academia, sniffed the roses, wandered, took a bus back to londontown, saw a broadway musical with puppets.
that is the story, in short. here is the story in length, and glory..
the first day hannah was here, we got bread and cheese and fruit from the store and had a breakfast picnic in the rare sunshine in the park right across the canal from my residence hall. Then we walked along the canal. We meant to follow it until it connects with the river, but I unknowingly chose the opposite direction. And it was a beautiful walk, a path lower than the roads and the home of an interesting sub-culture of bicyclists, children playing, and houseboats. People living in houseboats the size of vans with gardens growing out of the roofs and bikes parked to the sides, all docked to the side of the canal. And there was a lady who had a coffee-boat, selling coffee and tea and sandwiches and pastries from inside her boat to people on the path along the canal. She was so cute! Eventually, we found ourselves in a neighborhood that I knew not of and so we wandered around a bit, later finding out it was the borough of Islington. We walked by a school and a playground with lots of little kids and into a central area of lots of coffee shops and bars and restaurants and cool people i think. We had planned to walk the canal towards the river and then cross the river to go to the Globe Theatre and maybe see a show if there were tickets available. But since we walked North instead, we decided to follow the original plan and take the tube across the river to the Globe. We looked lost, looking at our map for the nearest tube station in islington, and this man stopped and asked us if we needed help and then pointed us in the right direction. how strange and sweet. I often am surprised by how kind and warm people are here. I haven't been to New York yet, but I reckon people here may be a bit nicer from what I have heard. (ahaa i just realized i sometimes have a british voice stuck in my head almost and i start writing in the british character, like 'reckon' hahaha). I forget who told me but someone recently said that women pick up accents more than men, not sure why but i do agree.
anyway, we went to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, all cheap tickets were sold out. So I took Hannah to this pub nearby that has really good meat pies and classic British food and ale, etc. The only time I had been to it before was on a weeknight and it was very comfy and homey and warm inside. On this night, it was still all of those things, but also it was incredibly crowded inside and out with working people having drinks on a Friday evening after the work week. So much cheer, so many friends, men in suits with their beers, laughing and laughing. greatness. After dinner, we went back and my flatmate Joe was about to go out with some of our friends, so we joined them and went to the New Globe, the closest pub to campus, about a block away and full of good music and students from my school.
Saturday, we slept late and made breakfast in the flat, pancakes topped with a plum sauce from the plums Hannah picked and brought from Germany. Then we attempted to visit the Victoria and Albert Museum, but we got there too late and we couldn't find it. hah. so we went to hyde park instead since we were near it, and ate at this open-air cafe on the canal overlooking hyde park and complete with stone patio, old metal tables and chairs, seagulls and ducks and swans playing, and people enjoying each other's company, very euro it felt. After that, it was getting late, but we still hung onto the idea of possibly going to the theatre if we could get there in time and there were tickets available. It's amazing the way we would just chance things all the time and make something out of plans that didn't work out, so I trusted our luck on this one. By the time we found the National Theatre, across the river, it was nearing 7:30 which is showtime. We asked at the counter for Hamlet tickets, but that show had started at 7 already. So we asked at another counter for a different show. Sold out. Damn. We took a bathroom break, wiped out sweat from running to the theatre, and checked one more counter (there are multiple theatres at the National). We had to go outside and find the entrance to this one, and there was a man opening the door for us because it was about to start and he hurried us inside and said, pick up your tickets there! But we didn't have any, so I asked the guy at the counter if there were any left, and he said "sure, ten pounds each, and then just right up those stairs, show starts in 2 minutes" in the calmest voice I had heard all day. Wait, what? We got into a show? There were tickets left? We hurried up to find out seats, not even knowing what the show was about. And it turned out to be really good, modern theatre, a show about an elderly gay couple (played by some very eerie puppets and with the assistance of an all male cast with the exception of the narrator) and the memories they are dealing with at the end of their lives and the difficulties that come with writing a will. It was a beautiful piece, beautiful puppetry, and it made me think a lot. After the show, we walked along the river until we found a good-looking bar where we had some bread, wine, and dessert while discussing the piece we just saw.
The next day, the ADVENTURE began. The plan: go to Oxford University and the Cotswolds, probably camp out in the Cotswolds to avoid paying for a hostel. That last part sounded really exciting when Hannah first suggested it, and then the night before the trip I just kept thinking about it and becoming more and more scared. I love the wilderness and the wild and the trees and the grass and I like to camp, but in a strange place, an ancient stone village built in the 1100s that has only one road leading from it to other villages, and without a tent or anything? Whaatttt.
I tried to convince myself it would be fine, but decided we should just check in with the hostel to see if they have any rooms when we get there, just as a back-up. So we ventured into Central London Saturday morning, waited a very long time for our bus, which was late because there was a marathon in London and none of the coach buses could get into the city. We took the bus to Oxford University and then hopped on a train to the quaint Cotswold town of Moreton-in-Marsh. Then we walked 4 miles South to the village of Stow-on-the-Wold, as planned. Looking at Google Maps beforehand, this seemed like no problem. Four miles sounds like a lot, but Google said it would take an hour and a half. I've walked for an hour and a half many a time, easy. I didn't consider the fact that I would be carrying a light but bulky bag with quilt attached, or that the 4 miles would be traveled on the one main road connecting the cotswold villages, with no sidewalk or any sort of clearing for pedestrians alongside the fast-moving traffic. It was a bit challenging, and I did feel as if I might sprain an ankle at any given moment, or be hit by a car, but neither casualty occurred. In fact, none did. We walked through the vast countryside, sweating profusely, and smiling at the flowers and the hills and each time we almost tripped and each time a car beeped in encouragement and in salute of travelers. It did feel strong, I felt strong. What must people think of two women hiking this way? Surely, Alexander Supertramp was not the only brave soul. hah.
So we found Stow-on-the-Wold finally, and we were completely exhausted. We checked in at the hostel, and they had no rooms available. There were plenty of other hotels, but they would have been much more expensive, and besides, we were going to sleep outside with the animals. We ate and drank at a pub with all the local folks and a charming old bartender. It felt like we were in someone's living room, and I got a little homesick because it reminded me of warm meals at grandma and grandpa's house, and the thought of not sleeping in a warm bed disturbed me a little. We hadn't had a chance to find a spot before eating and now it was dark. But I had brought a flashlight, so we changed into our many layers of clothing at the pub, finished our drinks, and headed out to find our haven out in the unknown. We had noticed an area of land the went down and down a rolling hill from the street when we arrived in the village, so we went back to that. It was all grassy and sectioned off by a fence on either side. We couldn't see all the way down the hill, which was quite scary, but we could tell their was a farm property on one side of the fence. So we checked the other fence and found it to just enclose a small forest with a hill going up to meet the road on the other side. We squeezed under the barbed wire and found quiet in a bed of moss and leaves, protected by a canopy of trees overhead. It felt very safe, much safer than I could have imagined. We were enclosed by the fence on one side and the hill and road on the other. We could faintly hear cars if they were to pass by up on the street, which was comforting. And there were no large creatures, we had not trespassed on anyone's home. I squashed some stinging nettle with my shoe, we spread out our quilts, chatted, read to each other, drank wine, and fell asleep on the forest floor, with the sound of the leaves falling every so often. It did get cold in the night, and we had to keep switching sides, huddled up to one another for warmth, but I slept. peacefully. and it was the freshest air I had breathed in weeks, and the plant beneath us smelled wonderful. We awoke to the sun rising and a rooster crowing nearby, and above all the satisfaction and ease of mind that we had just lived outside for a night. For me, it reassured me of the power of nature and its ability to always protect and comfort and provide for all its inhabitants. I feel a connection and a faith of knowing this all the time, but that night my beliefs were confirmed. I used to suspect, but I now know that the trees will keep me safe. If there is one thing I can say I believe in, it's that.
So we made our way back into the town, feeling victorious, found a bakery just opening and had coffee in the warmth, sitting on a comfy couch. After freshening up, we took a bus back to Moreton-in-Marsh and a train back to Oxford City, had breakfast in Oxford and explored the campus and the town a bit. We walked around a rose garden, watched the college lads set visitors off in their punting boats on the canal, and laid in a pile of leaves in the sun alongside the canal, reading and watching students, professors, and tourists walk by. Later we took megabus back to London, hurried back to my flat, showered and shoved food in our mouths as we ran out the door to see the broadway show we had booked with my other friend Hannah from the flat above! We saw Avenue Q, a show about people and puppets living in New York, and mostly a satire on life. Really funny.
whew. this is obscenely long, my apologies, but there is more. The next day, Tuesday I believe, Hannah left me to do some school work since I hadn't all weekend. At night, we went out with a group of friends to this INCREDIBLE blues bar in soho that Joe had heard about. oh my god. it was good. tiny old bar with lots of people, young and old, and we sat right in front of the band, a trio of gray-haired guys who could absolutely rock the blues. it was odd to have a first blues club experience in the uk and not in the states, but they were so good. the lead guy sang and played the harmonica and saxophone and it was so funky, and i was jamming. mmmmmmmmmmmm.
the next day hannah left, but first we had a delicious lunch at this indian restaurant near my flat. since then, i have been back to my normal life in london, but we had so much fun, so many adventures, and we've realized we are perfect travel companions for each other. When we were in Stow-on-the-Wold, just heading out of the pub to find our place to sleep, we saw these old rich ladies in a window, enjoying their food and drink at their proper hotel. We thought ahead to when we are those ladies and we will think back as we are sipping our wine, "remember when we slept out in that forest that one time?" "remember when we dove off that cliff into open water? or yeah remember that dragon?" it'll all be worth it when we're old ladies.
Since wednesday, I've just been taking it easy mostly, trying not to catch the flu that loads of people have here...
there was a bit of freshmen chaos in the flat this weekend involving our hallway wall being punched in and a drunk girl puking and sleeping on our kitchen counter. but no matter.
It's sunday night and i'm behind on reading, best be off.
Some photos from the canal near my flat, Moreton-in-Marsh, and Oxford here:
http://s931.photobucket.com/albums/ad151/maple018/Adventures%20with%20Hannah/
xx
emily
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