I have been trying to think of a way to end this blog but I have way too many things to say about London, none of which really go together or make much sense, and all of which sound a bit douchey, even in my head. So instead I figure I will let someone else do the talking:

"I can never understand why Londoners fail to see that they live in the most wonderful city in the world. It is, if you ask me, far more beautiful and interesting that Paris and more lively than anywhere but New York-- and even New York can't touch it in lots of important ways. It has more history, finer parks, a livlier and more varied press, better theaters, more numerous orchestras and museums, leafier squares, safer streets, and more courteous inhabitants than any other large city in the world.

And it has more congenial small things--incidental civilities, you might call them--then any other city I know: cheery red mailboxes, drivers who actually stop for you at pedestrian crossings, lovely forgotten churches with wonderful names like St. Andrew by the Wardrobe and St. Giles Cripplegate, sudden pockets of quiet like Lincoln's Inn and Red Lion Square, interesting statues of obscure victorians in togas, pubs, black cabs, double-decker buses, helpful policemen, polite notices, people who will stop to help you when you fall down or drop your shopping, benches everywhere. What other great city would take the trouble to put blue plaques on houses to let you know what famous person once lived there, or warn you to look left or right before stepping off the curb? I'll tell you. None." --Bill Bryson, from Notes From a Small Island

Cheers, London, for a good year.

London Bridge is falling down

The first and only time I ever saw London Bridge, it was neon pink and it was my second to last day in London. We walked all the way to tower bridge to look at a webcam they have where you can wave to people in new york city on a huge screen. we stared at the new yorkers in their shorts and sandals for a few minutes, slightly disturbed for some reason, then stood leaning on the wall looking at the tower of london, me full of regret suddenly that I had never gone inside, trying and failing to remember what exactly it was that I had been doing for the past 9 months. we sat outside at an expensive pub which is technically in the City of London, though on the south bank. It seemed to be meant for business people with money, but it was Sunday night and therefore empty. we sat and looked at the tower bridge until we started to shiver, and then walked home. The point being, on the way home is when this picture was taken.

p.s.- I put up a few pictures of canary wharf on picasa

BTW

I am home now.

oh dear.

you know you're in trouble when you start applying love songs to cities.

<3

I will miss these two so much!

More pictures from Scotland, taken by Jessie, are up on Picasa, or will be in a few minutes anyway. Turns out Jessie is a creeper who likes to take candid shots of me all the time, so that's exciting. But not as exciting as the hand dryer...

I am back from Germany, it was great, and I am working on those pictures as well. Right now I am packing up my room. I'm trying to finish most of it today so that tomorrow I can run a few errands and have fun. I always hate packing up at the end of the year because it's so final. This time it is more final than usual and therefore also more depressing. But so far it hasn't really hit me.

Anyway, go check out the pictures if you fancy it.

OK, change in plans. It seems I have used up all of my allotted memory on picasa. Luckily I have two different google accounts, so I was able to upload the second batch of scotland pictures here:

http://picasaweb.google.com/aripley131

"Like a ten minute dream in the passenger seat while the world was flying by, I haven't been gone very long but it feels like a lifetime."