Well, I suppose I have been really neglecting my travel blog, and I'm sorry about that, assuming any of you actually care. To be fair, I haven't had much to report. Life has been a bit dull lately, as most people have already gone home or are out of town a lot, and I have been spending a lot of time alone. It seems like I've established a pattern--sunny days are spent wandering aimlessly around the city, and rainy days are spent reading in cafes. cloudy days, I suppose, are spent doing some combination of the two.

For example: two days ago, I was woken at 1:45 PM by Denver, wanting to go to the Borough market. I dragged myself out of bed, got dressed, and walked over there (about a 20 minute walk) with Jessie and Dan. There I spent an exorbitant amount on olives and feta cheese, sampled lots of bread and olive oil, and ate a piece of rose-flavoured turkish delight (tasted like soap, gross). [oh my gosh, I have to stop here to say that the previous sentence is the first time I have ever used a british spelling of a word without noticing at that moment that I was doing it. I am a true Londoner now. So proud.] Anyway. After that we walked along the south bank. It was really crowded because this is a three-day weekend, again, and also because there was some sort of BMX bike competition going on in front of the tate modern. We walked all the way back to where Jessie and I live. Currently, at that spot on the river bank, there is a giant green couch and two giant green armchairs. I'm not sure why, but some awesome person decided it would be fun to have a giant living room in the middle of London, and I totally agree. We hung out there for a while, and then Jessie left. Denver and I continued to wander west, stopping once in a while, all the way to the Lambeth bridge, where we stopped to have a drink in a floating cafe. then we crossed the bridge, walked past the paliament building, around parliament square, to St. James park. Then down the mall to Trafalgar square, down the strand, back to waterloo bridge, over the bridge, to my flat. For those of you who have never been to London, the day's journey was basically a giant figure 8 in the most scenic part of the city. Anyway, then we bought cans of beer, went back to the giant couch, and sat watching what we decided was as good at a giant TV--people walking past, the river, buses going past up above on the bridge, the sky getting darker and darker until finally, at 10 PM, it was dark, at which point we got cold and wound up in the George as usual.

As a contrast, today I also woke up somewhere between 1 and 2, to find that it was raining and miserable outside. However, I was determined to do something productive, so I decided to go to the library and pay for the book I lost in Paris. I set out through the mist, rationalizing that rain is part of the london experience and maybe I will miss it in a couple of months. Halfway over the Thames, when my umbrella blew inside out for the second time, I decided that this notion was absolute rubbish, and cursed myself for having ever left my bedroom. However, I was determined, and made it all the way there before remembering that today is a holiday, and the library counter is therefore closed. As a consolation I stopped at Cafe Nero on the way home, had a black americano, and read for a while.

My life is a series of extreme highs and lows at the moment. The idea of going home is nice and comforting. But the idea of leaving London makes me sick to my stomach. I don't know when I will be back here again, and when i do, it won't be the same. It's like buying a new pair of rainbow sandals, only sadder. It's like the city itself is a person who I've grown close to, and now I will never see them again. That was a really corny way of putting it, but it's the best I can come up with at the moment.

Jessie and Denver are going out of town again tomorrow, so I am gonna be all alone until Friday. I think I might go to Bath for one of the days. Other than that, I have no plans other than to watch the USA vs. England soccer game, and cheer shamelessly for the yanks. It will be so, so funny if we win. bahahaha. Next week Jessie and I are supposed to be going to Scotland, and the week after that, I'm going to Germnay, It will al be over before I know it, and that is pretty crazy.