London, Part 7

**Start at the beginning: Part 1 London, England

I have shown pictures of my visit to London, so now I want to share some of the experiences I had while I was visiting...........................................

The week that I went to London there was a heat wave. If I am not mistaken, it was about 85 or 90 degrees mid week. One day while I was on the tube a woman passed out from the heat, the incident even made it on the local news. I was very surprised to learn that there is no air conditioning in the city. The reason for that is because it never gets that hot there.

Late in the week, I was wandering around the city and came across a small shop. This specialty store sold all kinds of drinks and teas and such. I asked for a cup of ice and the owner tried to sell me everything but that. I told him all I really wanted was a cup of ice and he said it would be fifty pence. At that moment I wouldn't have cared if he charged me a pound because it was so hot outside. He begrudgingly made me the ice and I could tell he was mad. So, when he handed me the cup of ice, I looked him in the eyes and told him thank you, and I was being very sincere. He looked at me and I could visibly see him soften.

One of the coolest guys (blokes) I met was named Desmond. I met him one day after I had been to the pub and drank a few beers. He was sitting at the bus stop and had this huge patch over his eye. He actually started a conversation with me telling me he had a stye removed from his eye. And being that I was slightly buzzing I started telling him how nobody would talk to me and how I was from America. He responded that he loved America and I really needed to get outside the city because the people were friendlier. I told him how some of the locals were great about giving directions when I had gotten lost. I had the best chat with Desmond. We talked about driving, public transportation, visiting America, car insurance in England, and so much more. I even told him about being from the South and it was just a great conversation. Right before we got to my stop, I told him that I was so happy that I met him and had a great time talking to him.

Another day that week, I went to all the museums. In one of the museums there was a long table in the middle of the room. There were pictures down both sides of the table of a woman and a man from birth to death and the different kinds of medication that they took. I guess the take on the exhibit was how pharmaceuticals affect our lives. This piece of art was so profound it brought me to tears!! That has never happened to me before. I tried to take a picture of it but it didn't turn out, but it will be forever etched into my heart and mind.

Another interesting bit of information is there are two buses with the number 266. One is bus 266 to Hammersmith the second is bus 266 to Brent Cross. I kept getting on the 266 to Brent Cross. Whenever I got on that bus we would ride all over West London. It was amazing!!! There were areas of neighborhoods that reminded me of the smells you smell at the fair because there were so many different types of eating establishments. In one neighborhood, there could be Chinese food, Thai food, American fried chicken, Indian food and anything in between. There were people bustling around up and down the streets going about their daily activities. By the end of the week, I realized I could get to the guest house much quicker if I took the bus 266 to Hammersmith; thirty minutes as opposed to three hours on the other bus.

Another great thing about the public transportation system in England is that when elderly, pregnant women or a mom pushing a baby stroller got on the bus or the tube, people would actually give up their seat to these people. I thought that was awesome.

I saw some very handsome men while I was there also. They were dressed very smart, and the women were too. Especially those that worked around Parliament. I have never seen so many men wearing skinny pants, and actually look good wearing them.

Tomorrow, I will wrap up my trip to London on the blog. Please leave me some comments and let me know how you like the pictures or what do you think of what I have written. Thanks. 


Continue.. London: Part 8