Dying in a Foreign Country

It has come to my attention that I am going to perish from this cough. It would be impossible for one to feel this awful and then not keel over. Or at least that is my logic. Thankfully if I do die, I have been informed that my insurance will get my body back to the states. How comforting. There are not many things that make me wish I was home but being sick is one of them just because it is impossible to find drugs here that work. I have bought THREE different cold and cough remedies and they have all been equally useless. When I was sitting on the tube a women sitting next to me got up and sat at the other end of the car because I was coughing. I feel like a walking bio-hazard.

Oh, How I Love a Good List

Things checked off my London bucket list: 
•Watch so much amazing theatre; Les Miz, The Lion In Winter, The Pitman Painters, Noises Off (and hopefully much more to come)
• Become a master of the underground, to the point of riding, while standing, without holding on, and not crashing into people when it stops. Boom.
• Spend time with old friends and get to know lots of new amazing people. • Go to Bath, obsess about Jane Austen.
• Succeed in keeping some sort of travel writing document (I write things down in 5 different places but at least I am writing)

Surprises (nice):
• Continental breakfast!!!!! I will never get tired of croissants, meat and cheese. Never. 
• Hearing so many different languages in one place. Makes me feel...worldly. 
• Getting into the practically sold out Leonardo da Vinci exhibit. Truly a once in a lifetime experience. 

Surprises (not so nice):
• Getting stupidly sick which lead to two nose bleeds which lead to me freaking out and thinking I was dying which lead to everyone thinking I was silly.
• Spending money like there is no tomorrow ... but everything is so expensive and I looovvvveeee to shop.
• Theatres not giving out programs or even cast lists, you have to pay anywhere from £4-8 for a program.
• Getting separated from my group on the tube, but I was awesome and found my way back.

Hopefully still to come:
• Hedgehogs!!!!!!!!!!!! In Hyde Park. Please please please!
• Much much much more theatre

Sorry this is really random but I have been sick

Went to Hyde park and saw Peter Pan. Of course it was not actually Peter Pan, just a statue situated next to the water, surrounded by ducks and pigeons.

 I wrote a small story about a squirrel named sprout who is friends with an old man named Ralph and they save a baby hedgehog together. Quite adorable if I do say so myself. Then when we were heading back to the hotel I saw something pokey on the ground and of course had to pick it up, I brought it close up to my face and then regretted it because it looked like the skin of a hedgehog. There were hundreds on the ground though so we decided they were weird seeds from a tree and not a massive hedgehog grave. 

I still don't have the appliances worked out. The lights turned off in the shower this morning and since there isn't a light switch I had no idea what I was supposed to do, so I just showered in the dark, which was super creepy. I thought I was going to get murdered, but I didn't.

We are on our way to Dover and then Canterbury cathedral.

Intersting facts from our tour guide and other things I have found out:
-If a young girl in kent sleeps with hops under her pillow she will dream of the man she will marry.  
-Essex is the Jersey Shore of London.
-Charles dickens wanted to be buried in Rochester cathedral but queen Elizabeth brought his body to be buried in Westminster Abbey because she thought he was too important a writer.
-They plant trees on the edges of fields to protect the crops from winds up from the see.
-The traffic lights go both ways. Green to yellow to red, to stop and red to yellow to green, to go. A little confusing.
-There has been such mild weather here that roses are already blooming and bulbs are coming up.      
-They have roundabouts here but you go around the opposite way, so crazy. 

We watched 13 yesterday which was a very interesting look at politics and religion. Kind of creepy and depressing in a way but left you thinking for a really long time after. I think what i have decided is It's important to believe in something.

We just left Dover Castle. We went to the beach first and looked over at France which was awesome. Then we went up to the castle and went through a guided tour of the tunnels beneath the village that were used during the war. The tour was really interactive with lots of footage from the war and sounds of war. The tunnels were full of graffiti, the oldest that has been found was "Mary Ford 1807".

We learned a lot about the evacuation of Dunkirk which I had never heard of before. Over 400,000 troupes were trapped on a beach in France surrounded on all sides by the enemy. The British thought they would only be able to save 45,000 men but they rounded up as many boats as possible and ended up saving over 348,000 men.

For a Few Dollars More

I got separated from my group on the tube yesterday. I jumped on and the doors closed right behind me. It was pretty obvious that I had just been abandoned and this guy kept looking at me and chuckling. It wouldn't have been that big of deal but I hadn't been listening to where we were going. So I just rode the tube four stops back to Lancaster Gate and walked back to the hotel. I wasn't mugged or murdered or anything. It was nice.

Yesterday we saw our first musical, Blood Brothers. It was the weirdest mix of genres ever and I couldn't tell if they were making fun of themselves or taking it seriously. It was pretty entertaining, but I am confused as to how it is one of he longest running musicals. There was this really intense melodramatic song about superstitionsn that was hilarious;

SHOES UPON THE TABLE AN' A SPIDER'S BEEN KILLED.
SOMEONE BROKE THE LOOKIN' GLASS
A FULL MOON SHININ' AN' THE SALT'S BEEN SPILLED.
YOU'RE WALKIN' ON THE PAVEMENT CRACKS
DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GONNA COME TO PASS.
NOW Y' KNOW THE DEVIL'S GOT YOUR NUMBER,
Y' KNOW HE'S GONNA FIND Y',
Y' KNOW HE'S RIGHT BEHIND Y',
HE'S STARIN' THROUGH YOUR WINDOWS
HE'S CREEPING DOWN THE HALL.

And everytime the narrator would sing it was super dramatic and the lighting would go all weird. I am glad I saw it but probably wouldn't see it again, but their voices were amazing. Today we are off to the national gallery to see the Leonardo da Vinci exhibit that is supposedly a once in a lifetime opportunity. Yay!!

Don't blame me for grammar issues I wrote this on my phone

Is there anything more beautiful than a sunrise from a plane? A sea of light lavender blue with tops of dark pink and peaks of white. It was almost worth not sleeping just so I could be awake to see the first glimpse of sun. It was nice to see since it will probably by cloudy and cold in London when we land. Not that I mind. If I was freezing for the rest of my life I would be happy. If I never had to touch another human or feel the warmth of a heater I would be happy.

Flying in coach is similar to getting squashed into a sardine tin and then placed in a 500 degree oven. There is no escape from physical contact. Scooch to the left or right, rock forward or back there is always something to obstruct true comfort. This perpetual state of queasiness is made worse by the fact that we had to walk by the 'world coach' flyers who recline for the entire trip, don't have to touch anyone else and all have window seats. I would give my right arm for a window seat. And both my arms to be flying in first class. And it would also be nice I they supplied amaretto sours and sleep medication. All I had was a Heineken and an eye mask to send me off to a fitful 20 minute nap and then to be woken abruptly when the passenger next to me stirred and touched my arm. Ewwww gross gross gross heat! Will I ever be cold again.

I contemplated stripping in my seat but I feel that such drastic measures would result in me being thrown off the plane. Most likely without a parachute. Plan for the flight home: go naked or get upgraded to first class. Not sure which one is more likely. Or maybe they could just strap me to the top like a Christmas tree or a snowboard. It can't hurt to ask, the worst they could say is no. I discovered a fabulous new song Icarus by Bastille. Not conducive to sleeping but good to rock out to. Of course rocking out on a plane is ill-advised.

A bollywood dance would really liven things up right now. People dancing and singing up the isles. I would like that better than the boring hoards of people with their mouth hanging open. Stupid people able to sleep when I am awake. We will arrive in London at 11:25 in the morning, meaning a whole afternoon where I will be expected to act like a human being after sleeping only 20 minutes. We will see.

People are very interesting when they have their mouth hanging open.  The girl to my right has some amazing rings. One is a panther head encrusted with  black stones. It takes up half her finger. The other is a ball of clear glass with red swirls. It looks like a marble placed on top of a band. She is probably crazy though since it took her 3 hours to take off her giant puffy coat and I had stripped down to my tank top within 3 minutes.

One of our male flight attendants (is there a special name for them) has a tattoo on his arm. If he can be a flight attendant I am sure I could be since I am cheerful and awesome and love planes. Also I am pretty sure I would be fabulous at pointing out the emergency exits. I wonder if I could be a flight attendant on a British airways even though I am not British? Something to look into. I hope I get to sit next to someone I like on the way back. Ahhh, a Mumford and Sons song excellent to get me in he mood for a spot of fake British breakfast on a too hot crowded plane. "You did not think when you sent me to he breeeeaaaaakkkk!" Maybe I should try to sleep. Not going to happen.

The spit has formed webs in the corner of my neighbor's mouth. It reminds me of the entrance to a haunted house. All it is missing is fangs and some spiders. I guess that's what you get for sleeping with your mouth open. The tattooed mans name is Michael,  he seems nice.  All I can think about as we stay in a holding pattern in turbulence (70 mph winds) is the scene in died hard 2 when the BRITISH plane crashes into the Tarmac with the evil general going "we've got you. We've got you". Not comforting. Fighting air sickness. Ugghhh. Such an awful feeling. 

I couldn't sleep. I went to bed at 7:30 (19:30London time) because I was so tired and woke up at 5 this morning. Pretended to sleep for another hour and then gave up. It is amazing how many people are up and about walking the streets. A giant CLEAN truck came down the street and pulled right onto the sidewalk to unload bags of laundry.

The entry hall of our hotel is still decorated for Christmas. Lots of gold shiny fabric and giant red balls hang from the ceiling and a tree sits in the corner. I fully support any culture that lets Christmas cheer spread into the new year. There is a church right across the street from us with red doors and giant old fashioned windows. It is situated between a Royal Food and Wine and a Perrrfect Paws. Everything here makes me smile. On our block there are also two laundry mats, two pubs and a German YMCA.

I have already visited The Swan an The Mitre, both fabulous pubs. I like The Mitre best. It was filled with dark wood paneling and red leather. There was a fireplace in the corner and lots of locals. People even brought their dogs in. Jesse and I petted a cute jack russel terrier that practically jumped into her lap. I am trying my hardest to not be a gaping, giggling tourist, but everything amazes and excites me.

We are going on a double decker bus tour today and I am sure I will take about a million pictures. Breakfast was amazing. Croissants, warm baguettes, meat, cheese, hardboiled eggs, toast, cereal, fruit. Everything was delicious.