London Calling.doc

Since the last post I've had an extremely busy few days providing a nice break from the routine to which I have become so accustom. The reason for this shift was the arrival of the new MAIPR gang and a weekend jaunt to London to visit my friend Stuart from Queen's.

Wednesday and Thursday were productive, but fairly uneventful. I sat at the computer in the dining room for over a dozen hours over the two days working away at the dissertation. I wanted to hit a certain mark before the arrival of the weekend (and all kinds of distraction) so I stuck to the ambitious goal I had set for myself. The strategy paid off. I reached the goal by late Thursday afternoon and it meant that I could appreciate the extended weekend knowing I had worked tremendously to enjoy it. Instead of rejoicing on Thursday night, I went to my first spin class with Tory. It was quite an experience. I had heard the classes were challenging, but I figured it would be just an intense form of cycling. I was wrong. The increased tensions an simulated hills a part of the workout mean your thighs are getting a solid pounding. It was good to sweat though and I felt great after it was done.

Friday signaled the first ever official coming together of MAIPR Year 1 and 2. We were invited to a lunch at the Theatre Studies department were we reconnected telematically with the course. We we asked to introduce ourselves in cyberspace to Amsterdam and Finland looking on, and to the other new students at the Warwick location. Afterwards we dined on a great lunch spread and mingled with staff and new students. It looks like the social circle is expanding! Later that evening we invited the group out for a few pints in Leamington (a getting to know you type gathering). It was good to connect with everyone from our group again (the majority of which came out to meet the new students) and to be introduced to new peers also interested in theatre and the arts. I enjoy giving advice, so I was happy to be able to pass on information about the course and Amsterdam. From the pub we went to a club in the city called Mumbai Blue - it was a bit sketchy so we left early.

The next morning was Tory's 24th birthday! Because I had booked London for the weekend (since it was the only time I was able to go in the next while) I offered to make her a big Saturday morning breakfast. I awoke at 9am and made scrambled eggs, hashbrown potatoes, fried tomatoes, mushrooms, and rye toast. A nice English breakie. Tory, Lonneke (our Dutch friend who was staying at our place), and myself dined on the meal with tea and coffee. It was a great spread if I do say so. At 11am I bid the girls adieu and headed to the train station en route to London.

I arrived at 2pm and met Stuart at Paddington Station. Stuart and I are friends from Queen's. After uni he came over here to LSE (the London School of Economics) and has now been here for three years. He has a job that he enjoys that is based out of London, but which takes him around Europe on occasion. The last time I saw him was at his birthday party last December in the city. We dropped off my bag at his place in Westminister (he shares a great house with three other guys) and then went to Camden Market. Emily had recommended this to me a few weeks ago and we went there to browse on Saturday. Like Em said, it was a really cool market. It's inset in what seems to be old railway viaducts. I found out that it's built in the former Midland Railway stables and horse hospital which served the horses pulling barges along the adjoining canal. They had all kinds of antiques, bric-a-brac, and retro clothes. We sipped on coffees and wandered through the crowds. From there we went to Tottenham Court and did some window shopping - Stuart showed me some of his favourite places.

In the evening we went to Stuart's friends's Leigh's house to watch X factor Britain's biggest TV sensation. It was cheesy British TV at its best. We brought over salad and fresh bread to join takeout sushi for dinner. After not having a TV in Leamington it was nice to sit, chill, and socialize. Afterwards we went to a birthday party of a friend of Stuart's at The Edge in Soho and formed a larger group with some of his friends. We bar hopped to a late night place called Lo Profile before taking a night bus back to Westminister. It was a really fun night out, and it felt great to be back in a bigger city.

We slept in late this morning and then jumped on the tube to head out and about. We picked up a coffee and some breakfast at M&S and then made our way to Brick Lane for the Sunday Market. Talk about a cool vibe - East London definitely has it going on. We saw some really neat sights at the market and browsed a vintage furniture store and a few art galleries. We had two leisurely afternoon pints before I boarded my train at 3:30pm. The trip to London was a brief one, but it was good to see Stuart again. I know that I have yet another friend to go visit again in the city. As much as I like my routine in Leamington (see the last post), it was great to take a few days off from work. Back at the books tomorrow.

Doc's Prescription of the Day: London comes calling every once in a while - sometimes you have to pick up.