At the shop, I bought a feng shui cat figure to decorate my room and discounted postcards. Ten postcards for one pound at a tourist trap = STEAL! (Except it'll take 7 pounds just to send them all. Ugh)
On the tube ride, there was a tourist with a camera who took a picture of the train as it was coming in. The driver saw the flash of the camera so when everyone was boarded, before the train departed, the driver went on the PA system and said "This is just a note that there is no flash photography in the Underground." It amused me so much I wrote it in my journal right there so I wouldn't forget it.
When Oscar and I met up again in the museum, we went for some food in another cafe place. I reached for a brownie and Oscar whispered "Don't do it; you'll regret it!" To which I gave him permission to say "I told you so" if I ever verbally speak the words "I regret having that brownie." Truth to be told, the brownie didn't taste like American brownies, and I was somewhat disappointed. It was so RICH and DENSE. More like a cake than a brownie. No, 'disappointed' is the wrong word. More like off-putting. I wasn't expecting a cake.
Returning home, I spent some time in Oscar's room while he napped (again). Went out because dinner was going to happen soon and I caught Lynn and Denise waiting for Francie at her door. No one had money to buy Mexican food so everyone was on their own. We ate in the sixth floor instead of the first because Francie wasn't in her room. I fried sausages, mixed them into canned spaghetti sauce, and poured it over noodles. Everyone was somewhat amazed by the end result and I was like "It's just noodles with meat." I didn't really say anything but I did question why they thought it was amazing.
Ryan mentioned wanting to go for a walk later to which I told him to come get me when he wanted to go. I wasn't sure when to expect him and I wasn't sure if he knew where to find me when he left, but I trusted he knew how to figure it out. Oscar has my number.
Talked with Smoky in the common room before I had the urge to do laundry. But I only had a twenty pound note and no one could break it, so I dragged Oscar with me to the little convenience shop around the corner. Why did I drag Oscar? Because it was dark, I was in my PJs, and I didn't feel all that secure walking around town like that. I felt better with a buddy.
Called Sarah then, but she was working, so we chatted on Facebook instead. Then Ryan and Oscar came to get me for a walk, and we left. We saw Parliament from across the Thames and listened to Big Ben chime and talked about human transcendence and how it could be a bad thing and how it could not be a bad thing. I did most of the listening. Walked across Westminster Bridge and I stopped at the foot of Big Ben to see if it'll dawn on me that I'm in London and maybe I should start freaking out about now. That's when we encountered a drunk Swedish guy looking for his camera. He was friendly. Spent three weeks in Italy visiting his aunt and then a week in London and then he lost his camera and now all those pictures are gone because the memory card was in the camera too. Poor bloke. His hostel was all the way by King's Cross. I hope he found his way home safely even if it is camera-less.
On the other side of Parliament, there's a block covered with tents and signs protesting the war in Afghanistan. Ryan stopped and started talking with the security guard at the Parliament gate. There's apparently a guy who was living in a protesting tent for nine years. NINE YEARS. Another one was there for about four or five. The guard didn't mind the protesting, but he doesn't think they should live there. There's an entire block of grass now closed off because the tents were originally on the grass, but now it's all contaminated with human waste. So some unlucky workers have to go in there and remove two feet of dirt and grass to replace it with something new and fresh and clean. Ew. He was a friendly enough guard.
Moving on, we came full circle in conversation and walk. When we got back, I switched out my laundry and took a peak at my camera battery charger. The voltage reading on the charger matched that on my computer, which means I can totally charge it without a giant wattage adapter. *face palm* I could have gotten such pretty pictures of Parliament and Big Ben at night!! No!!
Today was such a good day, I'd almost say it makes up for not doing anything yesterday. I don't feel guilty anymore.
While on the walk, I gave myself a good slap in the face. My thoughts afterward were "Did that hurt? Yep. Still stings. I'm in London. Sweet." Conclusion: I'm not freaking out I'm in London.
I think I should be! I eat dinner with a girl from Luxembourg. There's a guy on the first floor from the Irish midlands (love love LOVE his accent!). Emmanuele on my floor is from MILAN. Vitta on the ninth floor is from Lithuania. I'm suddenly considered an international student, and I'm very very chill about all this.
I think I grew up a little.
By the way, last night I was talking with Elysia on the sixth floor. I told her I'm from Wisconsin in the States and she said that she wouldn't have pegged me for American. So what makes an American different from any other country? Are we supposed to be obnoxious? Because I think that's the stereotype.
Furthermore, I finally got the present my friends on Emerald Street sent me:
Expect another long post tomorrow because the Underground is on strike and it's going to be a hell of an adventure getting to Harrow on a bus. Until then, [insert corny catchphrase here].
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