When in England...buy drinks in rounds--I suppose it all evens out at some point.

So, final night here in London, and what a fine night it was! With one last meal at Hare and Tortoise (Brunswick Sq, near Russell Sq Tube Stn), which I highly recommend-- it's a cheap Asian fusion restaurant, and the best dish is the roast duck and rice! I've eaten that far too many times while here, and two rounds of drinks with my friends here, and some sad goodbyes, I'm now in my room trying to figure out how to turn my mess into two packed suitcases.

I meant to write a few posts between my previous one and this final one, with titles such as:
When in Wales...sheep! to detail my trip up Mt. Snowdon;
When at Stonehenge...try to feel the energy in the stones, on my trip there for the Summer solstice, when we spent the night under its stones, listening to wild partying and watching quiet reflection somehow sit side by side;
When in France...le carafe d'eau is tap water, to discuss my mom's and my trip to Paris and Arles;
When in Italy...bring sunlotion--it gets really sunny, where we went to Rome and Venice;
When in Cambridge...punt!, where we went punting down Cam River;

but those posts never happened, and likely, they never will. If you'd like to know about them, just ask!

There was to be one more about London, and the arts scene--a post I meant to put up in the first weeks of June, but I'll pretend like I meant it to go here, at the end. I saw three plays (Waiting for Godot, Hamlet, and Arcadia), two musicals (Wicked and Les Mis), a taiko concert, and a bunch of different gigs. If you are ever in London, take the time to check out the theatre on West End, and any gigs if you can. The arts is so easy to see in London, and it's so enjoyable and worth it.

To end this post, people have been asking me what I'll miss most about London, and I've mainly replied the free museums and the tube system. But, it's so hard to say, because what I'll miss is much more than that--it's the living in London part I'll miss the most--a meal at Hare and Tortoise, walking by Leicester Sq and catching the premiere of yet another movie, watching the streets fill with people around pubs as the workday ends, feeling accomplished about figuring out the best bus route to where I need to go. It's the Archaeology library at UCL and the cozy, messy, small feel to it, the accents--of course the accents!, but noting the multitude of different British accents there are, and realizing I'm not really hearing the accent anymore because I've been here for long enough, a sunny day in London, Pimm's. It's all of these things and so much more I can't put to words because I'm not a good writer.

Thank you, London, for a fantastic half year making myself feel at home.