My time in London was spent exactly as you would suspect it to be spent in any other city around the world. Coughing through the smog, dodging traffic, squeezing past people on the sidewalk, and frustrated beyond reason. London wasn't my favorite place in the world..but I had expected this.
Instead of wasting my time visiting countless tourist traps, I chose to instead get to know some of the people from my hostel and meet up with a girl I used to work with. It was nice to have lost all sense of time. Everyday I woke up when I wanted to (which was usually before 10am so I could indulge in free breakfast), went where my feet took me, and ate when I was hungry. It was an empowering feeling to know that I was in control. There were no time constraints, no meetings, no places I had to be.
But thanks to good ol' Tube stikes, I found myself with limited transportation. Lucky for me the London Eye, Parliament, and The Globe were all within walking distance. My second day at the hostel I befriended a 21 year old Aussie who had been traveling for the last 2 years. Treffyn was an amazing tour guide, and an ever better friend. Together we saw The Merry Wives of Windsor at The Globe Theatre. Wow! It wasn't like the plays I'd seen back home at The Citadel. The Globe's atmosphere reached out to you when you entered the thick wooden doors and enveloped you in Shakespeare's story immediately. I was fully entranced. My body was drawn to the stage like a magnet, my eyes following the same pattern. The hours escaped effortlessly, and by the end of the show I knew that even if I did not see anything else in this huge city, I would be happy.
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