the loo..??!

Today... I met up w/ A's friend, M. Kinda funny bc I had no clue what he looked like, and we're like... ok let's meet at Trafalgar Square after work! The square is pretty big, and there's always a billion tourists milling around - so, perfect! Well, ok, I figured "asian guy" would be easy enough to find. haha turns out we were right. Anyway, yay it was nice to be able to hang out with someone who is also sorta exploring London =). We wandered around to St. James's Park, where there's this huge lake with all sorts of cute/gross ducks. And yes, ducks can be cute and gross at the same time! Boo I forgot to bring my camera... but I have some pics from my cell phone.

View from the lake (you can see the London Eye in the background)


Very exciting stuff - ducks


I think this is St. James's Palace


After eating dinner at this place called "Thai Square," (supposedly the best thai food in London... it was decent, I guess) we were debating what there was to do, but it was sorta like the blind leading the blind. We had no idea so... decided to just go home haha... so with me leading the way, we promptly got lost in trying to find the tube station. Y'all know how GREAT I am with my sense of direction! So I suggested the ol' trick of.. just following a group of people in front of us, which led us to up this bridge that was crossing the Thames River (I think it was the Hungerford Bridge? I may have to go back) Ok at least I KNEW that I did not cross a river to get to the square. But it ended up that this bridge had an excellent night view of the Eye and Big Ben... almost reminded me of the nice view from the Peak in HK!

My pic does it no justice... I think Big Ben is on the right somewhere


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As promised, here are the "oddities" or differences I've had to get used to here in London:

>>Aside from driving on the left side of the road, jay-walking is not a term that is well known here. It's called "crossing the street." I've adjusted and I cross ALL the time on red lights. Everyone's always in such a rush, they just cross the street (after checking to make sure no cars are approaching). If you're in the street and a car is coming, you better run your ass outta there fast cuz you're gonna get hit! Think of it like being a pedestrian in Asia . Also, lights are red, then they turn yellow, then green. Between green and red, you get nothing. So if you're driving and you're at a red light, you'll see it turn yellow (get ready to go??) and then green. Then it'll turn off for a few seconds (be prepared to stop!) and then turn red.

>>I still feel weird asking someone where the "loo" is. I think they'll understand if you say "restroom," but when in Rome...

>>On a rainy day, don't tell people your pants got wet. Pants = underwear here. Your trousers may be soaked, but if you tell anyone your pants are wet, you might get a funny look.

>>It's not a cell phone, it's a mobile. I mean, mo-buy-ul. Also, they don't get charged for incoming calls here. No fair!

>>A pound, a quid. A dollar, a buck.

>>They call the subway the tube, and instead of "exit" signs, you'll find "way out" signs.

>>You don't have to tip at restaurants, and if you do, 10% is good enough. I think they get paid more here, unlike Americans that work for min wages+tips.

>>The British like to drink beer. None of this fancy mixed stuff, they want beer! And don't mess with them when they're talking about Rugby or Football with a beer in each hand. It won't be pretty.

>>Don't insult their tea. Just don't.

>>You don't just like her, you "fancy" her.

More to come as I think of them... I had more earlier but blogger didn't save and I lost my original post =(