Foggy London Town

I'm happy I live in Warsaw.

That was my first thought as I returned from my trip to London last weekend. I kept thinking "I'm really glad I'm in Warsaw". Don't get me wrong. London is a great city with lots of culture, things to do, and it seems like everyone I know is moving there, but there is something about it that says "visit me, but don't live here". I thought about moving to London rather than to Poland, but this trip helped me realize I made the right decision for me. Plus everyone there talks so funny they are harder to understand than Polish people (when the Polish people are speaking Polish).

My other thought when I was returning was: "I can't believe that bus driver just left me on the curb on purpose and ignored me as I banged on the door and chased him down the street". More on that in the next entry.

I have been to London a couple times, so I didn't feel the need to be a tourist this time. The primary point of my trip was to visit some friends, and to eat some Korean food. That's right. Korean food. London isn't known for food, but at least they have Korean food there. I'm not saying that it's the best ever (it's not), but at least they have it. In Warsaw I think the only Korean food is at the homes of the guys who work at the Samsung research center in my building. (Speaking of which, I should make friends with them since they probably make awesome bulgogi).

Before I arrived I had all my meals planned out, but not much else about the trip. I didn't know what I would see or do...just what I wanted to eat. Lunch at an English pub, Turkish dinner with my old (and I really mean old) Seattle friend Darin, then Dim Sum with the San Jose crew the next day and a Korean dinner with Mike, Patty and Andrea. What else is there?

I took the 6am Wizz Air flight out and let me tell you how much fun that is. Ready? There. I'm done telling you. That's as much fun it is: none. The morning of the flight, my cab was late (4:35 instead of 4:15am). I was getting annoyed so I went outside so I could be ready for him. Then I realized why he was late. The entire street was an Ice Rink! All the snow had melted and re-froze overnight. I could not even walk because there was a layer of ice so thick I couldn't even see the brick underneath. I had to "skate" over to the intersection where I was supposed to meet him, and we all know that I HATE ICE SKATING. Ugh. I manage to stay on my feet and get to the corner, where I see a taxi going about 2 miles/hour (approx. 3 km/hour if you are converting at home), fishtailing like he actually was a fish. I get in, he is swearing under his breath about something unpleasant, and we speed off, at about 4 mph. It took ages to get to the airport and I got there just in time for the flight. Wizz Air has open seating, but luckily there weren't that many crazy/stupid people taking the 6am flight, so I got a good seat. Or maybe they were still driving their Zambonis trying to get there.

When I arrived in the city I met up with Jess (a friend from the US), who took the day off to hang out with me. We ended up going to the Churchill War Rooms, which taught me a lot about what happened in England during WWII. Honestly, I didn't know anything happened in London during the war (besides cricket and tea time), but apparently they were getting bombed by the Germans daily. The War Rooms were a big headquarters underground, where the high ranking military Brits could spend 24 hours a day, working, sleeping, eating, and having bad teeth. Obviously Churchill was there too, and this is where he made all of his decisions on how to fight the war. The museum showed off most of the authentic rooms, maps, and other things that were used during the war, and had a lot of information about Churchill, who seemed to be one tough hombre. But also very beloved. Is it just me, or do Americans not learn too much about English history growing up? Or more likely I just didn't pay attention. To me English history is Robin Hood and Men in Tights. I think the reason is that in every movie based outside the US in the old days, everyone has English accents. Even if they are Italian or Egyptian. But in WWII movies, everyone is German. Anyway, it was an interesting place and I'd definitely recommend it.

Workers busily answer phones and plot map coordinates in the War Room:

Since the people in the War Rooms didn't really go outside and there was always a threat of bombing, they used this sign to tell what the weather was like out there.  I will be the first to tell you that the sign was lying. 

Jess and I then went for some pub lunch, where I ordered what was supposed to be a Sunday Roast (meat, potatoes, veggies, and Yorkshire pudding)...but since it was a Friday I think they made it not taste as good. True to English cuisine reputation, the meat was a bit overcooked and the sauce was bland. But it was still decent overall. Afterwards, I was already looking forward to dinner.

Meeting Darin and his wife for a Turkish dinner at Lara was nice. Except I realized how lucky I am to live in a city (Warsaw) that has only 1 subway line. You can't get lost. And you don't have to transfer. And you don't have to sit there for 45 minutes waiting in subway "traffic". On that trip I hit the annoying-subway trifecta. But the dinner was great, and it was great to see them...it's hard to believe that it's been nearly 10 years since we worked together back in Seattle, and over 5 years since we were in South Africa together.

The next day I got to meet some of the old San Jose crew for Dim Sum. The food was great, but it was really great to see all the guys I used to work 10 feet from in San Jose. It's funny how they all ended up in London over the last few months. Here we are after lunch (me, Trish, Francis, EJ, Paul, and Jil)...it was so nice to hang out that we ended up walking around together, going to a pub, then going to dinner together as well.

Korean dinner was also pretty not bad. Again, food in London isn't the best, but they have some things that are different that I was craving. The restaurant, called Koba, had two very impressive features: twisty straws and magical towels. If you don't believe me, you will have to go there yourself.

The twisty straws require no explanation (yes, they give you TWO!). But the towels were magical. And here's why. They come out as little tablets on a plate...then with a little hot water, some magic words and a wave of a wand, they expand into hand towels for refreshing yourself. So cool! The waiter even gave me a couple to take home because he could see how amazed I was. For some reason nobody else seemed to care as much about them as I did, including the little kids at the next table...who also didn't seem too impressed with their twisty straws. I'm not sure what that says about me... Anyway, I am nervous about when to use my magic towels because I don't have a good wand.

Later that night I was being anti-social while I kept checking the Seahawks/Saints score on my phone. What a great game and I was so sad to miss it! Patty even showed me how to watch Slingbox on my Blackberry, which was pretty awesome. I need to get a Slingbox set up somewhere!

I forgot to mention that Conway didn't have a working shower while I was there....apparently their shower has been out of operation for 1.5 months! I mean, what kind of landlord doesn't fix that? It's not like they are in some squatter town...she lives in the center of the city! So I showered at her friend's house, who was also nice enough to cook us breakfast, and show me highlights of the Seahawks game...especially Marshawn Lynch's amazing run. He's Swedish, so it surprised me that he even cared. When he asked "did you watch the football" I assumed he meant some obscure soccer match.

I hope you can tell that I really enjoyed my trip...mostly because I got to see a bunch of friends and just hang out. But I am definitely happy to be back in good ol' Warsaw, where the showers work and the local food is half the price (and arguably twice as good). There are still a few people I didn't get to see on my trip, but I'm sure I will be back soon (at least for the 2012 Olympics!).

ps. My next entry will be about my bus ride back to the London airport. In short: whatever you do, don't take Easy Bus. Thank you.