Well friends, London was absolutely beautiful this weekend: clear skies coupled with the warm, welcoming rays of sunshine. I didn't know the city could be this breathtaking but for all the shit it gets for being home to grey skies and constant rain, when you get a sunny day in London, it's quite spectacular.
Saturday morning we got up at 10 am for what has been dubbed 'Franca's tour'. Anyone who knows Franca knows that she loves to plan things (I am being as euphemistic as possible with this description). I would say her penchant for organization and preparation border on obsessive, but her crazy little quirks are what make her so gosh darn lovable (so she has informed me). Just kidding Franca, you know I love you.
Anyway this girl had a whole fun-filled day planned for her family (her dad and step mom had come to visit as well as a last minute addition of her sister, Carol). So we all headed down Upper Street to check out the restaurants and shops and see the sights that Islington has to offer. We checked out the antique market then headed on the bus to Borough Market. The place was crazy busy again but definitely worth seeing for a second time. I picked up this delicious mushroom ciabatta loaf which was amazing. I also finally got my hands on one of those chorizo sandwiches and sweet lord, it was heavenly. I waited in line for 15 minutes but it was so worth it.
Then we headed to a pub for lunch which was wonderful and then back to the flat for a mid afternoon nap. Franca and Carol headed back out for dinner with the fam and I got ready for my date.
So my date was actually with Dylan, the Brit we met in the pub a couple weeks ago. We had been texting for a while and decided to meet up. What was supposed to be a quiet night in turned into a drunken mess of an evening. We ended up heading to the bar across the street from my place for a couple pints. Then we hit up the King's Head (his hangout) to meet up with his boys. Had some drinks there and then met up with Carol and Franca and hit up a couple more pubs until we landed at Keyston Lodge where we found a table and had some more drinks. I was definitely super wasted but all in all I had a fun night. He is definitely a babe, but I can tell a little bit of a heartbreaker so we'll see what happens. We're supposed to have dinner on Thursday but I'm not sure I trust anyone who's that good looking, so we'll see what happens with that.
Sunday I woke up feeling a little worse for wear. Franca, Carol and I headed down to Angel for breakfast and then, well, we kept on drinking. We sat on a patio and drank sangria and then moved onto Essex Road where we went to the Queen's Head for more drinks. The Queen's Head is like a painfully trendy bar and restaurant. Everyone who hangs out there look like they get their hair cut by Edward Scissorhands and they all wear high-waisted, pleated khakis and unitards. Anyway it's a fun little spot, great music, great atmosphere and great decor. Plus it makes you feel really insecure about your hipster quotient which I assume is what those establishments go for, so I'll be back to try and look cool and fit in!
OK time out, I just got so distracted by this little child who is sitting right next to me as I type this. He's probably about 2 and was leaning over in his stroller trying to read my screen (even though I'm pretty sure he can't control his bowels yet, so I doubt he can read). Anyway he started waving at me and my heart just melted. Sometimes I hate all the kids in Starbucks but sometimes they are just adorable. especially when they're waiting in line with their minders so I only have to pay attention to them for like, 45 seconds.
OK and fade in. So after the Queens Head, we were all feeling a little drunk, so we went home ordered Chinese food and watched Striptease (terrible movie, but Demi Moore's body is so hot, it doesn't even make sense). I went to bed at 9:00 pm trying to recover from my afternoon drunk.
Monday Franca surprised us by taking the day off work! So we had a fun filled day taking Carol on a tour of London proper. We took the bus down to Oxford Circus, checked out Primark (like H & M but bigger and crazier). Then we had sushi for lunch and then headed down to do some shopping and surprise, surprise, have some drinks! Then the best part of the day - we got tickets to go see Wicked! We headed down to Victoria station where we picked up our tickets and then headed out for dinner.
At first we stopped by this Mexican place which was like embarrassingly decorated: sombreros all over the wall, plastic cactus table cloths, ponchos galore. One aspect of the restuarant which was not embarrassing were their 2 for 1 drink specials. We all got a woo woo (something with tequila) and a jungle juice (something that was mostly booze and very little juice). Anyway we ordered some nachos which were really gross. Which brings me to the issue of contention I have with British cuisine.
So here's the thing. In London, they use Doritos to make nachos (like, of the cool ranch variety). If such a low-brow title exists, I'd say I'm a nacho conoisseur and I have to say using Doritos to make nachos is just not done. You need some good old fashioned corn chips, I'd even be willing to accept those red or black tortilla chips but when you throw cool ranch into the mix, you're bastardizing this sacred dish. And like, don't just throw a whole load of cheese on there willy nilly. You need to LAYER. And the condiments should be in small bowls (or even better, nacho bowls!) for ample dipping. The thing they brought us was disgraceful: a couple handfuls of doritos, a PILE of cheese in the center, some sad looking guac and salsa and one jalapeno.
I could have cried.
Anyway we were so drunk that we ate the whole thing but it made me mad because I have not had a decent plate of nachos since I arrived here. Also, I can't get a decent basket of chicken wings. Or a good cup of filter coffee with my breakfast (always cappuccino). They also don't have clamato juice (so long, Caesars). So Franca and I were discussing how unhappy we are with the lack of proper North American cuisine in the UK and brought up the idea of opening our own Great White North restaurant: Canadian Bacon. We could serve Canadian beers (the best in the world) and wine and have like really good North American pub food. I mean, London is a big enough city that such a novelty restaurant probably wouldn't go stale. I've even been thinking about really tacky decor (a la Mexican restaurant) we could put it up. So that's the idea. If both of us hate our jobs and want to quit, we'll open up a Canadian-themed restaurant in Covent Garden. And you all better come!
So after the Mexican disaster, we head to a nearby Indian place (and let me tell you, one thing they can do in this city is a lip-smacking curry). We end up convincing the owners to let us bring in our own wine and we order their 'buffet' for £6 each. The buffet is actually them bringing a bunch of food to our table (umm) and I have to say, the whole ordeal was pretty hilarious. First of all, one of the waitresses brought some poppadoms and a bunch of different dips. We asked her what they were and she just smiled and pointed. Then we asked again and she smiled and pointed again and then brought over more of the same dips. It was awkward. Then Franca had to go the washroom and when she came back, she said there was a room upstairs and the door, labelled Office: Employees only, was open and someone was sleeping in a bed. Random. Anyway the food came and it was delicious but we all ate way too much.
And then a made a terrible mistake which I hope never to replicate again.
As I was enjoying the chicken tikka, I took a fork full of rice and noticed a stray green bean on the plate. 'That's weird they'd only give you one bean,' I thought to myself. Anyway as I began to chew, I noticed a weird consistency to the bean. Then I noticed the most intense heat fill my mouth.
Fuck.
It was in fact not a bean, but an insanely hot pepper. I spit it out onto my plate but it was too late: my mouth was on fire. It was actually the most unpleasant sensation I have ever had the displeasure of experiencing. Needless to say Carol and Franca were drunk and found the whole situation hilarious so they burst out laughing. I was trying to eat or drink anything to quell the inferno that was raging in my mouth. Eventually I got in under control but holy hell, it was awful. Needless to say, 'I thought it was weird they only gave us one bean' became our catchphrase of the evening.
So after Indian we stumbled over to Wicked. It was actually amazing and if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend doing so. Just great music, fantastic costumes, absolutely ridiculous voices and top notch acting. I've been wanting to see a show since I got to London because there really isn't a better place for theatre and after last night, I can definitely attest to that. It was slightly bittersweet for me however because my mom and I both shared a rather unhealthy obsession with all things Wizard of Oz. I've probably seen the movie like 50 times and we used to watch it all the time, especially during Christmas. She also has these collectors plates and I know this sounds really lame, but I actually think they're pretty rad. I also went as Dorthy for Halloween one year and I think it may have been my favorite costume of all time. Anyway I kept thinking while I was watching it how much she would have loved to see this show, especially in London. I'm sure she was there in spirit though.
Anyway it was an absolutely incredible weekend and I am loving everything London has to offer. I have an interview with MSN today so we'll see how that goes. And then I start Yahoo on Friday and I am beyond excited!
Alright friends hope life is treating you well in Canada (or wherever you're living while you read this). I'll write back soon with more tales of fun and hot peppers.
Cheers,
Patsy
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