Which, considering how many there are about New York, is weird.
The city. The big smoke. The big apple. Wait. No. That’s New York. We’re talking about London town, baby!
For London, it was just another Wednesday lunch time. For this blind accountant, it was the first day of a Big Adventure.
History repeats
Upon stepping from the tube station and onto the bustling streets of Hammersmith, I felt…tired. And like I’d been here before. I mean, I have been to London before but this was a way more specific sense of déjà vu than I expected. The tube station exiting into a little mall…the hostel being on the other side of the road from that station… I thought I recognised the waiting area by the hostel reception. I definitely remember dragging a too-heavy suitcase up wayyyyy too many stairs. Yip, This was definitely the same hostel I stayed at on my very first solo overseas excursion at eighteen years old. Complete coincidence – I definitely wouldn’t have chosen to cart my suitcase up those stairs again! That’s something to note if you’re thinking of travelling and booking hostels. In Europe, a lot of hostels are in older buildings which can be charming but also often means there are no lifts.
I managed to drag my big suitcase up two levels without breaking my luggage, myself or the hostel, which was something of a feat. I had plans to meet a friend (G) currently living in London. G is doing me the massive favour of storing my suitcase while I tour Europe with a little bitty backpack. ThIS meant I had three goals for the afternoon – shower, stay awake and pack my backpack.
Shower
I immediately locked myself out of my dorm room when I went to have a shower and forgot to take my keycard. So back down to reception I went, with my toiletries in hand. At least this time, going up the stairs was a lot lighter. When I got back into my dorm I found the ensuite bathroom… I’m going to blame that on exhaustion and not general lack of observational skills or blindness.
Pack, repack and pack again
I took my time packing and repacking my backpack, making sure I had everything I need without anything extra (because I absolutely will lose everything I don’t need). I had more or less decided before i left New Zealand what was goingin the backpack, but at crunch time, tough decisions still had to be made. I did not pack swimwear, using that space for nail polish instead. I’m sure that’s not a choice I will regret in three to five days.
I have a long and storied history of leaving things, both important and unimportant, on buses, planes, trains, hostels, park benches and in taxis. In a rare effort to prevent this specific flavour of inconveneice, I made myself a list of things I absolutely have to make sure I’ve packed before leaving a hostel. It includes my passport, my laptop and my jumper – because I learnt the importance of a jumper when I did the camino.
Awake, awake, awake my friend
Staying awake was a more difficult task. Tired as I was, I couldn’t just stay in my bunk doom scrolling – that would put me to sleep. So I walked around the neighbourhood a bit.
London has a lot of people. Not just in touristy areas. Everywhere. If there’s a park, square or stairs, there are people sitting around, chatting, eating, living their life. Even on a random Wednesday afternoon, every inch of public space is utilised if the sun so much as hints it’s going to come out. The spaces are used so much more than in Auckland. I assume it has something to do with the population density and lack of private outdoor space.
Time passed in a haze and finally it was time to meet G. Catching up with her after over a year was great – and I’m not just saying that because she claims she reads this blog.
Dinner was great. G’s partner dragged my suitcase back down the nightmare stairs which I appreciated because by that point i was starting to feel floaty and dizzy from lack of sleep. But that was ok, because I could finally go to bed! I think I made it to 8.30 pm, which was an achievement deserving of an award.
The sun came out tomorrow
My first full day in the northern hemisphere dawned bright and, for me at least, way too early. I was wide awake by 5am so I fit in a couple of hours of work before I even got out of bed.
I’ve been to London a couple of times before, so I’ve hit the major landmarks – Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Tower of London – before. Still, I didn’t want to sit in the hostel (which had no common room) all day so I found an interesting walking tour on the Guruwalks app.
I was the only one on the tour, which has to potential to be awkward given my personality and the jet lag. But, if any awkwardness was felt, it wasn’t by me!
I had to ask a stranger to help me find the starting point of the walking tour I chose. In moments like that I am particularly grateful for the white cane. Generally, perople are happy to give directions to strangers, but if you have a white cane, people will literally go out of their way to make sure you get to the right place – its great! And to that lovely lady, thank you!
I chose a tour of the City of London, which, I learnt, is its own seperate thing from the greater London both legally and historically. Arjun, the tour guide, of Dragonlore Tours, had a really well researched tour with plenty of information. This tour focussed on the history of the City of London – aka the Square Mile – including the Romans and three great women across the city’s early history that lay the foundations for what London is today.
The Square Mile is the financial and trading hub of the UK. Obviously I was always meant to find my way there – even if I’ve never had any interest in working in a bank.
Thanks to Arjun I saw three Roman ruins I definitely would not have found myself. The amphitheatre below the art gallery was great. it really gave me a feel for the size and layout of an amphitheatre.I love that it was found by accident while excavating the site for the gallery. Arjun also pointed me to a Mithreaum temple after the tour, which was free and included a brief immersive experience.
The tour officially ended outside the Bank of England, which naturally made my little accountant heart sing.
It really was a great tour, and if you’re looking to explore an area of London you might not think to visit if you’re just looking at top ten tourist lists, the City of London is a fascinating option.
On the way to the tour, I had stopped at Tesco’s to grab a meal deal which made me feel like a proper Londoner. At £3.90 for a sandwich, a drink and a bit of fruit you really can’t go wrong. I ate my lunch outside the Bank of England and eavesdropped on conversations because i can’t people watch very well these days.
The only real dark spot on the day was that instead of wearing my fancy new Teva sandals, I wore jandals. 20,000 steps later, my feet were not happy with me.
A stroll through Londontown
When I packed for this trip, I realised my only pair of shorts weren’t so much a piece of clothing anymore as a denim rag. So, with one more full day left in London and disinclined to do any expensive, touristy thing, I grabbed another Tesco meal deal and walked from Hammersmith to Kensington – wearing the right shoes this time. It’s about a 40 minute walk and flat, so it was nice and easy. I took my time exploring Kensington High Street. I did not find shorts – or at least not ones that fit. Turns out by mid August, the UK retailers start rolling out cold weather gear. It was a lovely walk though and I stopped in Holland Park to eat my lunch.
The thing that this walk really emphasised for me was that crossing roads in London is a thrill and a half. I really thought the blip-blip-brrrrrrrr of Auckland traffic lights was standard everywhere. Boy, was I wrong! Some of the London crosswalks have a button you can press, and then some of those will make a noise when it’s safe to cross. But it’s not consistent. So I adopted a bowling pin attitude – cross when the everyone else does and hope that if a car does mow through the crowd like a bowling ball, I’m one of the pins left standing. Here’s the thing, Londoners cannot be trusted. They cross if there’s even a two second gap between cars. Still, being the last pin standing was my best bet. Fortunately, there are people everywhere in London, so there was almost always at least one person whose lead I could follow. On the rare occasion I was at a crossing alone I just listened for oncoming cars and hope I haven’t missed the quiet purr of an electric car (I know, in my heart of hearts, one day I will get killed by an electric car I don’t hear coming).
I survived London for three days, I’m not convinced I would survive long term though so hats off to the blind residents of London who manage to avoid getting hit by cars!
I had a proper pub dinner with G and that was, for the time being, a wrap on London.
I like London, I like the hustle and bustle and people everywhere. I like the energy and the sheer size and the history. I looooove the Underground. I don’t know that I’d want to live there, but a visit every few years is lovely.
I will be back in October for Hadestown.
