Adv 20. The MOTHERLAND!!!

Ah London!!! i felt so at home here :)

walking around hearing the british accent made me grin and giggle!!

I arrived on a plane from barcelona, really quite late, i dont know what i was thinking, getting in so late, thank goodness i could jump on a train into the city, and raced to the metro and mananged to catch the last tube at midnight, was a close one. and the hostel where i crashed was really simple to find.

May 5 - met up Simone again, moved all my stuff over to where she was staying with some kiwi friends. we walked around london! the weather was mint! typical though, i go to italy expecting it to be warm, end up wearing my jacket, come to london expecting to need my jacket and it flipping sunbathing weather!! but im not complaining.

we went to the tate modern, which y'all should do when in london, cos its free, and really cool!!
I'm kinda sick of sightseeing, but we saw some of the token sights, millenium bridge, buckingham palace etc etc. heres me with the london eye!














London was really beautiful, actually more beautiful than i ever thought it would be, becuase big city etc, was just expecting loads and loads of people, but there were huge parks in the middle of everything. i mean HUGE like entering into another dimension HUGE. and sadly i rate it more beautiful than Florence... just... but maybe just cos the sun was out, which i know in reality is a rarity.
but look at this stunning display of spring!!













in the evening hung out with our wonderful hosts Louisa and Rob and their kiwi friends at the local pub where it seemed eveeryone was kiwi of aussie!

May 6 - Louisa took Simone and I to the Portobello markets! so many people!

then i hung out with my cousin Kate for the rest of the day. my favourite part. theres something about family that is just really cool!
and well id never really met her before... not that i remember anyway, im just a spring chicken.
we walked through Hyde park. MASSIVE! thats when the rain decided to downpour.

And we dashed to Harrods :) ridiculously extravagant with 5 floors of everything you could imagine.

we ate doughnuts at krispy kreme, and i made kate put on the silly hat :) for the piture














we and sat and chatted over lattes and scones with clotted cream! what a hoot!!! in Harrods!!!

kate had booked a table for three at a pub with a thai restaurant in the back in notting hill.
Adrian, another cousie was coming!! big surprise for me, cos nobody really told me he was in london. So that was really great, id only met him once before about 5 years ago i think.
our table wasnt gonna be ready till nine, so we sat in the pub and had some drinks and chatted some more. Adrian turned up, we chatted some more. was really good times. we talked about what the family is up to etc etc, life in london, and adrian and kate saying london was a primo place to live, what would my parents think.... ;) 'ahh, they'll survive'
My family ROCKS!!!! just wanted y'all to know that. everyone is doing amazing things with their lives, we're like all blessed with intelligent DNA and everyones practically famous!! (well that last bit might be an exaggeration, depends what circles you move in i guess)

Adrian, Kate and I with our cheesy grins at dinner.













and here we are again, look at us posers
Lekker ding!! (thats dutch for HOT, just by the by)
nobody will ever guess how old these crazy cats are.

thanks guys, for showing me a good time:)








May 7 - Simone and i went with some kiwis to the flower market. then we headed to Speakers Corner by Hyde Park. where mostly religious and political fanatics are spouting their piont of view and the audience argues and yells abuse at them. Funny stuff.

We met Inge and Nick for lunch. Inge is a mate from art school, who married a Brit. so now is living in England, and they happened to be in the London vicinity for the weekend so was cool to catch up :) But would you believe they'll be moving back to dunners next year. see you guys again soon.

We went to the Camden Market, hehe crazy stuff. punks galore!!!
in the evening it was time to walk to the streets of London and see the night lights.
good times all round!!!!

May 8
aahhhhh travelling all day. to get back to my bed in Utrecht.
it was such a frustration coming back to holland and hearing the ugliest of all languages again,
its like the complete opposite of the british accent which just made me grin whenever i walked past anyone talking.

but alas i only having to bear 3 and a half more weeks here.
im looking forward to going home and getting stuck into some hardcore creativity, i feel like ive been on holiday for too long.
i need to do something, im a doer.
but i do have a stack of work to be getting on with here. I will conquer my dissertation!!! i will i will.

out