TFC: Monday Madness

six [Mon, 7-Dec]

The day began with our final day of Monday classes: The Network Metaphor and New Renaissance with Don Foresta and our check-in hour with Fred.  It was very suddenly sad once we realized we would never be seeing Fred again (we would be seeing Don the next day) — he was a great contact to have this semester in terms of exploring London, and his British Cultural Studies course was probably my favorite in terms of aligning with my interest in television and expanding my cultural horizons on it.

The afternoon was work-work-work.  It was time to get down to business in the Vassar world as we all tried to complete our finals.  I can happily say I completed my City as Material project to be presented on Tuesday and the first drafts of my papers for the other courses. Woohoo!  All that was left to do was celebrate while taking a well-deserved breather…

And that’s when I encored Monday Madness at Sticky Fingers!  After first going with Madre and having a great time with great food in a great environment, I decided it was precisely where I needed to be on my final Monday night in London, further facilitated by the fact that I am out of food.  It actually sounded so great that Avey and Mike decided to join me — once again, the company made it so enjoyable.  We strolled through our neighborhood to High Street Kensington while chatting about how soon enough these streets would be a distant memory instead of familiar stomping ground.  Upon arriving, we went British with Pimm’s Cocktails to start, followed by a round of burgers (I went with the classic Sticky Fingers Burger…and remembered how much I love red meat; Avey stayed true to her vegetarian roots with a Veggie Burger; Mike went gourmet with the blue cheese and caramelized onion rendition).  And then dessert happened.  We “dared to share” as the menu suggested and tackled the Sticky Sundae.  We also got festive with a round of shots named after Rolling Stones songs: Brown Sugar for me, Stray Cat Blues for Mike, and Jumpin’ Jack Flash for Avey.  In a nut shell: yum, yum, and yum.  I haven’t gone out to dinner with friends in incredibly long, yet another treat aspect of the outing.

We told ourselves we walked it all off on the way home………………….right.  Basically there was nothing else to do but veg out on the couch and let the phenomenon of digestion run its course.  Avey and Mike did some work while we embarked on a Kill Bill Vol. I and II marathon.  I was in a great place with work which worked out well since I could dedicate my full attention as it was my first viewing.  I absolutely loved the films, and the Monday in general!

Monday: Madness!

As I set off to a full day of classes and meetings, I set Madre off with my camera and A to Z map on a royal adventure: first to St. James Park for the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace followed by a tour of Kensington Palace featuring the Last Debutantes exhibit.  I was jealous as could be, especially because those were two things I would love to do but particularly with my Madre; the fact that I couldn’t due to class set the jealously over into the realm of anger   But I was glad to know she was having a great day on her own in London, something I’ve been experiencing and enjoying for the past 8 weeks.

We reunited over tea and Digestives at the London Visitor’s Hotel (again, so British) before heading to dinner at The Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman’s Sticky Fingers restaurant off of High Street Kensington!  We were in our element.  I obviously wore my Stones t-shirt.  The hostess was super nice, noticed, and made sure we had a great time…but really, how could we not?!  In typical “Foxy” fashion, Madre attracted an Australian man named Kerry who just happened to be in London with a group of Rugby fans on the last leg of their spectator tour through Europe; he sat at our table, grabbed my camera, and was very comfortable entertaining us for the evening.

Needless to say, the following photo gallery is one for the books!  It begins with Madre’s photos from her solo excursion and ends with Kerry’s drunken snapshots.  Cheers!

St. James Park

Buckingham Palace

Queen Victoria Memorial

Kensington Palace

Kensington Gardens

The Last Debutantes

Queen Victoria’s Bed

LVH Parlour

LVH stairs

LVH dining room

reunited at tea time!

in we go…

the view from our table

the menu

festive shots!

air guitar!

greatest. nachos. ever.

our Austrailian visitor Kerry

Big Head

Kerry’s Big Head

Australian Rugby Group

Church, Chores, Books, Lox, & Festivity: a Satisying Sunday

I woke up for what has become my usual Sunday routine: 11:30am mass at Our Lady of Victories on High Street Kensington, followed by grocery shopping at Tesco Metro.  After heading home, storing and labeling my food, and cleaning the weekend-worn kitchen, I decided to head to Charing Cross Road and get my first feel of the used book scene in London.  I’ve been having the itch for a while and was looking for a quintessentially British book to pop out at me that would perfectly fill the void of free time I’ve been having lately.  Vassar has groomed me to be a 100+ page per night reader during the semesters, but my courses here are much more get-out-and-see rather than stay-in-and-read; not that I’m complaining — I would much rather want to read something of my choosing than being forced to swallow dense theory.

My first stop was Any Amount of Books.  A few books popped out of the £1/4 for £5 bins, but then the moment I was hoping for happened: Ada Leverson’s Love’s Shadow.  Let me list the  factors at play that made me realise I needed to buy the £3 book:

1) a bubblegum paperback with an aesthetic freakishly akin to moi

2) set in Knightsbridge, the next tube stop from South Kensington

3) Ada Leverson (1862 – 1933) is described in the Note About the Author as “well-known in London society for her witty, outrageous remarks. Her friends included Aubrey Beardsley, Max Beerbohm, Mrs Patrick Campbell and most notably, Oscar Wilde, who christened her his ‘Sphinx’…In her later years her friends included Harold Acon, William Walton and the Sitwells.”

4) amazing condition…might as well be brand new

Even though my used book moment happened, I headed into the other used bookstore next door: Henry Pordes Books Ltd.  It seemed like a step above Any Amount of Books selection and price wise, and I enjoyed browsing the shelves and books on some of my favorite topics, such as tea, fairy tales, and urban planning.  I soon realised that this last topic was as much pleasure as research for Tuesday’s City as Material course…score!

Finally, I headed in to Koenig Books, the most high-end of the three and specializing in art and culture books.  The topics were great for browsing but very pricey.  Soon enough my hunger took over and I decided to head back to Manson Place.

And here I am!  Blogging and noshing on lox & cream cheese, complimented by Sauvignon Blanc (went for a 1/2 price bottle instead of the usual 3 for £10, and I can definitely taste the difference) — my culinary Sunday splurge for the week.  It’s just the Marist girls and I in the kitchen right now, but soon enough the boys will be back from Oktoberfest in Munich, including the 21st birthday boy, Kenny.  Cupcakes — or should I say fairy cakes, according to Sainsbury’s — are being decorated and balloons are being taped to the walls as I type.  I must say, this is quite a satisfying Sunday…

One Month

So, London and I have officially been together for one month…things are getting pretty serious…

I had a lovely Saturday!  Avey’s dad and partner are visiting and took the Vassar group out for lunch.  We went to Thai Square right next to the South Kensington tube station.  Needless to say my stomach hasn’t been that happy in…quite a while.  I stocked up on coconut rice and stir-fried veggies in oyster sauce.

I quickly headed over to the 2:30pm performance of 2nd May 1997 at the Bush Theatre in Shepherd’s Bush.  Here’s the trailer:

Thanks to a connection I made through Solar Associates and Method, I secured two free tickets; Annie met me there and we went for a pint afterward at The Green pub.  It was a lovely afternoon!  I always love getting my culture on, I always love theatre, I always love catching up with my girl.

I then headed back towards home but decided to get off at High Street Kensington and stroll home through Kensington Gardens.  Quite appropriately, I stopped for a moment of reflection with my Moleskine on the bench where John, Avey, Mike and I had our first lunch in London one month ago.  It definitely was a full circle moment, and a feeling of completely content swept over me with a gust of wind from the blustery day.  I’ve already had such a wide range of experiences thus far, enough to make me feel like I had a very successful first month.  The most comforting fact, though, is that I know there are plenty more to come…

Out & About

Despite the lack of recent posts, I’ve had a very active [social] week!

Monday (14-Spet) was the FIE Welcome Reception held at the International Students House.  Highlights: 2 free drink vouchers and realizing London DJs have very shallow expectations for American colleges students when it comes to music.  Afterward, I headed to the local pub Zetland Arms with the Vassar and Marist flatmates, including some other Marist students that live in Manson Place.  It was great spending time together, and it has been happening a lot more lately — the flat is definitely feeling more like home than living with 12 strangers.

Tuesdays mean free entrance for students at the Sports Cafe in Piccadilly Circus, and I finally decided to join the Marist kids for their weekly voyage there (and managed to convince Mike and Avey to join.  I owed them a night out since I played straight 3rd wheel at a gay club on Saturday night).  It was actually really fun (I definitely scratched my dancing itch), but it was overwhelmingly American; I’m pretty sure everyone there and every song was originally from the U.S., but I’m also pretty sure I didn’t care!

Wednesday was a bit more subdued, and we just hung out in the flat for the evening.

Thursday evening I headed home from a long day of working at a Method event with Solar Associates.  It was great seeing the programme in action and meeting the faces that match the voices I’ve been hearing on podcasts for the past week.  Sure, working 11 hours was tough, but the fact that three of those hours were spent socializing with an intriguing group of artists over wine at the venue followed by a beer at a pub definitely made it palatable   Thankfully, I headed home to a flat full of people indulging in the same…just with plastic cups and drinking games instead of pool.  Oh well, whatever works!

Friday and Saturday was spent hitting the town (and hitting up male bar buying charity) with Sarah and Lauren.  Friday was spent on Brick Lane, a conglomeration of pubs, bars, clubs, and people ready to have a good time.  93 Feet East was what drew us there: a popular bar that doesn’t charge a cover on Fridays and features an outdoor bar and picnic table as well as an indoor dance floor.  Upon the recommendation of some Italians, we ended the night at T-Bar…all I’m going to say is fog machines were involved, and I can officially say I’ve experienced a Euro club.  The night ended with sharing a McDonald’s table with South Africans before heading home on a Night Bus.  We stayed a bit more local on Saturday and threw it back to the prohibition area by getting into a speakeasy in Sloane Square.  Bart’s was everything I hoped a speakeasy would be: festively hidden and secretive, but once you’re in you’re down for a good time…and really good drinks.  Like the Friday before at a South Kensington club Diva Beach (very similar to NYC’s Bed), the bartenders were ready and willing to create the best cocktails I’ve ever tasted; as opposed to NYC, London bars seem to appreciate quality over quantity when serving their patrons.

I spent another Sunday out around town.  My first stop was an exciting one: booking a hotel room for Madre!  She is visiting from 7 – 15 November and will be staying at the London Visitor’s Hotel, about a 20 minute walk from Manson Place and off of Kensington High Street.  The best part: we got a double, so I can sleepover!  I’m really excited to have her here; every adventure I go on I can’t help but think “showing and sharing this will be even better.”

Next, I headed up Kensington High Street to the 11:30am mass at Our Lady of Victories.  It is the parish’s Solemn Mass, featuring a beautiful Latin choir and chanted by the priest.  It was an incredibly meditative experience, intensified by the beautiful gothic features of the church.  It just felt so…original, in the sense that it was like experiencing the same ceremony that was the only ceremony hundreds of years ago.  I loved the experience, and I definitely plan on attending the 11:30am more often  (I like flexing my Latin choral muscles, and luckily could thanks to the pamphlets that were distributed with the sheet music!).

After mass, I met up with Sarah, Avey, and Mike at Sloane Square to attend some more Open Houses: Holy Trinity Church and the department store Peter Jones.  Lauren, John and I attended two on Saturday: The Ismaili Center and  The Octagon.  It was a great program; all of the tours were very insightful and yet another reminder of how architecturally diverse and rich London is.  Here are some photos from Sunday’s tours:

Sloane Square

Holy Trinity Church

Holy Trinity Church

Holy Trinity Church

Holy Trinity Church

Holy Trinity Church

Holy Trinity Church

Holy Trinity Church

Holy Trinity Church

Peter Jones

Peter Jones

Peter Jones

Holy Trinity Church

The beauty of the Peter Jones merchandise dually inspired and discouraged Sarah, Mike and I, so we embarked on a shopping mission to the cheapest store of all: Primark in Oxford Circus (think of it as Forever 21′s cheaper, chicer, European cousin).  Naturally we needed fuel first, though, so we stopped for some eggs and toast at a cute cafe.  Although deliciously sophisticated, I must admit I’m craving some good old greasy American diner food (and did I mention cheaper?  The plate cost more in pounds without factoring in conversion yet, and although sprinkled with fresh thyme it did not include potatoes or bacon…boo).  Protein power helped Sarah and I plow through the crowds and the mass array of racks and piles of clothing.  I was ready to invest in my London nightlife wardrobe’s future, and thanks to Sarah’s guiding voice and severe price cuts I came out extremely successful.  Everything [I purchased] is cute (it did take some significant fishing through Euro-trash garments), and the majority cost less than brunch.  Now that’s how to shop.

Getting Aquainted & Situated

The beauty of a new city is that every errand you have to run is an excuse for a brand new adventure!  There are three “hubs” near me, all located around the tube stations: Gloucester Road, South Kensington, and High Street Kensington.  The latter is where the bigger, more major stores are, such as my first two stops on Thursday:

1) Argos -”Helping You Live For Less”

Think Bed, Bath & Beyond but by catalogue.  The store floor has some featured items out, but it is mainly full of counters with a catalogue, a light, pens, and order cards.  You flip through, select the items you want, fill out the order card, hand it to the cashier who goes over everything with you (some of mine were out-of-stock so she helped me select others), pay, and wait for your number to be called.  Once it is, you go up the counter, hand over your receipt, and pick up all of your items.  In a word: magical!  I basically imagined little shopping elves in the back picking out all of my stuff for me.  I got towels, a hair dryer, and a hamper.

2) Tescos

In the land of UK grocery stores, Tescos is the equivalent of a Stop & Shop, contrasted by Sainsbury’s and Waitrose (a bit more upscale), and the first-ever UK Whole Foods.  The main Tescos in my area is at High Street Kensington, but there are smaller Tesco Expresses closer to my flat.  In the spirit of embracing British culture, I decided to rock the generic items (a nice excuse for me being as thrifty as possible…I love prices that are followed with a p for pence).  I also got a Tesco Club Card!  My first purchase came to £36.45…I was content with that considering I purchased bare necessities in the realms of toiletries, household items, and groceries!

I want to see how far I can go on what amount, and was also told that food here goes bad quicker (I suppose that’s the trade-off for being preservative-free…are we really that lazy, America?).  No buying in bulk for me!  Just what I need to get by, which is definitely made easier thanks to my central location — running around the corner for something is super easy and quick, and another reason to get out!

Walking home with all of my loot was definitely an endeavor, but also definitely better than the 100 pounds in luggage I toted a few hours before.

London Loot!

Finished up my errands on Friday, such as getting a pay & go phone (thanks to Lee, the manager at O2, for all of his nice British help!) and some other little things from Boots, the UK pharmacy of choice (what a cuter name than Duane Reade).  The highlight of this run, though was THE TUBE!!!!!!  First ride: Circle Line from Gloucester Road to High Street Kensington (only one stop, could’ve walked, but wanted the experience).

We ran into some slow service, but I was most extremely impressed with the design of the system.  The architecture coupled with the natural light pouring in from above made waiting a few longer minutes much more bearable than the stuffy MTA stations I’m used to (plus, I’m in the honeymoon stage!).  Not all are like this, but the Circle Line is partially above ground.

The Oyster Card system is great too.  You don’t need to take it out to swipe, just leave it in your wallet/holder and tap it against the pad.  The system is divided into 6 zones and kind of works like a turnpike, so you need to tap out as well.  My program provides us with an unlimited Oyster from zones 1 & 2 (central London) and the buses; fares apply if traveling to the outer zones.

I’ve always loved city life, but this experience is bringing that to the fore!!