THE LAST TRAIN HOME

Canary Wharf - 12:27am... People were running past me like I wasn't there...

"Last train.. last train... the last train is about to leave the platform..."

I could hear the announcement being made over the loud speakers... It was clear.. and it was concise... but my mind had long been occupied by other things... Oh, you know.. things like how "eight slithy toves gyre and gimbal in the oxygen wabe..." ( * )

Then it hits me (like a fist to the jaw) - That's the last train.. I need to be on that freakin train!

If you've already been to Canary Wharf station, you would know that there are two huge sets of escalators going down to the platforms... A sight that's made all the more daunting after the sudden realisation that you would possibly be stuck on the other side of London.. with no means of getting your ass home.. or at least none that you're aware of...

I had just been to see my new potential room and was heading back home after a long day... Daryl, who may be my flatmate for a month or so, took me to Greenwich for dinner and a couple of beers.. and it wasn't until 11pm that we made it back to his place (a town house near All Saints station)... It was bigger than I thought, with a spacious living room, and all the necessary amenities.. and I have tentatively agreed to move in, in the next couple of weeks... It will be perfect if I can manage to find a job in the Canary Wharf/Docklands area...

Anyway, there I was.. running like a man possessed (think Kerrod Walters scurrying out of dummy half for Queensland in the 90s)... In the back of my mind, I knew there was no hope.. but I still had to try... The four other guys running with me weren't going to give up.. and it was only fair that I should try with them.. so that when we all got to the platform and find that the train had already left.. we would all look stupid together... together as one...

Perhaps it was the full moon.. or maybe we had unknowingly discovered the secrets of The Matrix(TM), albeit temporarily.. but there was a minor miracle that night, as we all made it onto the train.. in one piece (I say that because at one stage we had to do double steps down the escalators)... But we did it - we made it by a matter of milli-seconds... After a quiet chuckle amongst ourselves (I mean, you had to laugh).. we soon realised that we were all Australian.. and all from Sydney... One dude later told me that he does this almost every night after drinkies at the nearby bars after work...

Is this the kind of lifestyle that I have to look forward to? I say.. hell yeh! Bring it on...

* - I'm currently reading a book on quantum mechanics and reality called "In Search of Schrodinger's Cat".. in case you were wondering...

CORNWALL

Trip report to be typed up...

AMSTERDAM



A charming little city.. Amsterdam is much more than the seedy red light district or the 'coffeeshops' that it is now renowned for... In fact, Amsterdam has so much to offer, you have to keep reminding yourself that it is a tiny city in comparison to the other great metropolises around Europe... It is elegant, vibrant, tranquil and just downright pretty... With its eleborate network of canals, there is a seemingly perfect fit between the city's history, artistic riches and relaxed atmosphere... It rained the whole time I was there, but that somehow seemed fitting too...

I arrived at Schiphol Airport early on Saturday (after a long long journey - which I will cover in another post).. I had originally planned to go to Keukenhof first, which is in the opposite direction to Amsterdam, but the weather looked too murky to spend a day at what is meant to be the world's largest spring garden, where the splendour of 7 million flowering bulbs are plentiful... So, instead I headed into Amsterdam, thinking that I could do the museums while it rained...

Now, I'll say this just once - Bill Bryson is a liar! As I stepped out of Centraal Station, I did not see one guitar-strumming hippie sitting on the grass, when Bill just about promised me that I would (in his book).. In fact, there was no grass at all - just a whole lotta construction work in the most inappropriate places.. which is not the most ideal way for the city to introduce itself to the thousands of travellers entering Amsterdam... Not really knowing what to do or where to go, I visited the tourist information centre to see if I can find my way to the hostel, and drop off the backpack... There were these honkie chicks who tried to cut in front of me in the line, but I was in no mood to be mister nice guy, and politely told them to go get stuffed...

I ended up getting a 3 day travel pass and tickets to a couple of museums... The tram system is fairly easy to figure out and made it to the hostel without any problems.. The hostel is located on the south side of the city, on a little street called Fokke Simonszstraat (try saying that after a couple of drinks).. It was still 9:30am when I checked in... As I walked along the Singelgracht (a canal that surrounds the inner portion of the city) towards Van Gogh Museum, I remember asking myself where all the people were.. The streets were totally empty, but I figured it must've been because of the overcast weather...

Van Gogh Museum - wow, I adore this place.. Vincent was such a unique individual and a pure genious... The first floor of the museum housed many of his most famous works, including 'Sunflowers' and 'The Potato Eaters'.. The whole series of 200 of his paintings were just breath-taking, but there was one that stood out amongst the rest - Ever since Year 8 art class with Ms Schlezenger, I felt some sort of connection with Vince's 'Wheatfield with Crows' painting.. and to see the real thing, right in front of me, was quite overwhelming.. and just quietly, I was nearly brought to tears.. In the meantime, the lady's voice on the audioguide said that he shot himself in the chest 2 weeks after the painting was completed... I was very much looking forward to seeing the works of Rembrandt at the Rijksmuseum (right next door to Van Gogh), but unfortunately, much of the museum, at the time, was closed for refurbishments... It was still drizzling outside, and I wandered around the Museum Plein for a few minutes, watching a crazed labrador playing in the lake... After a short stopover back at the hostel to get my bearings straight, I thought I'd go see Dam Square...

'The Dam', as the locals call it, was not quite as big as I expected it to be.. It is still a big open space, but the pictures made it look more imposing then it actually is... By now though, the city was bustling with tourists and locals alike - a total contrast to the barren streets earlier in the morning.. There was even a protest (some disgruntled farmers, I think) in the middle of the square... At one end of the square is the National Monument, a 70ft obelisk commemorating those who perished in WWII, and at the other end is the impressive Koninklijk Paleis, and to its right is the Nieuwe Kerk (a grand old church) tucked away in the corner... From there, I walked along the Kalverstraat - a narrow shopping arcade full of souvenir shops and the odd dodgy clothing store... I was looking for an old convent called Begijnhof, which according to the map was right there, but for the life of me, I could not find it... I stepped into Amsterdams Historisch Museum instead.. This was probably not worth the 6 euros I paid, mostly because I was now beginning to feel the effects of having not slept the night before.. I did learn a few interesting facts about Amsterdam, however, like how work on the Grachtengordel (the magnificent semi-circle of 3 canals) began in 1613.. But for the most part, I rushed through the many beautifully presented rooms as I literally could not keep standing on one spot without drifting off to sleep...

At the museum's exit, through a small gap in the walls, I could see people walking around in a secluded little green, surrounded by elegant houses - It was Begijnhof... More than ever, I was determined to figure out how to get into the place... After 20 minutes of trying, I found the entrance at Spui Square - it was this little hole in the wall, which becomes a tunnel leading into the old convent that dates back to the 14th century.. It was hard to believe how such a place could still exist in the heart of the city... The oldest house in Amsterdam is also found here...

The rain continued to trickle down, and I made my way north along the Singel, and then west towards the Jordaan area.. On the city guide I was following, it sounded like an appealing part of town, full of intimate small-scale streets and canals, lined with interesting shops and cafes... Unfortunately, by the time I got there, the rain had become torrential... Without an umbrella or a raincoat, I was caught in no man's land, and took cover in a small landing at the door of one of the houses.. There, I waited around 15 minutes until I had enough and ran to the closest tram stop.. I took the next tram back to the Dam, admiring the quirky shops passing me by...

Back at the Dam, I went looking for a place called 'De Bierkoning' (The Beer King).. I thought it would be a pub selling over a thousand brands of beer from all over the world, but it turned out to be nothing more than a liquor store... However, next door was an Irish pub, and had a couple of enjoyable Caffrey's watching the FA Cup Final.. I blame the alcohol for cheering for Arsenal (who ended up beating Southampton 1-0)...

I found a narrow alley way right next to the Nieuwe Kerk, full of pubs and restaurants.. Despite my growing weariness, I felt it was way too early to go back to the hostel, and decided to order a Nasi Goreng at a little Indonesian place called 'Sie Joe'... It was probably the best thing I could've done at the time - just sitting down and watching the world go by... Still, my coherence level was some way below the recommended mark for someone travelling alone.. and after an hour or so of arguing with myself, I decided to go get some sleep... The room I was staying at had 3 beds, of which all were empty.. Surprisingly, I had trouble dozing off at first, so I picked up a book to read.. Few minutes later, the door burst open and met Damien from NY, who arrived in Amsterdam a day earlier... He went back out to do some more exploring.. I noticed it was 10:30pm, and there was still light outside.. then finally got some sleep...

I wanted to get an early start on Sunday morning, and managed that by leaving at 8am.. I was headed to Keukenhof, which I missed out on the day before... I had no choice but to go - not only was it one of the main reason why I planned this trip, but it was also the very last day the garden would be open to the public for the rest of the year.. Keukenhof is usually open between late March to late May, and I read that it attracts up to a million visitors annually in the 8 weeks that it is opened... The trip consisted of a tram ride to Centraal Station, a half hour train ride to Leiden, and another half hour bus ride to Lisse, where it is located... There are no superlatives to describe the place.. In the huge parkland of ancient trees and pristine lakes, hundreds of flowerbeds, mostly of dazzling Dutch tulips, invitingly draw you in... It was truly an unforgettable sight and the combination of colours was just sensational... It was still overcast, but there was no hint of rain.. and there were even breaks of bright sunshine... I spent more than 3 hours there, strolling through the woodlands and the indoor floral displays, where I was knocked out by the fragrance as soon as I stepped inside...

It was mid afternoon by the time I arrived back in Amsterdam.. I decided to explore the Oude Zijde (literally the Old Side) where, as the name suggests, the city has its roots.. in more ways than one - It contains some of the more historic buildings, and also the Red Light District... Right amongst this seamy part of town is the Oude Kerk, the oldest church in Amsterdam... There was a photography exhibition taking place inside, and I was annoyed at having to pay to see the church... As I lined up, I noticed an interesting emblem on the wall - It is like a normal shield, but with three X's lined along the middle of it.. Behind me, just a few yards away, were scantily clad girls knocking on the very windows they were imprisoned in, trying to attract the interest of the scores of highly strung British lads walking past... It was just one bizarre scene...

I was not so impressed by the church's interior.. There was a huge 18th century organ, but the walls and ceilings were not as grand as the great cathedrals of Paris and England that I have seen before.. The photo exhibition had some interesting shots of news-worthy events of the past year, but nothing that really caught my eye... After that, I walked to the Nieuwmarkt, a vast open square that has been a marketplace since the 15th century.. The first thing you notice there is the bulky Waag building, which used to be some sort of fortresss, but now a cafe.. The square was also a sight for public executions... I continued south along the Kloveniersburgwal, which is not quite the Red Light District but there was still a spattering of people 'window-shopping'.. It's quite an intimidating experience walking those streets alone, littered with lifeless junkies and characters you would not like to meet in dark alley ways... With brisk pace, I made my way to the banks of the Amstel River...

This was much better.. From the south side of the river, there are some splendid views up the various canals with their bridges... I felt like a snack and went looking for food north along the Rokin, the main street of the city... A large portion of the street is undergoing construction, which was a shame as it obstructed the view of some attractive buildings and houses... I made it all the way up to the Dam, where I settled on fries with mayo, washed down with local beer at a place called 'Cafe Van Daele'...

I met up with Damien back at the hostel and then we headed out for dinner.. We followed my guidebook which recommended De Negen Straatjes area (The Nine Streets) for a good feed... We were led to a pasta place called 'Goodies'.. It felt like a good omen to eat there, as I was trying to explain who 'The Goodies' were at the time (after seeing a photo of them on my camera) - Naturally, he had no idea what I was on about... The pasta was average, but we were served by an over-friendly waitress that looked to be the Dutch version of Rebecca Romjin-Stamos (hang on, is she Dutch too?)... What followed for the rest of the evening was going from one bar to the next, trying out the local beers... I couldn't tell you how many we visited that night, but it included at least one gay-bar - It wasn't until we ordered 2 huge pints of whatever-we-were-drinking, that we noticed we were in a room full of 'boys'.. If you're still not convinced, the DJ played The Village People and Madonna songs... There was another place called 'De Duivel' (which turns out that it was once a legendary hip hop bar), and every single person there was smoking pot.. Still, it took Damien, a self professed 'pot-head', a while to cautiously light up a joint.. and yes, I had a couple of puffs (another one to cross off the list - smoking in Amsterdam)... We also wanted to check out a blues bar, which we had walked past earlier in the night, but we were told the band had stopped playing some hours before we got there.. So instead, Damien taught me the intricacies of that proud NY/Boston tradition - darts... At 3am, we made it back to our room, but not before we picked up a couple of Heinekens from the vending machine downstairs...

After waking up just in time to check out of the hostel at 10am, I made my way across to the banks of the Prinsengracht, where the Anne Frankhuis can be found.. This little house, number 263, is where Anne Frank and her family went into hiding during the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam, when they started rounding up the Jews.. The museum tells a tragic tale and is a deeply moving experience.. Anne's legacy is survived through the entries in her diary, which she kept everyday for 25 months.. As you walk through the narrow hallways and staircases, you have to wonder how 8 people survived those arduous months in such a confined area...

Right next to the museum is the Westerkerk, a church built in the late 16th century but mostly known for its tower that is the tallest in Amsterdam... I had to join a tour to go up, and was a little disappointed to find out that we could only go halfway up the tower - ie 40 metres, instead of the full 85 metres... However, the view from there was spectacular to say the least... After the taxing climb up several levels, we were presented with striking views to all parts of the city... Directly below, was the jumbled streets of Jordaan and the Bloemgracht.. To the south and east were the 3 magnificent canals, Prinsengracht, Keizersgracht, and Herengracht...

After a quick lunch, I took a tram over to the other side of town, and walked around the Plantage area.. There, the zoo and the botanic gardens can be found, as well as some historic museums.. I only had a brief look around as it was starting to drizzle again... I then headed west to walk along the Oude Schans canal, where a lot of the houseboats are.. At the southern end of the canal is just about the most crooked building in the city - Cafe de Sluyswacht.. Rembrandt is known to have sketched this bizarre leaning building... As I headed further east in search of more crooked houses, a huge storm hit, and I ran around like a headless chook, looking for shelter.. I ran all the way to Nieuwmarkt, and was soaked by the time I found a cosy little cafe... It was just as well that I found a place to sit down, as my legs were no longer communicating with my brain... I had one last gulp of the Dommelsch (beer), and as if in perfect synch, the rain stopped...

It was then when I decided to do one of those canal cruises... I walked down to the Amstel, and hopped onto a ferry that was full of old people.. By now, the rain started again and all the windows started to fog up... The tour started with recordings in just Dutch and English, but by the end it had changed to German, French, Spanish and English.. so by the time the English part came round, the place it had been describing had long gone... That was ok though - I managed to follow the path round on my trusty old map... The ride took just on an hour - we went along the Herengracht (gentleman's canal), and out to Het Ij (the harbour), then down the Oude Schans back to the banks of the Amstel... The highlight was looking down the Regularsgracht, with the 7 arched bridges perfectly lined up.. I managed to take a photo of it through the foggy window...

With just a few hours before my flight back to London, I had one last stroll along the canals in the Eastern Canal Ring area... I ended up at Rembrandtplein, where there is a 19th century statue of the great artist set in a tranquil garden... These days, the square is surrounded by neon-lit, low-brow bars and cafes, with the odd souvenirs shop here and there... I had some more frites and a final drink at one of those bars, before picking my backpack up at the hostel and heading out to the airport...

In whole, Amsterdam is a fantastic place for a weekend getaway... I especially loved walking along the many picturesque canals, marvelling at the lushness of the trees lining the water and the droll crooked houses... Once you get used to the trams, the bikes and the dog-poo on the streets, walking around is an enchanting experience, and you can never get tired of it (unless you've had no sleep the night before)... Also, the people there were a welcome change from the boorishness I have become accustomed to in Paris and London.. Everyone was helpful, and a smile definitely goes a long way... Next time, if I'm game enough, I will have to hire a bike for a day and do the bike thing around the city... For the time being, I need to rest up and prepare for the trip to Cornwall.. this weekend!

More pics here...

At Luton Airport right now... It's 3:39am and my flight to Amsterdam is in 160 minutes time... It has been an interesting day...

NO TV.. NO BEER...

I have gone without TV for a few weeks now...

Well, when I say 'no TV'.. what I really mean is that access to one is not always readily available... However, the fact remains that the brain-numbing sport enjoyed by millions of couch potatoes around the world everyday, is a rare event in my life right now... The place I am currently staying at (Swiss Cottage), has two TV sets.. but both are in two separate rooms, occupied by my flatmates.. and as I stumble home late at nights, everyone in the house is already fast asleep (some people have to work)... My usual daily routine of watching Tim Webster or Matt White on ST, has been replaced by lying quietly in bed reflecting on how annoying it is having to pack everything yourself at supermarkets... Staring blankingly at the 95th re-run of some classic Simpsons episode has been replaced by writing a blog entry such as this... I think what I miss most, though, is watching the news (oh, and Sandra Sully).. I really have no freakin clue what has been happening around the world (apparently there was a war?).. For the past 5 weeks or so, the world as I know it, sadly, only revolved around my pitiful little brain...

And what's this about the G-G?

The week also saw the departure of Hubes back to Sydney... I'm glad that he and Denise can be back together again (it really must've been tough on them).. but I feel a little lost now that my drinking partner has left these shores... It just won't be the same ordering a Newcastle Brown without seeing that cheeky grin greeting me back at the table... We had one last 'fling' on Monday night (last week, that is), when we went to the Belgian Bierodrome in Angel... There you can find beers like St.Feuillien.. Chimay Triple.. or Westmalle Dubbel... The names alone can make you a little tipsy, let alone the 10% alcohol content...

So now I am in need of a new drinking pal.. or maybe I should just do what most alco's do and drink alone...

Also.. I booked a flight to Amsterdam for this coming weekend! YAY!

KATHLEEN EDWARDS

I read about this up and coming alt-country star from Canada last week and I thought it would be a good idea to check her out at The Borderline.. plus I needed something to do on a Wednesday night... Now, it turns out that The Borderline is this legendary club, where some of the greatest live acts have played, just as they were starting out in their careers... On the walls, there are 'action' photos of REM, Crowded House, Rage Against The Machine and even my favourites - Ben Harper and Jeff Buckley, both in 1994... So history was telling me that I was in for a good night...

Having arrived a little later than expected, after a quick dinner with some friends, I was confronted with an absolutely packed room.. It is a relatively small venue, with about 250 people squeezed into an area not much bigger than your average Starbucks.. There were people standing on the staircase, which probably wasn't a bad idea, as it would have had a perfect view of the stage... I somehow made my way to the bar and ordered a drink, and before I could find a prime position to see the show, the band came on... From where I was standing at the time, an annoying column in the middle of the room was in my direct line of sight to Kathleen... I could only put up with this for so long, and ended up having to stand in front of a couple of American girls for a better view.. I could almost see them pulling faces and making gestures behind me, but I couldn't give a rat's arse... pfft.. Americans...

She looks a lot like a young Elizabeth Shue in Cocktail.. She wore a cowboy shirt and jeans.. but the music was far from being twangy - It was more like early-Sheryl-Crow-rock.. and the accompanying lead guitarist had some Mike-McCready-like-licks... At times, her voice sounded hauntingly similar to Beth Orton's.. She would definitely have been one of Kath's influences, I thought... She has charm and talent to match, and I was immediately taken with her... On this, her first world tour, one suspects she is out to polish up on her ever-developing skills, to see what she is and not capable of in front of a live audience... I have since read that she has already appeared on Letterman, which is usually a good indicator of an artist on the rise...

Back to the show, she and the band started off with a handful of rocking numbers.. before settling into a solo acoustic set, including the beautiful Hockey Skates... I could tell that most in the crowd, who just happened to be predominantly male, were there just like me - having not listened to any of her music previously, but now really enjoying... It is this mix of melodic tunes, catchy guitar riffs, and steely solos that I find intensely appealing... When the band returned (lead guitar, bass, drums), they played out the rest of the songs on her first album, "Failer"... Six O'Clock News is my favourite song at the moment and I suspect will receive a whole lotta airplay, once the world finds out about her, which shouldn't be too far away... There was also a pleasant surprise in store when she announced that they would be doing an old AC/DC song! It turned out to be Money Talk.. It wasn't quite Angus - more like Sheryl Crow's version of Sweet Child Of Mine... There were times when I was convinced she was looking directly at me, but found out later that it was the guy standing next to me wearing a Ryan Adams shirt... Damn...

After it was all over, I (along with the rest of the crowd) headed to the bar to buy the CD... As I walked out, looking again at the 'hall of fame', I felt grateful for finding out about this little corner of London, and knew that I would be back...

DONNIE, HARRY, AND LOGAN

Managed to convince the guys to see one of my fave movies with me the other night - Donnie Darko... Seeing it on the big screen again was nice... It's one of those you can see over and over again and still have no effing clue what the heck is going on... For those who have been lucky enough to see it, I recommend you try the website - hopefully it'll explain a few things... I'm still trying to figure out the significance of Cherita ("Chut up!") and the guy in the red tracksuit... And that Gary Jules song, "Mad World", is the perfect way to end the movie...

On Sunday, I joined some locals for a game of football (soccer) at Hyde Park... It was a warm day in the mid-20s, with not a cloud to be seen in the sky.. and I may have even received a bit of a tan... The English, and Europeans in general, take park football way too seriously though - I turned up expecting a stroll in the park, and what I finished with was sore bones and dented pride... We played 45 minute halves and it was full on from the very start... Every little mistake was followed by a deluge of insults and 'how ya goings'... The whole time, I was concentrating more on not doing anything stupid rather than actually play some football... Having said that, it was a fairly good work out, and despite my slippery sneakers, I think I did o.k...

After a quick shower, Hubes and I went to Highbury ("The Famous Cock") to catch the all important clash between Arsenal and Leeds.. The actual game was being played just a few hundred yards away from where we were, but unlike the Man Utd game, the pub was relatively empty (I guess that says something about the plight of Leeds)... This was a must win game for both teams - anything but a win for Arsenal meant that they would be handing the championship over to Man Utd, and Leeds needed a win to assure a spot in the premiership next season... I felt if Leeds did not win that day, they would go on to lose against Aston Villa next week, thus resulting in relegation - an outrageous thought only a few months ago...

In the 5th minute, we saw something that could only be conjured up by the boy from Smithfield.. A typical long ball was brilliantly controlled by Harry (in traffic, mind you).. and he followed it up with a left foot scorcher from outside the box... The ball was going away from him and he had to go across his body, all on the run! He took the shot early and left Seaman grasping for air.. Simply breath-taking... When the ball hit the back of the net, Hubes and I both jumped up in celebration... It took a few seconds for us to realise we were in the heart of Arsenal territory, but luckily for us, no one seemed to care all that much... By halftime, the Gunners had equalised, and during the break, we made a quick dash to Bayswater (where we would be meeting some friends for dinner) via the tube... At first, we could not find a pub that was showing the game, but in the distance, I could see a sign saying "Bar Oz"... Now, this was more like it.. an Aussie pub full of Leeds fans! We had missed the first few minutes of the second half and both teams had each scored once more, making the scoreline 2-2 with around 20 minutes remaining... It was agonisingly tense and I could not bear to watch, knowing that a draw would not be enough... With 3 minutes to go, I had given up all hope, and conceded to seeing my beloved Leeds United run around in the Nationwide League... But then big Viduka received the ball on the right, he made his way into the box, and superbly lifted the ball over the keeper with his left foot.. GOAL!! Me and this other guy in a Leeds shirt went nuts.. We had done it - we had secured our place in the premiership... Oh the joy...

During the week, I also managed to catch X2.. Shaun had reserved a ticket for me at the Odeon, which is supposedly the biggest cinema screen in Europe... When I walked in, I was not overly impressed by it, but after a few previews it did seem fairly large.. It is perhaps just marginally bigger than the big screen on George St in Sydney... Like everyone else, I enjoyed this one a lot more than the first, but couldn't help thinking that Logan's (Wolverine's) sideburns looked fake... I thought Alan Cumming was brilliant as Nightcrawler, and Rebecca R-Stamos gave another 'firm' performance... Ok, just a couple more weeks til Matrix Reloaded...

TOGETHER, ONCE MORE

It's been a funny old week - A week where the sun tried excruciatingly hard to peep through the clouds and onto the damp earth... A week where I did something that I once told myself would never do...

Leeds lost again (this time to Blackburn Rovers)... The spectre of relegation looms overhead, but fortunately for them, the Hammers may have left their courageous fight to stay in the Premiership one week too late.. Leeds are at Highbury this Sunday, where they will be facing a team desperately clinging onto their title hopes.. God, I hate Man U...

On Monday, Hubes came back from his weekend excursion to Berlin, and we decided to meet that afternoon... We felt that we should do something touristy for a change (not just look like ones - the Wallabies jersey is always a dead giveaway), and headed over to the British Museum, where a countless number of historic artifacts from all over the world are on display.. The museum, I feel, is just a reminder of the country's imperial past, and it makes me wonder just how many innocents were slaughtered by the British, as they hoarded all this stuff back to a little island off the west coast of Europe... Nonetheless, the collection is an impressive one, and we started off at the Egyptian section, where the Rosetta Stone is.. This was one of the most important finds in history, as it made hieroglyphics legible.. Before its discovery, no one could find a way to decipher the ancient language, but the stone tablet had a band in hieroglyphics, a band in Arabic, and another in ancient Greek, all saying the same thing, and soon enough, they had it all figured out (as they always do)...

We walked through the Egyptian gallery (Ramesses the Great), the rooms containing Assyrian artifacts (a dog woman with big breasts), and a little bit of the Parthenon galleries, before we were rudely booted out.. We had been told that it would be open til late on Monday nights, but obviously this prick of a man thought it would be amusing to inconvenience a couple of lads that were in serious need of some culture.. Even when we went to the information desk to obtain audioguides, I asked the guy there how long it would take to go around the museum, and he calmly said 90 minutes.. Without flinching, he accepted our hard earned cash and gave us the guides.. He just forgot to mention the fact that it was only half an hour before closing time! Oh, and he just happened to be French.. I guess he had to be...

In situations like this, what else is there to do but drink away the pain? We walked over to Covent Garden, and after trying out several corner pubs (all smokey and loud), we settled on the Essex Serpent - less noisy than the other pubs, but that could've been because there was no one else inside.. It's cool having the whole bar to yourself, and to top it all off, the wrestling was being shown on TV... Whilst admiring the cut athletes jumping and prancing across the screen, Hubes told me about German loos and their ingenuity in reducing the splash factor... Meanwhile, the Swedish bar-chick was so bored that she was making a tower out of the empty glasses.. I would've helped out, except I was too engrossed by Hubert's toilet techniques... To ease the dullness of her plight, I asked her where the nearest blues club was (coz we were thinking of checking out some blues that night), and she frantically looked up maps and made calls to find out.. As other customers started coming in, she told me that one of her friends was going to marry Thiery Henry (the Arsenal football star, who happened to be on TV at the time), as soon as her friend ever got a chance to meet him... Hubes and I never managed to find that blues bar, but had dinner at a pasta joint nearby... He headed back to Maidenhead, and I trudged back home.. in the rain...

On Tuesday night, I wanted to check out a gig, but I had trouble finding the venue.. The band was 'Folk Implosion' who I started listening to late last year... The gig was supposed to be at the ULU (University London Union), but no one seemed to know where the band was playing exactly... I gave up after a while, and caught up with Ray instead.. He invited one of his flatmates along, Belinda, and we talked about plans for our upcoming trip to Cornwall later this month.. It would be the 3 of us, plus Pete (the other flatmate and also Belinda's boyfriend), in another road trip - this time to the picturesque south-western edge of England...

Wednesday night was Nuria's birthday drinks at Bar Soho, and drink I certainly did... I lost count after 6 bottles of Beck's, and God knows how many I ended up having, but it was all good - I managed to meet some fantastic people from all over the place that night - one who was half-Equadorian-half-Cuban, had the same love for Bill Bryson's hilarious books (about his travels around the world) as I did.. and another of Pakistani origin who I spent some time talking cricket with.. There was also this Spanish guy - real down to earth, and had all these cool stories about growing up in Madrid... Later on in the evening, he, Nuria and I found ourselves on the dance floor, boogee-ing to the likes of Wham, Van Halen and ABBA.. Most people had left much earlier as it was a weeknight, but the 3 of us ploughed on til 1am...

After the excessive drinking that went on the previous 3 nights, I thought I'd have a quiet one on Thursday.. I always made fun of Ray's weekly budget of 40 pounds set aside for drinks, but I now know the full significance of his statement - I had gone well above that in just 3 nights! Anyway, I decided to join membership at Prince Charles Cinema (at Leicester Square) which would allow me to watch movies for two and a half quid! The movies shown there are not the new-releases, perhaps 6 to 12 months old, but they are of the highest quality... Some flicks I have missed recently, like "Punch Drunk Love" and "Amores Perros", I will get to watch for cheap cheap... That night, "Personal Velocity" was showing and I decided to check it out... It proved to be a good decision, and I thoroughly enjoyed it... The only thing was that it had to be by my lonesome self.. I once thought I would never be game enough going to the movies alone, but I guess it was just a matter of time before I did...

Friday, 2nd May will go down as the day I bought my first Fender... Just a Squier acoustic at this stage, but it still rocks baby! The link will show a white one, but the one that I have is in the natural yellow-y colour... I was tossing up in my mind whether to buy an acoustic-electric or not, but in the end settled on this as I didn't think I would be playing so much over here... It had been a painful wait to strum the guitar once more, and being able to do a John-Mayer-riff or the Hallelujah-intro was a feeling of pure elation...

After showing off my new toy to my flatmates (the guitar, that is), I had yet another 'date' with Hubes.. This time we headed to a comedy club near Leicester Square to check out the local stand-up scene... When we arrived, there was a sudden feeling of "oh shit, what have we gotten ourselves into?"... There were around 30 people gathered around a small stage, with the compare-dude telling some lame Saddam Hussein joke.. You could literally hear a pin drop, and lemme tells ya - you did not want to be there... Fortunately, the four stand up guys that followed weren't too bad (not bad for 5 pounds anyway)... One of them was a presenter/interviewer on one of those teenage TV pop shows, and I recognised him straight away.. It was pleasing to see him bag the likes of J.Timberlake and Christina... Midway through the evening, Shaun joined us.. and when it was all over, we spent some time looking around for a suitable bar to chill or just unwind.. before giving up and calling it a night...

MORE PHOTOS!!

Here's a link to some photos of my time in England so far... Apologies for the bad quality on some of these...

Also, I have been asked to "introduce" some of the people I have been writing about.. (I guess it would make reading this jibberish a little easier).. So here they are:

Hubes - me mate from school.. on a short work trip, based in Maidenhead, but will soon be heading back to Sydney to get hitched!

Shaun - buddy from uni days.. been in London for more than 18 months...

Ray - fellow former member of the Wokboyz (basketball team in Sydney).. doing the same thing as me - working holiday visa in the UK...

Jane - another Sydney friend who has been in London for some time - more than a year...

Nuria, Yin - together with Jane, my current flatmates...

Jono - another from Sydney, whom I met during the summer.. he is also here on a working holiday thingie...

Van - good friend from Sydney, but now studying in Paris.. she will be heading back to Bangkok in late May...

Bank - Van's boyfriend, whom I met on their recent trip to London...