London Hotels
|
  | |  |
London third time lucky
Entry 113 of 115 | show all | print this entry |
Utrecht was an enexpected gem in the journey, a special, awesome little place that, without the reccomendation of my Canadian pals that such a fantastic Bohemian hostel existed here, almost certainly would have been overlooked. It was with a profound mixture of sentiment and anticipation that i got up this morning, the last time i would conduct my conditioned ritual in this joint. I'd gotten so accustomed to the B+B hostel lifestyle that out of any other accomodation on the trip, this place made me feel like i was right at home. But alas, all good things must come to an end, and usually, equally great things are lurking around the next corner for you anyway.
Made my way downstairs after packing up my gear, whipped up some eggs for breakfast, and dripped around the lounge room and main table like the drip that i am, chatting to Martin and Sanna, chilling out on the couch in front of the tele, and taking in my last hours in this fantastic place. Getting restless, i conducted my regular walk up to the supermarket and bought a tube of juice, then hit up the hostel again and got ready for the inevitable departure. It was kinda sad to be saying my final goodbyes to the crew, to my mate Martin, to beefy Bart, these blokes were the lifeblood of the place, whether they realised it or not, and i'm a better fella for having met them and sharing time with them both. I wished Legion Dave a hearty farewell, gave Sanna a hug and bid Corey all the very best, and thanked the three of them for an unforgettable time at Walibi World. I should mention that last night my body was so pepped up on adrenaline and conditioned to perpetual G-Force motion that whenever i closed my eyes it felt like i was plunging full throttle along a roller track. It was intense. On that note, it took some time before i was actually able to get to sleep. This should give some indication as to how mad we went on those bloody rides. Anyway, i digress. So with all goodbyes complete, i took once last glance around the hostel, the wall of axes, the full band getup, the walls of computers, then once more latched on my gear, and hit the road for the last pitstop before i zoomed on back home.
Cor Blimey, this routine was starting to become all too familiar...
From the Utrecht train station, i trained it south east for an hour until arriving at the city of Eindhoven, then bussed it on to the uber-modern Eindhoven airport for a cheap and hardly sheik RyanAir flight back to London Town. Ahhh London. This would be the third and final time i would be arriving in London by plane, and my fourth encounter with Stansted Airport. The flight went smoothly and quickly, the novelty of flying now very much worn off after five flights so far on the trip, leaving Eindhoven at 7.25pm, and arriving in London at 7.30pm. Yep, a five minute flight. Now that's efficient! Arriving back at Stansted once more, i felt like an absolute veteran of European Union traval, marching through the terminal like a man on a mission, getting to the passport control before the hoard of other recently landed passengers, yet once again copping a total mental blank at the Passport Control desk when the woman asked where i'd flown in from. Seriously, every time i get asked, i blank out, i lose my nerve, hints of subconscious anxiety set in and i momentarily swear that the woman thinks i'm smuggling drugs and endangered animals into her country. Thankfully i got the word 'Holland' out after a brief hesitation, and was on my way in the quickest time yet. I was in a bit of a rush, because i had an engagement to attend, and time was a'tickin. For something totally out of character, something fresh and new, i was off to the pub!
Took the hour long bus to London city, then moseyed along in the rain, with a full pack and a black saxophone case through the very crusty, mostly quite seedy and at times criminal streets of 'Camden', paying no attention to the countless offers to purchase 'nasty skunk' from limey baseball capped degenerates, instead powerwalking until i reached the famous 'Dublin Castle'. My mate Yuri was over here in the UK touring with a band supporting Melbourne's own Cat Empire, and fortunately i was able to hook up with the man of shade himself at this fine establishent, knocking back the crisp pints with Yuri, his mates Erin and Katie the energetic lesbian, my mate Sarah, and some random shady Frenchman who was up for a bit of a chat. Feeling decidedly odd with all my possessions present with me in the pub, Yuri and Erin made the call to keep the party alive come the 1.30 closing time, and we foolishly cabbed it over to the West End of London to the notoriously edgy suburb of Sheperd's Bush. Sheperd's Bush is a shady blend of homeless and impoverished poms and an enormous population of Australians, who, following the characteristically Australian tendency to give every living thing a nickname, allegedly dub the place 'She-bu'. Arriving in the desolate main park area of Shebu, just outside the enormous 'Empire' theatre where tomorrow's gig was, we hit up the Cat Empire's luxury hotel lobby and got stuck into free rounds of Heineken cans, talking jive with the band, their mates and whiling the night away well into the wee hours.
Come 5am, the management finally booted our kiesters out, and, phenomenally delirious from having gone straight to a pub in seedy North London, essentially straight from HOLLAND, before winding up drinking cider in the main dimly lit park in the centre of Shebu....at 5.30am.....well, it was time to defrag and cart my weary, delirious body along the tube, back north to Belsize park, with luggage in hand. It is well known fact that if you choose to be follish enough to party with Yuri, you will, at some juncture, inevitably lose your health, both mental and physical. I found my way to the door of Sarah's apartment in Belsize Park at 6am, just as she was off to work. What a way to return.
Welcome Back to London, Yeeeees, Welcome Back.
|
|
If you like this entry, search for other entries from United Kingdom or try a new search. |
| |
Back to Entry - Back to Home
|
14 votes 
