Last day in London

Spent the weekend in Oxford gorging on delicious foods with Mina and her family. Iranians are incredible.... we literally spent two whole days sitting around, both inside and out, and snacking. There was a little bit of dancing, where Mina, Shira (her cousin), and I tried to mimic a traditional dance about getting drunk (it involves fedoras, shots, and body rolling) and laughing hysterically about our inability to make it work. I suspect it was the lack of shots.

On Monday, instead of spending 20 pounds each on tea, we cooked all morning and feasted on 6 tiers of sandwiches (cheese+chutney, smoked salmon, and cucumber), blueberry scones with clotted cream and homemade strawberry preserves, rich hot chocolate shots with chocolate ice cream, 3-layered vegan chocolate cake with cherry mousse filling, chocolate biscotti with almonds and walnuts, tiramisu, hand rolled truffles (some with peanut butter filling), and an assortment of teas.
It was insane.

From Loebl-London and Oxford

FIrst days in London

I made the last train from Heathrow, after an uneventful but pleasant flight.
So happy to be here!!
Justin has been a fabulous host, and I appreciate having a place to keep as home base.

I saw the AA and Bartlett student shows yesterday, sat in Regents Park, and wandered around trying to find the pavilions for the Arch Festival, before meeting with Adam for some pub time.
I have a few photos, but nothing extreme so far.
I have quite a few blisters and sores though... that's what I get for wearing new shoes.

Planning on going to the Tate, some Archi Fest stuff, and a fancy dance/music event tonight with JT. Tomorrow we head to Oxford!

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I think the main reason I love London is because it is so green and so walkable. Managing not to twist your ankle on the uneven pavement is quite another matter, but you hardly need to pay for public transportation in the city center or go two blocks without seeing a park.

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I'm sleeping on a white couch, on a white blanket, next to white walls bathed in white light from the white shades hiding the window that overlooks a turkish diner, an art gallery, a salon, and a dental clinic, each with different front pavements. The art gallery (basket weave brick), the salon (dark rough concrete), the diner (tan stone), the dental clinic (dark slate) are monitored by cctv cameras aimed at the doors. There is a pub on the corner and a garden above me.

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There is blue sky today.