Things I like about London
Waking up to the regular thwack of tennis balls being hit in the tennis club next door.
People like to listen to recordings of whale sounds or rain in the Amazon or birdsong; let’s make one of tennis balls, it’s very restful. (When it gets too restful, throw in some grunting and shrieking. Your neighbors will think you’re watching porn again.)
Bonus activity: Trying to get a glimpse of the hot instructor across the fence. (Have not woken up early enough but my source guarantees it.)
After walking across miles of museums—and sales—throwing yourself onto a park bench to calm your screaming feet and realizing the bench has a history.
I’m not even a serious shopper, but everything is 70 off. (In Manila stores have the nerve to mark their stuff down 20 percent and call it a sale. That’s not a sale, that’s not even an employee’s discount.)
At dusk, which at this time of year is about 9 pm, walking across Hyde Park to Buckingham Palace, hearing someone singing Band on the Run and realizing that Paul McCartney is having a concert. It’s great to be in a city where there’s a McCartney concert on and you forgot because there are so many other things to absorb your attention.
Answers to questions you might be asking, unless you wandered onto this site purely by accident >>>
June 30th, 2010 at 21:09
Yes. The thwack of tennis balls against rackets is nice. I don’t watch tennis, but when I leave the tv on and I hear the sound of the ball trading places, the occasional roar and the gentle speech of commentators, it’s almost as relaxing as the voice of Anjali Rao or Rosemary Church.
June 30th, 2010 at 23:04
is it just me or this whole trip makes me want to go to London? :) grats on having a really fun vacation around the stuff that you really like :)
July 1st, 2010 at 07:15
I lived in London for a couple of years after college and I have to say it’s one of the best places to live in, if one can afford to ignore the astronomical cost of living. It’s a shame most Londoners don’t appreciate it that much. They haven’t been to the museum for years, if at all. They’re all talking about retiring at 40 and taking up a chalet in southern France. Hey, show me a man who is tired of London and I’ll show you a man who is tired of life!
PS. If you get the chance, visit the Natural History Museum in Kensington. It’s the best!
July 1st, 2010 at 09:01
you should live in london. a two-year grant to write your SECOND novel? a columnist for the guardian? a fact-checker for, i dunno, the sun? the classifieds calleth.
July 1st, 2010 at 11:04
a french colleague of mine suggested that i move to London when i told her i don’t know which place to go after Singapore. although, the southwest of France (which i’m visiting in a few days) seems quite promising. still, i think too much countryside, however beautiful it is, can drive you nuts after some time… speaking of the countryside, you must, must visit the old Roman city of Bath, which is just outside London. it’s so so lovely. and you can find Jane Austen’s old apartment there!
July 1st, 2010 at 22:49
I must visit London at least once in this lifetime. Hopefully, while The Fed is still playing at Wimbledon.
July 2nd, 2010 at 00:24
I once came across an ad for the Cotswolds. Being a sucker for quaint and tidy villages, I was instantly smitten. Reminded me of the village in the film Calendar Girls starring Helen Mirren and Julie Walters. The Cotswolds, the Chelsea Flower Show, and St. Pancras train station are my must-see places if I should ever visit the UK.