Props to My Peeps in London

I can hardly believe 15 months have passed since I first moved to London! Even though I had planned on it being just a one-year stint, it almost feels too soon to leave. Almost. No offense London baby, but I am ready to go home!!!.. but not before I give props to my peeps that kept me afloat while I was here (I'm not gonna' lie - when I made the decision to move, I was nervous. And when I actually arrived, I was scared as hell).

Michael came along for a few days to help me settle in. Look at us sight-seeing as if we were on vacation! We looked way young then. I think London has aged me :)

Joanna, my first proper English friend (who I actually met when she visited New York) and her brother Lebby took me under their wing. To ease my being homesick, she took me out. We partied. We danced. We gossiped. We ate (lotsa crispy duck). She let me cry. She understood. I love you Joanna!

**Kariley, my closest friend in New York, had just so happened to have move to England 7 months earlier, though she lived over an hour away from me in a city called Bristol. I visited her one weekend and she took me to Bath, to bathe in their natural hot springs pool.

**I've been to more continents with Kariley than I have with anyone else - 5 to be exact! Obviously the U.S. (she took me Vermont to snowboard for Thanksgiving one year when it was too expensive to fly home); Europe (another obvious); South America (she took me to her home in Brazil); Asia (I took her to my motherland Vietnam); and Australia (we met up there for New Years Eve 2006)!

My Singaporean and Polish bad asses, Sun and Juliuz - the only reason I ever go to edgy East London :)

Michael and Momo on Team Night Out.






After all the invites we made to ensure our friends and family would visit, they only decided to come after they realized we were moving home in a month! And when they came, they all came at the same time!

Both mine and Tran's first traditional English afternoon tea time was at a not-so-traditional venue, Alan Yau's Yauatcha who presented with a colorful spread of delectable sweets.





Another first for Tran - smoking a shisha in a Middle Eastern hookah bar.









Butt-buddies!!!!








Michael Le & Sandino. Another pair of butt-buddies!!!

Our crazy Aussie friend Ali, who can't be in the sun for too long :) and her crazy Aussie beer.

Out of everyone, I know Joe misses us most. I mean, check out that pout!

This is Earl, my plant that kept me company when Michael hadn't moved over yet. I've never kept a plant alive for this long, so he means a lot to me. So instead of throwing him away when I moved, I let Joe adopt him, but apparently, Joe changed his name to Harry! Because of that, I'm sure Earl's dead now.


There were plenty crazy, emotional moments for me here, but in hindsight (and hindsight is a beautiful thing :), I'm grateful for the opportunity. I wouldn't have done it any differently. I've learned so much. I've met some wonderful people, made some fantastic friends and had a blast traveling through Europe. But alas, it's time for me to go home. Afterall...

Last of London

With just a few short weeks before our move back to Portland, I was able to convince my parents to come over for a quick visit although it was a bit nerve-wracking to say the least, for a number of reasons... one of which is my dad does not travel. He's happiest at home in his garden, but I promised him an unforgettable time :) and as such, it was my parent's first trip abroad together. Secondly, not only would it be my first trip abroad with the both of them, it would be their first trip with their daughter and their daughter's boyfriend. Talk about a double-whammy! Last, but not least, it would be an introduction to my cohabitating with you-know-who ;) But alas, it turned out to be quite seamless vacation (in hindsight, anyway :) and the most important thing is, I think they're glad they came as they really enjoyed themselves! Here are some pictures of us in London... which are also the first scenic/touristy pictures on this blog of my last year's home-away-from-home!

Here we are in front of Buckingham Palace!

St. Paul's Cathedral

Michael and my dad at the gates of Chinatown
Mom loves mangosteens!Westminster Abbey
The ParliamentA cruise on the River Thames takes us under London BridgeLondon EyeThe pods on the London Eye are huge!Thames River Barrier

Atari-ya

We ended our fun-filled day with sushi, from our (secret) favorite, hole in the wall sushi spot! It's not really much of a secret anymore though, as it was packed today! I think the word's out... they get their fish from the same suppliers as Nobu. Yummmmm

Disclaimer: Now that I'm unemployed, I'm probably going to be blogging a lot more. The randomness will be much more frequent over the next few weeks... maybe even months!

Shakespeare's Globe

This entry is dedicated to my little cousin Annie, who not only was the one that first told me about Borough Market, but has also been hounding, begging, and selling me on the idea of seeing a play at Shakespeare's Globe. It just so happens, the appreciation of Shakespeare does not run in our family.

But in an effort to do all-things "English," we finally went to The Globe (a pretty cool structure in itself) today to see "Romeo & Juliet." I think we had some of the best seats in the house (good thing because there was no other way I was going to stick around for the full 3 hours :) Some people had to stand!

We actually really enjoyed it, even though we didn't understand more than half of the lingo. Wish I paid more attention in English. Remember iambic pentameter??? Good thing I already knew the basis of the story!

After the play, we walked back over the Millennium Bridge, but at least it was sunny today!

And here's a little treat for you guys.... courtesy of Michael :)

You know you like that!

Farmer's on Crack

If you didn't already know, Michael and I have quit work...

... and we're moving back to Portland!

YAY!!! I've been homesick. It's time to go home!

So with just a few weeks left before we take off (and just in time for Kathy's wedding), we're trying to see/do some of our favorite things.... one of which is Borough Market. Of all the markets we've been to, this one is by far, our most favorite market of all all time. I've blogged about it in the past, but didn't get to include many pictures. Today was our first time going on a weekday and as it was much less crowded, I got to take a few more photos, although I think my camera lens need to be cleaned... or maybe my settings are off. Any suggestions?

This place is so awesome - it's got just about any type of food you can think of with a old school British feel. Imagine your neighborhood farmer's market, with a British accent and on crack.