My Random Observations of London:
Heathrow Airport was a bit of a letdown.
During my first few hours in London, while strolling down Columbia Flower Market, I concluded that Londoners are a stylish bunch.
Londoners don’t smile, and according to a viral TikTok video about the city, you are not supposed to smile at them, too. Londoners jaywalk confidently—they DGAF about the crazy traffic. Actually, cars and buses also drive chaotically. None seem to follow the road rules, but it works there.
But people are friendlier than l expected them to be based on my other big-city experiences.
The weather, contrary to what I had been warned, was gorgeous. 20° here is not the same as 20° in Melbourne.
I saw multiple people wearing fake leather and winged eyeliner.
The tube needs to be freshened up.
Still, on topic, the pedestrian crossing sound is unpleasant compared to Australia, Japan and Singapore.
Riding the tube, aka London Underground, the world’s first underground passenger railway, was pretty cool.
Pets are allowed everywhere, including trains, malls, and restaurants – I saw a dog sitting on a chair in a cafe, sharing a meal with his owner.
The city is a chaotic beauty; it gets busier and prettier when night falls.
London architecture, especially the terrace houses, is eye-catching. I could easily take a daily bus or train to nowhere to admire them.
I can easily separate Londoners and tourists in London, but not so much in Shoreditch.
Riding on the top floor of the double-decker bus had become one of my favourite activities while in the city. I got to see people’s living spaces through the tiny windows of their homes. Most Londoners have houseplants, and some have tasteful art.
I loved the double-decker bus so much that I almost got a tattoo of it, but after spending hours of my limited time there, I couldn’t find a tattoo artist whose art suited my style.
I didn’t enjoy shopping in London, which apparently is a big thing.
Many London bookshops are worth visiting, but it wasn’t as easy to find a bookstore in London as I had thought it would be.
Nothing is cheaper in London – not even products that are geographically closer to London than Australia.
More than the bookstores, there are so many markets! There is even a book specifically about the London markets. Yes, this made me consider moving to London.
To avoid peeing in a public toilet, you can purchase the cheapest item in a cafe and obtain the receipt. The receipt will contain the access code for the day for the bathroom inside the cafe.
Wearing comfortable shoes in London is a must.
Different cultures dominate various pockets of the London neighbourhood. The immigrant culture Is rich, thick and authentic, and the immigrant food is excellent and authentic.
One of the reasons to visit London is to immerse yourself in the world’s most diverse cultures—primarily through the cuisine. The London food scene is ah-mah-zing!
Spicy in a Thai restaurant here means Thai spicy, unlike in Australia.
Unfortunately, the wine choices are terrible. I had to force myself to finish the wine I ordered in other places aside from the ones from TATE Modern and the cheese train bar.
Thankfully, the coffee exceeded my expectations.
I had assumed the Monarch present would be more prominent in London, but it hadn’t been the case.
I tried CBD oil coffee for the first time here, and it tasted horrid.
I didn’t get to eat the traditional English breakfast while in London. But, then again, philosophically speaking, couldn’t any breakfast I had to be considered English breakfast?
There is a Pret A Manger in every corner of London.
I planned to follow up on my Melbourne Chai Crawl post – the London version. But honestly, the London chai game is so bad that after throwing my half-full third cup of chai, I decided to scrap the idea. It was not worth the pain and the pounds.
I wish I had visited the White Chapel Gallery and the Broadway Market; maybe next time?
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