an interesting start

Greetings from London! I have absolutely no idea what time it is here, but I'm guessing it's around 4-5pm? There is some major carnival that apparently 2-3 million people a year flock here to see, but alas, after the last 24 hours I think I may give it a miss for a while. I'll fill you in on the...interesting...start to my independance.

I had a really amazing farewell with loved ones and I miss them already - but now the intersting stuff starts. So, Etihad are a pretty cool airline, pretty spacious seating - I was stoked. This French guy sits next to me that does not speak a word of English, which is fine for me. 14 hours is a long time to be talking to someone you don't really want to. I watched Master and Commander, Clash of the Titans, Emperor's New Groove (best movie ever) and The Bounty Hunter - and still couldn't get to sleep. So I was a little irritated at not being able to sleep, but the food was good so I wasn't complaining.

The strange thing? Pocari Sweat adds every 15 minutes or so that interuptedhte program. Their selling point? It's composition is similar to bodily fluid, so you obsorb it quicker than water ... um ... pretty sure nobody wants to drink something that's compared to bodily fluids? I nearly barfed like three times because of my imagination. But it also gave me a bit of a giggle.

Amazingly, the 14 hour flight went without a hitch and I was feeling pretty ok at the end of it. Now the fun starts. I get to Abu Dhabi, and I'm a bit peckish. So, I take a seat, open up a packet of chips and start to chow down when suddenly, I feel the strong hand of a security officer behind me. I'm informed that I'm breaking the law, and taken into the security office where they check my passport etc. By this time, I'm thoroughly freaking out. It takes me about 15 minutes, but I finally get him to tell me what I've done wrong. It's Rhamadan, and eating in public is strictly forbidden. A heads up would have been nice. But, long story short, I'm sent off with a warning this time and manage to just make the flight to London. Amazingly, this flight feels 10x longer than the last. But I had a mushroom omelette that was just fucking amazing. Seriously. Best omelette EVER.

I arrive in Heathrow, and all the staff are really, really nice and helpful. My baggage is all where it's meant to be and so that went really well. I also had a really awesome English cabby called Bruce, who was very casually racist - it was an itneresting tip! So, I get as close as he can take me, because half the streets in London are closed for this carnival thing and, after about 45 minutes of misdirections and wrong turns - I make it to the hotel. Not that I minded the walk though, the weather over here is beautiful at the moment and so far everyone has been super friendly and helpful. Australians must be popular over here.

However, the hotel don't have my accomodation booked, so after a frantic over-dramatic call to mum - they manage to squeeze me into a single room with 5 beds. This way, I can get up 5 times during the night and have a brand new bed! or...put them all together and make a super bed. So, I go up to my room, settle in - I have the perfect view of Hyde Park, it's gorgeous. All the beds are comfy and I'm right near a window too! It's a great setup, I kind of don't want to leave tomorrow hah.

Now comes another funny start to this trip. The showers here are weird? Super complicated little gadgets and with a bath installed in it. So after like, 20 minutes of freezing my tits off and fiddling with the stupid thing - I manage to get it to work. However, not used to the high bath bottom to it, when I stepped out - I fell flat on my face. Needless to say it looks like soeone has punched me in the lip.

Another thing? My camera's battery is dead, and I have no charger for England. So it doesn't look like I'll be getting any photos the first day of the tour I'm afraid. But I'm sure I can get some photos that the others take. I thought ahead and brought my USB stick. Mum's starting to rub off on me, clearly.

I'm hoping I'm getting all the hiccups over and done with at the beginning ! All that being said, I'm all showered and comfortable now, and I feel sooooo much better than half an hour ago after the shower incident. I can't go on facebook much at this hotel because it's graphic heavy and costs me more money, so feel free to comment here and I can get back to you! You don't have to join blogspot to comment btw.

So until tomorrow probably, bye!

xo