Photo Gallery – Old London Town
It was really weird returning to London after 10 months. But that’s not to say I wasn’t looking forward to it. Even though it was in the middle of November, and we had come from the relatively opposite climate of Delhi. I was excited from the moment we got into UK airspace. The view of the Thames that cold morning as we descended was amazing. Then it was the small stuff that I never got around to taking photos of. Like the tube platforms with business people all around. Or the parks that I took for granted for so long. The people in this relatively hugely wealthy city, going about their daily business. My friends who I was so happy to see after such a long time. Anna’s sisters and other family, who inside this cocoon of a city were only too happy to see us and hear our tales. The drinking with mates in pubs from the east end to the Gloucester Road, the dinners, specially home cooked just for us. The walks along the beaches, windswept and freezing, all the while catching up on everything that had been going on since we were far far away.
Posted 6 months, 2 weeks ago at 11:34 pm. 1 comment
Our last day in the UK had to be big. or at least eventful. I like to think thats how i roll baby.
The evening of the 27th was in this case no exception to that rule, and I would like to thank Sabrina for an absolutely absurd send off from the UK. I would also like to thank my work colleagues for purchasing a mankini as a leaving present for me. I simply had to wear it on the night of sabs leaving doo, but managed to save ‘whipping it out’ until the early hours of the morning…
So, several baby guinness’ later, and after attempting miserably to mix records with my international dj friend mr costello, out it came…
The rest of the evening is a complete blur except to say that when the taxi man called me to take me back to the flat at 5am before grabbing our bags and going to the airport, I decided to reject that particular call.
45 minutes later, Austin managed to get through, and somehow found his way to where I was staying at Brian and Tanja’s to pick me up. In a state of sleep deprivation – (i worked out I got about 1 hour) combined with horrific hangover, I scrambled around the apartment frantically looking for my glasses. I realised I would need these for 12 months of travel in a foreign country. Waking up the entire flat to assist, I ran outside the bedroom, smashing my toe on the small step into the hallway. But thought nothing of it, as I had a plane to catch.
Austin & Tracy were sitting downstairs, after having driven from maidenhead at silly oclock to pick me up. Absolutely amazing – thank you so much guys.
Needless to say I got home picked up my bag and girlfriend – who like a trooper functioned perfectly well on about the same amount of sleep as I did, and made our way to the airport.
The sudden wake up to the realisation that you are about to leave some of the closest people in your life for a very long time is sobering, and whilst I found this really difficult, I know that it must have been harder for Anna. We got on that plane, blood (the blister on my toe by this stage was intensly painful), sweat and tears, knowing that we wouldnt see these people for a long time. No amount of hangover was enough to make me forget that.
Posted 1 year, 6 months ago at 3:59 pm. 2 comments
Its become quite a regular occurence over the last few years. National Express Kings Cross to Leeds. Right now Im sitting in my seat in a packed train, going past the Nottingham power station. Eight huge Simpsons style towers blot the horizon, remiding me of how massive, populated, and 1st world this country is. And yet the country side from Stevanage, all the way to Leeds, minus a few towns along the way is basically field after field of rapeseed and wheat.
My nervousness about seeing a customer never leaves me, no matter how many times I do this trip. Sitting here, although in a basically calm and quiet environment (i find the movement and sound of the train not overwhelming at all), I still have the twitch in the pit of my stomach, that comes only from dealing with shrewd and aggressive national retail customers.
And yet, there is no doubt. Ill miss this for sure. Tea, a paper, jump on the laptop, all the while occasionally looking out the window to appreciate the very britishness of it all, contemplating what responses I might get to the proposal and the games that might play out over the duration of this half hour meeting.
And so thats the way it happens, migrate north 3 hours, meet and argue 30 mins, migrate south 3 hours – all in a days work!
Posted 1 year, 7 months ago at 10:35 am. Add a comment
Where are all the photos gone? Fair question. But I have news. If I can get this blog system to work, I should be able to get them back in a new updated format. Yes thats right, I am returning to the days of year nine lunchtimes. HTML, PHP, SQR databases… So many abbreviations, so little time to be nerd!
No, quite the opposite – sort of. For those who dont know, this is now the new blog page for myself and Anna to report back to the western world, that in fact, WE HAVE NOT YET DIED. There should be plenty of photos, and bits and bobs from the next 14 months – which are starting on the 28th of Feb this year. Urgh, still 6 weeks of work left…
So watch this space, I intend to get my IT skills to a point where by the site should be updated a lot more than the last, although, yes I know how exciting those photos were, even thought they have been there for the last 30 months!
Cheers, Christian
Posted 1 year, 7 months ago at 12:41 pm. Add a comment
