my first visit

the UK..a country which i haven't previously visited, at least not that i remember...my dad says that isn't entirely true..he says i spent a night here when i was 4..clearly, i don't remember..so i don't count that..lol..
getting to london wasn't fast, to say the least..it's pretty much on the exact opposite side of the world from new zealand..i flew from auckland to brisbane, coolangatta to kuala lumpur, and KL to london..i finally arrived at my friend brie's flat around midnight, the "same" day i left KL..a measly 14 hour flight, with an 8 hour time difference..i met brie when she and i taught at the same school in korea, she's canadian..once i landed at stansted, i took a bus into the center of the city (liverpool street station for those who know it) and from there took the tube to brie's flat..not surprisingly, the weather as i arrived was crappy..not pouring rain, but definite precipitation..at least it wasn't windy..and not all that chilly..we stayed up a couple hours, getting caught up on each other's lives as well as the lives of the other people we know..i didn't sleep that night, even though i tried..apparently i slept too much on the plane, and my body hasn't been adjusting to the time difference..so i was awake long before anyone else in the flat, but that was okay..
we tried to go to the grocery store to get scones and cream for breakfast, but it was closed..go figure, the biggest grocery store in central london is closed on sunday mornings!! so that plan changed..instead, we took off for some mystery shopping, and then a walk along the thames..i didn't know that the thames is tidal, but now i do..i even got to see a beach..of course, it wasn't exactly the type of weather that made me want to strip down to a bikini and lay out... as we continued walking along, i saw a face that seemed really familiar..another traveler, a woman i had met in nepal, while trekking through the himalayas..nikki is british, but currently lives in chiang mai, thailand..neither one of us knew the other would be in london, we were both surprised..a quick catch up, a quick photo, and we split..brie and i were walking with one of her friends by that point, a girl in the film world..tansy..tansy talks a lot, she's really entertaining..she has fun stories, and has lived in places like cuba and russia..
brie is an awesome cook..she made phad thai, and i stayed awake all the way till 1900..jet lag was horrendous when i got to london..not only did i not sleep my first night in london, but even with falling asleep at 1900, i only slept until just after midnight, then was up all night again..ugh..
brie went to work the next day, i stayed home..i know i should've gone out and seen a few sights, enjoyed london, but i didn't..i didn't do a darn thing but play on the computer and take quick cat naps..after a year of nonstop traveling, i figured it was okay to take a day off and not see anything at all..
the following day brie and i took a day trip to brighton..it's a seaside town, about an hour outside of london..london has a great train system, and the earlier you book tickets, the cheaper they are..brie booked ahead and we only paid 3 pounds each:)..the beach at brighton is a pebble beach, probably not the best for laying out and enjoying sun..it wasn't sunny the day we were there, so that didn't matter..we enjoyed lunch at a lovely restaurant near the beach, and walked along the beach for a while..there is a nifty boardwalk with a bunch of carnival rides, unfortunately none of them were open, due to the time of year..
brighton used to be a seaside getaway for the royal family..king george built the royal pavilion there, back when he was the prince regent..(his dad went crazy while on the throne, so the prince took on ruling duties while still technically a prince)..the pavilion is "interesting" architecturally.. it's built in what they thought was indian architecture..those who designed and built the pavilion had never been to india..the inside is where the prince entertained..a huge dining room, an even bigger kitchen, a music room, several rooms for lounging around..the interior decor is totally over the top, totally flash..chinese in theme in one room, gold gilt in another, etc..it's stunning..there is a free audio tour and while listening it was easy to imagine the life they led back then..since brighton is british, it's easy to find tea shops serving tea and cream and scones and all sorts of yummy stuff..YUM!!
that night i took a late evening bus back to stansted..