In my desperate struggle to save money I have had to forego most opportunities for travel over the past five months. Except for an overnight at the beach and a weekend trip back to Atlanta, I’ve barely been anywhere lately. This has been really hard as I tend to get restless and miserable if I am forced to be in one place without respite for a long time. Luckily for me there are far worse places I could be then in Arlington, and the ridiculously poor exchange rate is motivation enough to stay put.
Day trips also help. A couple of weeks ago I took a day trip up to New York City with my Dad. Broadway shows are a tradition of ours so we went up to see Spamalot and wander around for the day. I love visiting New York, although I tend to get overwhelmed by the New York-ness of it. The towering buildings, the throngs of yellow cabs and the ubiquity of ads plastered on every surface is over-stimulation to the extreme. It got me thinking about how different cities can be, even huge metropolises, and what exactly it is that attracts me to London so much. In my eyes London is the perfect cross between the manic hipness and commercialism of New York City and the dignity and history of Washington DC. Both New York and DC are amazing cities, but they have a very distinct character which you have to accept if you chose to live there. London is so vast, so diverse and varied that it can’t really be categorized as a “city for politics” or business, or fashion or what have you. London, like an enigmatic love interest, is a city I feel like I could spend my whole life in and never fully understand its character.
Which makes me all the more excited to dive in. I leave in 24 days and the proximity is both exciting and nerve racking. I have SO much to do before then, but I absolutely can not wait!
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