"Old" London and "New" London

Just left the bank after hours of waiting and paper work, I officially am a Bank of America customer now! Why, you ask? Well, Bank of America charges no ATM fees when using Barclay's Bank in the UK. Barclay's is a huge bank and it is on every street corner so I feel great knowing I'll have no crazy fees for withdrawals!
WOW that is boooringgg.



So as I mumble on about bank fees and other boring topics, I'll continue my list of "Can't Waits"...

1. Returning to South Ken!
a) watching the little children in red or blue uniforms (matching hat included, of course) walk to school with mothers and nannies

"Our Booth": Eliz & I enjoying Da Mario's with friends

b) two words can describe the thing I miss the most: DA. MARIO'S....Gnocchi with 'special sauce', Caprese Salad, Garlic Bread, and a bottle of Montepluciano to top it all off! I dream about this meal, maybe because I enjoyed it about three times a week while abroad my Junior year! My best friend Elizabeth (from here on out called: Eliz) ate at Da Mario's more than a few times a week. Yes, we had our favorite waiters and even more, we had 'our' booth. At one point, other customers were nicely asked to move so the 'favorite American girls' could have our booth.

While on the subject of 'past London' or London: Round One as I like to call it.. I beginning to recognize that my London that I knew my Junior year may nooot be exactly the same as it was when I left it in December 2010. First of all, my sweet friend Eliz will not be there to enjoy every waking (and sleeping) moment with me. She now lives in California and will be a famous actress in no time! Yes, I will met new friends and I will have new restaurants and new pubs all at my finger tips... but I struggle with exactly how much of my 'old London' I should cling to. I know the familiar places will bring a smile to my face and a strong comfort to my fluttering heart and I will be forever grateful for those places, not for their physical presence but their memories. The laughter, the meals, the tears, the friends and "more than friends" made, the happiness and the belonging that I felt so greatly in a place that could not be any more different from my home in NC. These places will bring me reassurance as I return to South Kensington but I am thrilled to find more places to see, eat, drink, socialize, read, learn, and bond with my city, my London. I have a great advantage to those who have never been to a city before; this August will be my fifth trip to London! London will be fresh and exciting as it has been every trip before but this time I will have not only the past experiences to throw me directly back into the London I love so dearly, but also the security of a whole year to search and find and love and learn and grow.

Also... there is the fabulous event going on in London in just a few days, you may have heard of it? THE OLYMPICS. The Summer Olympics 2012 will take place in Stratford, which if you were curious is actually across the street from the children's museum where I used to work as an Educational Intern! What a marvelous thing it was to see the very beginnings of the London Olympics Site way back in 2010. London will be (and has been!) rocked by this momentous occasion and I know London will put on an amazing show for the rest of the world to sit back, relax, and enjoy. I will not be in London for the Olympics, which I am not quite sad about. I'm thoroughly excited to watch the events in the comfort of my own home with my friends and family.. I believe it will be the most wonderful way to be excited and thrilled (even more than I already am) for my move to South Kensington on August 27.
So to quote Morgan Freedman and plagiarize Visa, Go World!

Cheers y'all, Lis

Thanks to DailyMail.CO.UK for the picture.