Friends

Our time in London flew by. Whether it was due to having a great group to hang out with or the fact that we spent a good amount of our time recuperating its safe to say that we had a fantastic time exploring the city and its bars.

I suppose I should answer the question of "Why the hell would you go to London before traveling around South America?" I wish I could say that it was about enjoying the scenic route (Quite scenic, a 4781 mile trip that only got us 3 miles closer to our final destination) but it was actually entirely motivated by cash. Little known fact: you can get a direct flight from Seattle to London for $200 but be warned, they won't give you so much as a peanut on the entire plane ride.

We originally planned to only stay in London for a couple of hours but after one of our flights got shifted we decided to spend 4 days exploring the city and meeting up with some of Pat's friends from his days of studying abroad in England. We were graciously hosted by his mate Conrad in his spectacular home, which, let me tell you, was one of the most beautiful places I have ever stayed in. Built in the 1790's in the Georgian style, this place felt like a museum of art and British imperialism. Countless pieces of artwork were scattered about the house, the highlight of which being two six-foot tall mounted elephant tusks in the living room. Quite an imposing sight to say the least. We did eventually settle in and by the end of our stay we felt quite at home in the menagerie. 

On Friday we were treated to some rare London sun and spent the day touring the museum scene, finding out that Chihuly is also appreciated on this side of the Atlantic.

Saturday took away the sunshine and replaced it with cold and snow. 

Luckily it was St. Patty's day so we had nothing on the agenda except for drinking. After downing a healthy number of pints and learning and subsequently forgetting the rules of Rugby, Pat and I were educated on Ireland's most famous pintman. Paddy Losty, a man known to down 30 plus pints in a single day, has become a sort of mascot for this whole spiritual adventure.

“...pintmen exude a sort of spiritual aura when in union with their pint. An ethereal look can be seen in their eyes as they are transported beyond spatial and temporal bounds.”

— Kevin C. Kearns, Dublin Pub Life and Lore

Chronic alcoholism aside, if you are going to do something you best to do it well. There is a notion of Quality in this man which Pat and I hope to emulate on this journey.

St. Patty's day was capped off by a night at Fabric which really is a legendary London club. Or maybe it just stood out due the fact that one member of our party spent over £200 on tequila. Regardless if you are ever in London and are looking for a spot to hang out until 6 AM it is absolutely worth the wait.

After nights like that you don't tend to have particularly interesting next days. We spent most of it on the couch recovering, reminiscing, and preparing for the next leg of our trip, Buenos Aires. I would be remiss if I didn't give a huge shoutout to Conrad for being such a gracious host. I can't think of a better way to start of the trip than hanging out with you and the rest of your crew; hope we can catch you on the way back!

Look out for the next post from Buenos Aires!

-Joseph