Cardiff/London

Just departed Kings Cross Station, platform 9 ¾, (just kidding!) it was actually platform 5…on my way to Leeds and happy to be leaving London!

My journey to Cardiff was fairly uneventful. I arrived and just after checking into the hostel was when the rain came pouring down! I departed for the venue, Clwb Ifor Bach, with my umbrella in hand (I don’t go anywhere without it actually), and began walking towards Cardiff Castle. This venue was also tucked away, literally in an alley, but fortunately the first person I asked knew where it was! Anyway, the walk was very rainy and windy; so much so that my umbrella flipped upwards and was no longer very useful! I tried flipping it back the other way and one of the supports broke, so my first umbrella is done for! I only got to use it for a week! I’ll have to find another one; it’s not like there’s a shortage around here!

The concert in Cardiff was wonderful. It’ll be hard to top. Jonah played almost everything I could’ve ever wanted to here, including my personal favorite song, “Halo,” after I requested it! We spoke after his set for quite some time! Recounting the first time we met in Lawrence, KS at the Bottleneck nearly six years ago. He’s always so humble and very sweet. We hugged a lot and I told him I’d be tagging along for the rest of the tour. He said to let him know if there’s anything I’d especially like to hear! It was a great night…

I arrived in London yesterday, made my way to “The Borough,” the part of town where my hostel was located, with no problems. I began walking from the underground station towards the hostel and a complete stranger, a man from Lebanon, began chatting me up, walking alongside me. He continued to walk with me until I ducked into the hostel, all the way telling me that we should hang out. I politely told him I’d only be in London for the night; however, this did not seem to matter to him…

So I rid myself of the strange man, checked into the hostel and was told my room was actually at their other building just down the road. So I retrieved my key and walked back down the street, keeping my eyes open for the strange guy. I make my way up to my room, which was over the top of a pub. Now let me just say that this room is half the size of my bedroom at home and there were three bunk beds crammed into this space….and I was assigned to the top bunk! Ugh! This ought to be fun…I’ve detailed below a quick post on hostel life (two posts at once, exciting I know!)...

Anyway, after dropping my things off in the closet that was my room for the night, I headed off for the Tate Modern museum, via the Borough Market. The market was similar to the City Market or the Soulard Market; but on a much larger scale! They had all sorts of vendors and food and coffees, along with the regular meats and fruits and veggies. I got a snack and took my time perusing the market. Then I walked along the River Thames to the Tate Modern. The museum is HUGE! It was an old electric/power plant, which they’ve converted into this incredible museum filled with modern art; from the likes of Jackson Pollock, Andy Warhol, Claus Oldenburg, etc.

Upon leaving the museum, I made my way north across the river and up to the concert venue, The Spitz. Once again, kind of like in Newcastle, the venue was rather difficult to find. The problem with the UK is that the streets are rarely labeled with signs. I don’t know how people find anything really, unless they have an extremely detailed map! So after walking for a very long time, a nice concierge pointed me in the right direction.

Upon arriving to the venue…I found that the show was sold out. All that wandering for nothing! A total bust! So I did what the rest of the tourists do and went to Picadilly Circus (it resembles Times Square). I wandered around awhile and shopped, then headed back to the closet for the night…London wasn’t a total bust, but it wasn’t all that successful either!

I think I’ve rambled on long enough now! So as I said, I’m happy to be leaving London. I enjoyed the quieter hustle of Newcastle and Cardiff. I’m looking forward to the next four or five days of Jonah and Great Britain!