Cuervo – A friend of mine… February 7, 2007

Yes, just like the song, Cuervo is a friend of mine. Actually, I know the singer and the song writer. A colleague of mine is in an indie band called Cuervo. They played at Open Mic night which is every Wed. at the Bullet Bar. The bar is located in Camden town which was a new adventure for me. Lots of tattoo parlors and massage places…

Besides the fact that the management at Bullet Bar was terrible, the entertainment for the night was amazing. The bands all gathered around 7:30 to sign up for their time slots. They were each allowed 2 songs with two or three featured artists playing randomly throughout the night. I arrived just before 8 and met up with the friends of my coworker who was to be performing as the 8th of 10 bands. This meant we had a while so we make ourselves comfortable in the back of the bar. I mingled with a few of the other bands who all seemed to be from Australia. Let me tell you how I LOVE the Aussies and their accent. Ha!

As the night went on and we listened to the bands, we realized we passed slot number 8 without my coworker performing. Come to find out, the MC had some friend who wanted to play so he let them go on in front of the bands who had signed up. This is why the place is so sketchy. My colleague went on around 11:20 and was amazing. She sang two songs, one which was for her mother who passed away a year or so ago. It was an awesome night. I had to hit the road immediately after as the tube stopped running at midnight. I made it to the station in time but ended up catching the wrong train and made my way all around London. I finally made it home just after 12:30 and was in bed by 1. Whew, what a night. All in all, it was a great night and I met a ton of great people so it was a plus in my tourist manual

Bullet Bar
Cuervo

Don’t Drink The Water February 4, 2007

Not only is it already February (and just a few days away from the big birthday), it is already the beginning of my fourth week here in the wonderful city of London. This weekend, my friends Olivia and Greg and I planned on venturing outside of the city to Stonehenge, Bath and Windsor. Yes, we knew it was adventurous but hey, we had all weekend.

So the weekend kicks off for me bright and early on Saturday morning as I had a 9 AM hair apt. As I should have expected, it ran over by an hour so I was late meeting up with Olivia and Greg. They had rented a car for the weekend and were waiting at my place when I got home. We hit the road around noon and by road I mean traffic. After a good hour of sitting in traffic, we realized we weren’t even close to being near the city limits and would have to scrap the travel plans until Sunday and go for plan B. We drove to a near by town called Richmond which is located right along the river. We found a wonderful little German eatery where we ordered sausage, pretzels and beer. Not thinking about what we were asking for, Olivia and I order beer steins. It took us about three hours and five trips to the bathroom to get through them. From there, we walked the river front and then headed back into the city for a little Italian dinner. While it seemed a like an incredibly long day, I was actually home and in bed by 9 PM.

Like Sunday, I was up bright and early and ready to go by 10. This time we agreed that I would take the tube out of town so they didn’t have to drive in to the London traffic. The train took a little longer than expected but we were on the road by 11 so that was good. First stop, Stonehenge. The drive out of the city was incredibly foggy. There were times when you could barely see the cars in front of us. Then, as if someone hit a switch, the air cleared once we left the city limits, the sun came out and it was a gorgeous day. The rolling hillside along the drive was so beautiful. Then, out of nowhere, is Stonehenge. It was just as I imagined. You drive over a little hill and there it is, standing right in front of you, right off the side of the main road. I had heard from many people that it would be a little underwhelming and I can agree, it was, but I did have a feeling of awe in thinking of how much mystery is held around this circle of rocks.

From there, we hit the roads again and made our way to the city of Bath. This drive was just as remarkable as the last. We drove through a ton of small towns and were tempted to stop at a few pubs. Since we didn’t know what time the tours stopped, we decided to head on into the city. I can’t even begin to describe how striking the view was as we drove in to town. The city is built in a small valley and the houses go up and down all the hill sides. Not knowing where we were going, we drive around the city for a while and then found a parking garage near a shopping center. We figured this had to be close to the Roman Baths as this was were all the tourists looked to be hanging around. We were right and found the entrance to the Baths just around the corner. Seeing as how we had three hours until the Baths closed, we decided to take a break and grab some lunch. We hit a little pub called the Raven and had a delicious lunch. Olivia and I got some bangers. I went for the chips and she got the mash. Greg went for a pie which also looked great. Once our stomachs were satisfied, we headed back towards the Baths. We found a Sally Beauty Supply on the way and had to make a pit stop. How funny, I am the only person I know who would travel around the world to an ancient city and end up buying hair care products. Now on to the Baths, the history of the Baths was presented really well. For those who don’t know, the Baths were created by the only natural spring in the country. At the end, you are allowed to test the spring water for 50p ($1). I knew it wasn’t going to taste like Evian but I didn’t expect the mouth full of copper that I got. It was warm, gross and left a terrible taste in the mouth which required three pieces of gum to drown. We left the Baths and walked a little more of the city and then had to head home to return the rental car. I am sure the view was just as beautiful as it was on the way out but the sun goes down so early it was a dark drive back to the city. This is where my day ends and I leave you with a few entertaining shots.

The Big Steins
Welcome To Stonehenge
Stones 1
Stones 2
Tank Crossing
Roman Bath 1
Minerva Head
Roman Bath 2
Roman Bath 3
Nasty Water
Olivia and Brandi