All right let's do this.

This little 6-month jaunt started in Atlanta, where all I accomplished was buying decent headphones to drown out plane noises and procuring a book I would later leave in Heathrow because it wasn't worth its weight (The Time-Traveler's Wife, by the way. Just not my thing.). The plane left right on time, which was good I honestly didn't think I could listen to the old British ladies sitting next to me delve into the gory details of their various age-related ailments without chucking aforementioned book at them. Violence averted!

On the plane I had an empty seat next to me which is always nice for sleeping and spreading out purposes, and next to that sat a Nigerian lawyer who had all kinds of stories about his noble profession and who gave me his London number in case I should run into trouble in Europe. Luckily I managed to keep my nose clean for the 2.5 hours in London; we'll see if I don't end up needing him in the next few months!

(Food note: I had lasagna for dinner. Vile. Seriously, British Air, you're not helping the food-reputation of your country any.)

So touchdown at Heathrow went off without a hitch and, somewhat bleary-eyed, I walked past customs and onto the Heathrow Express, which promised to get me to London in 15 minutes.

Futuristic, right?

One of my favorite parts of visiting new countries is the first ride through the city, where first impressions and snap judgements can be made. First thought: grunge! Seriously, I was expecting something much neater, probably because I'm used to the preternatural cleanliness of Germany. But anyone who's heard me talk about Taiwan (or anyone who's seen my room) knows, I am all about slightly grimy places. My excitement was building.

Second impression, which lasted until I got back on the plane? Hilarious! Seriously, and I say this with the utmost respect, I found everything about the section of London I was in funny, from the absurdly well-dressed people to the pigeons. This could, of course, be due to my slightly twitchy brand of tired, but I maintain that any country that has a candy called "Giant Buttons" is at the very least worth a chuckle. Giant Buttons!

Pubs!

Bathroom euphemisms!

Drifter! Seriously, as long as you say any of these candy names in a British accent, I'm almost guaranteed to laugh every time.

So I mostly just walked around from Oxford Circus to Marble Arch, taking in the red busses and black cabs and looking (so I thought) just as touristy as can be, but apparently I fit right in because not only was I asked for directions, I was solicited by a red cross volunteer and given a rose by a French guy walking down the street. No time for a proper pub lunch (sorry, mom) so I stopped into Boots and bought what sounded the Britishest to me:

It was yummy, I ate it on the train back to Heathrow, where I apparently looked just as German as can be because I was asked twice by legitimate Germans questions about the upcoming flight. Little do all these people know that such a helpful-looking girl can be so overwhelmingly oblivious to all important things! They'll learn...

Anyway, another uneventful flight, except for a holding pattern that lasted about an hour and a really pretty sunset from the plane. Vivi was there to pick me up holding a giant sign and a bouquet, it was really great to talk to her and my German wasn't half bad! We came home to Anorie and Rudi's house and ate Gebackener Camembert (of course!) and talked until I was ready to fall over. I'll let this picture I took on the way back to Heathrow speak for how I was feeling:

ugh pretend this is right side up, i'm not dealing with it

And that's really all I have to say about that! I'll update with exciting stories about getting an adaptor (!) and a phone card (!!) soon!!! So stay at the edge of your respective seats.