It was all so bittersweet.
My friend Erika met me at the doorstep of the Turnpike Lane house I had called home for a bit to get her room keys. For perspective, Erika was nice enough to have subleased her room to me for 5-6 months while she want back home to Manila for a vacation. It was comforting to have known that I could get a room in a house in London where at least one person I knew had stayed.
That was at around 11:45am on Sunday, January 28, 2018. In mere moments, my Blackberry Cab was set to pick me up and bring to Heathrow Airport for my long journey home.
My final month and change in the UK had been quite interesting.
I had welcomed the new year in the Lake District, particularly in Windermere. My trip there involved quite a bit of running, hiking, going up mountains, through wooded areas, and taking boat cruises. Amazing experience I'd do again in a heartbeat.
And hey, I got to do the whole have a beer and steak by the lake thing on January 1st.Now that was neat, that and hiking through the ruins of an old Roman fort, of course.
Then there was my long-awaited trip to Scotland. I stayed in a wee Air B & B owned by an artist/shopkeeper. The nice thing about the place was that is was super near Holyrood Park. I am so glad to have been able to run there. My trip to Scotland included lots of snow, and fun trips to the Highlands with some new friends- Roos from Holland, and Erin and Lauren from the USA. I love meeting great people while travelling. Bennetton-ish indeed: "A world with no strangers".
My final month in Britain also gave me the chance to meet with the IABC UK board a few more times, along with meeting the new MA PR cohort. Got to hang out quite a bit with Mathilde and Alexa. Great gals. Happy they are both killing it in their respective careers now.
Then there was me meeting singer Charlotte Campbell. I had first seen her at the Southbank during the Christmas time, and had seen some videos of her on Youtube. It was amazing to have met someone so talented and yet so humble. Her songs will always remind me of my happy days in the UK. This one's forever. A keeper. A true gem-in-the-desert kind of thing. And oh, did I mention that she sent me a video of her singing "Over Again" which I played at my 2019 nuptials? Yep, that's why Charlotte will always be awesome in my eyes.
Whenever I harken back to my final weekend in London, I can't help but chuckle a bit. I visited Santander twice to handle some administrative stuff re: my bank account, ended up in Southgate (of all places) for exploration, groceries, and fish and chips, met up with friends Gita and Monch for dinner at Honest Burgers in South Kent and a visit to the Natural History Museum, handled some last minute Amazon shopping stuff for my mum, ran in Alexandra Palace and marvelled at scenic views of London one final time, and ran through the Southbank all the way Paddington, before taking the train home to Turnpike Lane during my last Saturday evening.
Before writing this post, I told my very drowsy wife that I considered it so important to chronicle my time in London because my memory hasn't been the best lately, and that it would be an absolute shame for me to forget things- big and small, that made my time in the UK so unforgettable.
In so many ways, I wish I could have stayed longer. That does not speak negatively about my folks back home. Rather, it talks about just how much I enjoyed being half a world away from where I was born and raised, and yet close to my heart of hearts as I had ever been.
-M-
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