6/24 Camden Market

Today I met up with Gemma and Dan and we headed over to Camden Market which is by the Chalk Farm tube stop, close to where they live. They are moving into a new apartment soon so it was great because I could shop vicariously through them! We picked up cool lamps and they showed me an awesome leather couch they were having delivered. They told me it could be my bed for when I come back and visit! We walked through the thrift stores and found a cool gallery that had photos signed by Buzz Aldridge from when he landed on the moon. Very cool. We walked along the water and I got to see the floating Chinese restaurant in action, which was funny to watch. I’m bummed because I forgot my camera though! Gemma took me to another authentic pub and my dad called while we were there having lunch so they got to chat for a bit which was nice because I know it made him feel better to talk to her and have her tell him I’m ok. Ohh Dad, always worrying about me!

6/23 Portobello Road & Fabric

Rachel, Alicia and I embarked on Portobello Road today, and it was SO MUCH FUN! We looked at all the antiques especially jewelry, ‘oohing and aahing’ because we knew we couldn’t afford them so it was ok to try everything on. I found an olive stand which is my idea of heaven, and had some olives stuffed with feta for lunch. I wound up getting a few things there, like a jazz CD collection for my parents which looked really eclectic so I think they will love it. I got a bag for myself that was really colorful so I know I made the girls proud. I also got this really funky stainless steel ring that I absolutely love and it was cheap so I don’t feel bad about it at all. We also ate fresh fruit from venders on the street and found a crepe place and the three of us shared a Nutella and banana crepe on the sidewalk. I think the girls will agree that crepe was a highlight of the day. The atmosphere at the market was cheery and everyone seemed to be in a good mood, I absolutely loved it there.

At night we all got dressed up because we had been waiting to go to Fabric forever. My roommate studied abroad in London last winter and I received a three page email telling me about this club. Eric looked over the DJ set for the night and Goldie who is supposed to be incredible was going on at 3 so we had to be there for him. I usually trust Eric’s taste when it comes to house music so I couldn’t wait. We went over to the other flats because they were on the way to the club and then we headed over.

Oh my god. This place was ridiculous. There were three different rooms, some with hardcore drum and base others with American hip hop. The music was sound loud I thought I was going to die…seriously. I thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest. A lot of our friends left early because it was just getting to be too much, but somehow Rosie, Alicia, Eric, Martin and I made it until Goldie came on and then I had to go home. It was probably the most intense place I have ever been to and ever will go. I am defiantly glad we went because club like Fabric are a huge part of the music scene in London.

6/22 Richard Kindersley

So I am finally feeling better which is good because this weekend we are going to Fabric, which is supposed to be one of the premier clubs in London. Oh boy. Anyway, today we visited Richard Kindersley at his studio. He is a stone carver and makes beautiful stones for memorial purposes, many displaying inspirational quotes. This work demands that you measure twice and cut once, so to speak. If you mess up, you can lose up to weeks of worth. They take time to lay out the typography, paying special attention to any ligatures they can include. Actually carving the stone is a very slow process, and we saw a woman who worked for him chipping away rhythmically the whole time we were there. It was actually very relaxing to watch.

6/20-21 Wendy, John Brown Publishing, Dr. Kohn my HERO & Wicked!

Today we met writer and overall creative person Wendy Scott in Hoxton Square. I love Wendy. She had crazy red hair, papers flying everywhere, and was just all over the place. But I love her because he was so excited about everything. She had passion pouring out of her. She wanted to do a writing workshop with us but then decided she wanted to do about 10 other things and the whole hour just become a discussion about writing and the creative things she had done with it. She told us that in all of her work she has a thread running through that ties everything together. She likes to use keywords that draw you in and create an image. Jill and I loved Wendy so much we skipped Sehmi (sorry Sehmi) and stayed for Wendy’s second talk, and boy am I glad we did. This homeless looking man came and sat down in our group (right next to me) and asked if he could join. Wendy was courteous and obliged. He started interrupting her and yelling at us telling us he was a gangster. That he was Charlie Kray and was famous and everyone knew him. This went on for about half an hour until he asked Wendy if she could get him a job and she gave him the phone number for the British Embassy. The funny part is that after he left she told us he was actually the son of one of the famous Kray brothers, and that he really was Charlie Kray because she had seen photos of him before. Crazy!

The next day we went to John Brown Publishing, which is a custom publishing house. We learned about entry points in a magazine, and attracting people who will read different lengths of articles. They also designed some beautiful books for children, one called “Pick me Up” that I know my niece would love if I ever get my hands on it. Unfortunately I was coughing the whole time so I missed a lot of what he said, but I definitely could see there is a lot of creative work to be done working for a place like that.

I decided that I wasn’t getting any better and that the free clinic was just a waste of time, so I found a doctor all the way out by the Ealing Broadway tube stop and headed over there on the tube. I had no idea I was headed to the country, but once I stepped off the train I knew it was time for me to take my first taxi because there was no way I would find this place. Dr. Kohn was the nicest doctor EVER and he completely took care of me! One inhaler and pack of antibiotics later I was good to go!

I rushed home so I could make it in time to see Wicked with my friends. We had wonderful seats, and although it was my second time seeing the play I was blown away. The costumes, the set and especially the music are all out of this world. I snuck a quick picture of the set before they told us no cameras; I wish I could have gotten a playbill to take home although I don’t think that is the custom in London the way it is at home.

6/19 Whitehouse

So I woke up unable to move this morning and my darling flat mates would not let me leave to go to the first meeting. I guess it’s time I come to terms with the fact that I am really sick. Boo. I headed to the free clinic in Noho or wherever I was and sat for almost four hours until a nurse finally saw me. She made me cough a few times and told me I should put my head over a pot of hot water and breathe in the steam. And she also said she wasn’t going to give me any antibiotics. Wow.

Feeling slightly better I made my way over to the afternoon visit at Whitehouse, where John Smith talked to us. He said the bread and butter of his company is editing commercials, but he is known for his work editing Leaving Las Vegas and Sliding Doors. He showed us a bunch of different clips that he had edited and the different versions he came up with from the footage. He told us that with al the new technology today, there are often too many versions to choose from; we are constantly changing our minds. When the process was slower the work was more intentional. I like doing things by hand and it does slow me down but I like this feeling, so I completely understood where he was coming from. I coughed through the whole meeting, which was pretty embarrassing but oh well, apparently I just need to put my head over a pot and I will be cured!

6/18 Serpentine Gallery & RCA Show

Today we went to the Serpentine Gallery which had an exhibition based on light and shadow. We then headed to the Princess Diana Memorial which was very peaceful and beautiful. The big visit of that day thought was the Royal College of Art Great Exhibition. The minute I walked in I was drawn to the beautiful pottery on display, because it was smooth, intricate and some pieces had really interesting functions. There were illustrations that were so simple and beautiful and many were made into books with stories that went with them. My favorite was called “Drawing You” because it was edgy and beautiful and sad and true. A lot of the work applied to things we do with the environment; biotechnology was a hot topic this year. There was fashion, photography, jewelry, video, glass blowing, architectural design, furniture, you name it! I didn’t want to leave, I was so inspired. Seeing the show made me realize how many creative people are out there, and that what I want to do really as no limitations. By the time I got home I had collected well over 100 business cards and mementos of the student’s work, just so I could remember how I felt being there at that moment because it was unreal.

My cold has gotten progressively worse, but because I cancelled dinner on Gemma the night before I sucked it up and took the tube up to meet her and her boyfriend Dan for dinner. She made me a delicious home cooked meal which was so wonderful and definitely made me feel better. I don’t think I realized how hungry I was until I had eaten everything on my plate. Then they took me to a local bar in their neighborhood; the kind you need to walk through 7 unidentified streets and alley ways to get to. Once we got there I saw it was packed, and that we were at a truly authentic London pub! Dan is a musician and writes for a website so he was really interesting to talk to, and as always it was so nice to catch up with Gemma. I rode the tube back feeling sicker than ever but feeling very free and independent. I love this city!

6/17 Sunday at Southbank

So I don’t regret going to Bath at all because it was great, but it definitely made me sicker than I already was. Today I was supposed to go to Leeds castle but I just couldn’t do it because I was too sick. Rosie was really excited to wake up and find me still there, and I felt well enough to head down to Southbank to check out some galleries so we woke up Martin and headed down there. We went to the Hayward gallery which was absolutely AMAZING. Antony Gormley’s “Blind Light” exhibition was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. The main attraction was this huge glass room filled with dry ice that made the room one big cloud. You could walk inside the room, but you would bump into people because you couldn’t see more than a foot in front of you. It was also interesting to look in from the outside and see people walking along the walls. You just have no sense of where your body is in relation to anything else, it is a very unique experience. Rosie literally held my hand the whole time because she was too scared to walk on her own! I also liked capacitor and allotment, and especially event horizon where he placed iron-life size casts of himself all over the tops of buildings in the city…check out the website to get a better idea of what I mean!

http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/gormley/

We left the gallery and walked along Southbank to find that there was a huge festivals going on. It was to raise money for refugees worldwide. We checked out some of the stands, found a huge book sale, and then the best thing ever happened. We found a Jamaican BBQ pit! It was horrible because I was so sick that I couldn’t really taste my food, but deep down I knew I was eating the best thing I had ever tasted. BBQ chicken, fresh corn, and to top it off at the end I got a whole coconut to myself! I think today was one of the best days I have had here so far because it was all about exploring and just seeing what happens.

(These pictures are of Antony Gormley’s Event Horizon, Martin in Blind Light, the Jamaican BBQ pit, and of course my delicious coconut.)