Amazing London: the City full of mystery

Today, I share the music of a renowned British Jazz Artist, from Essex: Jamie Cullum. The music behind London's landscape: “I'm All Over It”.

The train arrived on the perfect time. Awesome was going to be the whole following weekend. I was visiting London for the first time since I've been living in Cambridge (in absolute terms, the twelfth time indeed). Being involved in the City: its culture, its tradition, its landmarks, its nightlife (difficult to compare to Spain, though), its citizens, its buildings, streets and districts,... is always a breathtaking experience, it is nothing that vanishes once you live it.

My closest friend was going to be there, as we previously arranged. The idea was to meet each other at a neuralgic point of London and then, after a typical English dinner, trying to localize our youth hostel. Things weren't going to be that easy (peasy lemon squeezy). During the week, the weather forecast predicted extremely awful (freezing like hell) weather and, yep, they were totally right (sugar, mate!). Drops were falling incessantly and the wind was making us feeling what is to catch a cold, wandering around desperately for a heating (or something similar to it). Arriving to the district we ain't have any idea where the bloody place was, god dammit. Even a call to the receptionist wasn't that helpful, either. It actually made things worse. After hours walking in a roundabout way, (unbelievable, lads), we could finally find our destination.

The first night was great, a good experience that made us notice how different really English people spend their nightlife. They normally drink beer in the pub and also do a little “pub crawling” before going to the night club. Then, you can find some of them meandering in the corridor next of the toilet's door when you go to “powder your nose” (it is not what you think,it is an English idiom as well as euphemism, nasty-minded).

On Saturday, we had a great opportunity of visiting the city centre, specially its commercial places like Picadilly Circus and Oxford Street. A massive amount of people were invading the streets, rushing out. Some maybe looking for the best items to buy, while some others could be immersed in their professional or domestic matters. The fact that living in an advanced great city can be very stressful, depending on the person, is understandable.

The cosmopolitan nature of London was reflected in how were differences in fashion style, shape, outfit and general appearance of the pedestrians. Hypothetically, I was seeing from models and designers, businessmen and women to rock stars, musicians, painters, rapers, … Such a varied fauna.

Multicoloured streets, plenty of houses distinct in colour, shape, height, design and age; the harmonic coexistence of the old victorian London with the current financial and commercial City was showing one of the most beautiful views of it. Undoubtedly, we witnessed a urban masterpiece and also my favorite City around the Old Continent. Spring was not showing its best face, in fact, it was snowing continously. It made the fantastic postcard.

We had an exciting night in Pacha, close to Victoria Square, where the friendliness of the girl in charge of the public relationship just made us spend a pleasant time there.

On Sunday, we decided to do a tour around the huge City. Sightseeing was in the top of our preferences. Unfortunately, there was only space at the top of the bus, hardly covered, and the thermometer indicated unbearable 0 degrees celsius (not too hot). Paying attention to the guide and knowing what was happening outside the bus were difficult tasks to do taking into account that we were trembling and moving constantly. However, we could enjoy the lovely view of the Parliament's building in Westminster, the Big Ben, Harrods, the Courts of Justice, Hyde Park, Green Park, Buckingham Palace, Hard Rock Café, David Cameron's house in Downing Street, James Matthew Barrie's House in front of the sculpture of his creation, the fiction character Peter Pan, the flat where Ringo, Paul, John and George (The Beatles) were living for the first and only time in their lives, the posh and upper-class districts of Kensington and Chelsea, Knightsbride, Mayfair and Sloane Street, the London Tower, the London Eye, the Thames' bridge,... Furthermore, the intriguing dark side of the City was exposed as well: unresolved crimes, legends involving phantoms, strange suicides and serial killers such as Jack the Ripper.

Finally, although we could get inside the bus, the excessively low temperatures pushed us to stop at Saint Paul's Cathedral (marvellous monumental building dated from 1708). We couldn't get in, time was precious and short, so we split our ways and got back to our respective houses.

Many landmarks were left to see. I'll better wait for the next summer, if the weather is favourable...

A little piece of art in Cam

While crossing the old streets of Cambridge, I couldn't help turning on my Ipod and letting the renowned London band get up to their old tricks. “You can't always get what you want” (but if you try sometimes, you get what you need), the immortal Rolling Stones.

It was as cold as a witch's bosom in a brass bra and the windy weather amplified those freezing feelings. I was going to Cambridge public library to borrow some books.

Actually, there are lots of public libraries spread throughout the city. The Cambridge University Library, established in the 15^th century, is the oldest of all of them. I'd really like to go there if I'm accepted. Huge building.

British libraries are considerably better organized than most of the Spanish ones. Everything works on like clockwork and it's also very easy to find whatever you want to find. Books, newspapers, magazines, CD's with music of any type, vinyls, maps and drawings,... all at hand. Applying the library is free and you've got the option of borrowing a maximum of twelve items each time, which is awesome. Close to the entrance of the library, machines are provided to check the products you want to borrow. Just by placing them on a specific area, all together, there's no more need to worry. Huxley's biography was my choice, indeed (I'm very interested in his philosophy lately, specially in his approach to oriental thoughts and the awakening of the consciousness).

After that, I decided to have a walk downtown with one of my colleagues and take a glance at the majestic architecture and shapes of its old buildings. Narrow streets combined with intensely vivid colours, shops that offered with open arms attraction to its customers, street artists whose music was embracing the atmosphere of the place, bridges over the Cam river and, of course, the preservation of the main buildings of the historic university, the King's College Chapel, the other colleges (Trinity, St. John's, Queens...) and the crowded Market located in Market Square were creating the perfect postcard.

As we were walking through the greenery around the town center, a procession of people, all uniformed, was following a clear line to the main Chapel. I was wondering if it was Trinity College's choir. It seemed, indeed, it was.

After my friend's goodbye, I went to visit Fitzwilliams Museum. It was quite late and maybe I wouldn't have enough time to see in great detail all its antiquities and works of art, but ,at least, it could be a good opportunity to admire impressionist paintings.

On my way to the museum, I met a very interesting person who was studying a PhD at the University. She showed me some of the most remarkable landmarks to visit along the Cam and the best places to be imbibed with the people of the area.

Finally, I could see all the impressionist masterpieces at the museum: Gauguin, Renoir, Monet and Matisse specially, and I could notice how the museum was invaded by a group of ten art students who captured the essence of Fitzwilliams museum sculptures in their own notebooks. Talented, indeed.

The museum closed and I thought it could be the moment to hang out with my dutch friend as we had set out the night before, but I realised that in less than one hour dinner would be on the table, so I put it on hold for maybe another occasion.

Returning home, a good sort of feelings were overpowering me. I attempted to preserve it for the rest of the week (new experiences and adventures were awaiting)...