HOW TO HAVE FUN IN LONDON

as previously mentioned, will and i had completed all work-related obligations by the weekend and had saturday free; sunday would act as our travel day. we were pretty unfamiliar with london -- damn americans, that we are -- so we did what any nerds in our situation might: some research on the internet. our searches seemed to point us towards camden town.

after stepping out of the tube station, it was clear that we had headed to the right spot. the streets were filled with people, lined with cool music/clothing shops and a bunch of restaurants. it looked like the haight, but, you know... in london. we made our way into a giant open-air marketplace looking like anything but a normal, run-of-the-mill flea market. the goods available for purchase were high-quality and highly fashionionable. though the crowds should've let us onto as much... the london kids are hip, man. we were low on cash and thus decided to split pretty quickly.

further down the streets we spotted a the little falafel stand... two pounds for a sandwich. it was worth it. they know how to apply hot sauce in england, i'll tell you what. hot! after hitting a few more shops and walking for a bit longer, we headed back to the hotel for a break before heading out on a quest for dinner. our destination: piccadilly circus.

before settling on an indian restaurant, (which turned out to be excellent) we wandered the streets for about an hour. after our meal, we just couldn't stop the adventure, and thus decided to wander around the city. what i started to realize is that i recognized much of our surroundings. i'll reiterate now that i've never been to london before. and yet, streets were looking so familiar. i realized that it was because i'd driven around them time and time again in the project gotham racing games. so when will pointed us towards trafalgar square, it was as if i'd already been there before. then i realized that really enjoyed walking around and checking out tourist attractions at night. you always see photos of them taken during the day...

probably the most incredible experience happen a few moments later when we rounded a street corner and saw big ben directly in front of us. we didn't know where we were so it was pretty cool to have it sneak up on us like that. it's quite a wonderous sight in the evening. just across the bank of the nearby river, we entered some building that had a namco arcade. after kicking it there for a few, we walked back towards home.

so how do you have fun in london? well, i'd aim for a landmark or destination of interest. then after you've gotten your fill there, just wander around for a bit. you'll find something to look at, for sure. here's a brief look at the night's adventures:

Posted by ryan at September 6, 2004 12:29 PM