Oxford, London & the week ahead

If there's one problem I have with England, its that there's too much sky.

I rarely consider myself to be all that Scottish, but after I dozed off just short of the border I found I was surprisingly uncomfortable waking up and not being able to see hills anywhere. I had noted other small changes - the architecture of farmhouses & churches turns quite pointy after Edinburgh, for example, but the expansive horizon was the biggest change.

This weekend was a nice London primer, a whistle-stop tour of the markets and shops that showcased Londons character without too much tourism. Chinatown, piccadilly and the trocadero. All in all, a great intro to set up the week ahead.

Sunday was oxford - the very definition of quaint old English village, with architecture & history, courtesy of my national geographic trained host, with whom I offset the quaint day with a modern night with a giant fast food burrito & the quirkiest Odeon cinema imaginable - where a predictably standard-issue lobby gave way to a maddening labyrinth of corridors & tiny, intimate screens.

Already today I have joined the youth hostel association of the UK & navigated the tube for my first time on the way to the Tate modern.

Travelling by myself is somewhat bewildering. It's odd - I find it harder to plan a day for one than for two. Still, I'm looking forward to the week ahead.

I was at : 63-67 A200, Camberwell, Greater London SE1 3,