Heathrow & London

Dear friends,

I'm in Heathrow Airport in London right now, so I thought I'd throw up an update while I had access to the Internet. I had to pay for it, so I'm certainly going to use it. It's nice to know that Europeans can be capitalists, too. The more I hear the British speaking, I seem to be picking up an affected accent. What I've seen of London, I've mostly liked. Although the people are a little rude. But that's true of any urban center. And Little Rock, too.

The first thing I learned on my trip across the Pond was that if you plan on travelling intercontinentally then you'd better save the extra money to upgrade to business class. They had us packed into the back of that 747-400 like a can of sardines and despite the friendly reminders provided during our in-flight entertainment that it was -70 degrees outside at 33,000 feet, it was about +90 degrees in the plane. The staff was friendly though and I'd definitely fly British Airways again. Despite all the warnings about airline food (and British airline food on top of that) it was actually really good. Also, another good piece of news is that I've been taking my malaria pills for 3 days now and I haven't had any serious reactions. Hopefully I can keep that up. We shall see.

While in London, I decided to take advantage of my layover. So after waiting an hour in line at immigration, they stamped my passport and sent me on my way. My laptop bag is packed to the max and it must weigh like 30 pounds. Foolishly, I decided to take it with me instead of stick it in a locker in case I needed anything. Lugging 30 pounds around London is not fun! My shoulder has literally been rubbed raw by the strap. At any rate, the first thing I went to see was Shoghi Effendi's grave, which is on the other side of London. The walk would have been pleasant except for the bag and the fact that I had to cross one of those roundabout things. Londoners have no respect for pedestrians! I've been to most major cities in the U.S. and sure people will honk and curse you out but they at least stop and let you go. But not here. I almost got hit three different times - like seriously very close - while crossing in a designated crosswalk. The speed limit was supposed to be 35 mph, but those people were not going 35 mph.

When I got to the cemetery where the Guardian was buried, I found out it was a big circle with the entrance on the other side. Apparently they like circles in the United Kingdom. At first I thought I was in the wrong place because the graveyard was really dilapidated. The headstones were cracked, destroyed, fallen over, over grown with vines and trees. It was just really shocking that they could let it get in such a state. Yet at the entrance there's a sign explaining that they did it on purpose to preserve the "atmosphere" in the cemetery. I must admit that the British have an unusual idea about the atmosphere of a cemetery. What with all the ravens (and there were a lot), I half expected Edgar Allen Poe to jump out from behind a bush or something. But the Baha'i section of the cemetery was, of course, well-maintained and beautiful. So, I prayed at the Guardian's grave, took some pictures, and then began my hike back to the tube station (the subway station).

On the way back to the tube station, two interesting things happened. First, I had to cross the roundabout again to get something to drink from a petrol station. While paying for my drink, the woman ringing me up had convinced herself that I had put some petrol in my non-existent car and that I was trying to get out of paying for it. She finally seemed to get the drift that I was an American and even if I did have a car, I couldn't even drive it (not on the wrong side of the road! It's unnatural.). Second, I stopped by some little row houses to take a picture of this nice little British street when some woman yells out of her window at me, "Hey, get the bloody hell away from my lawn!". I was on the sidewalk! I'm beginning to think that maybe she realized I was a tourist, and she wanted to have a little fun with me.

From the tube station, I went to Trafalgar Square, some other place I can't remember, Picadilly Circus, and the Parliament Building (with Big Ben). Unfortunately, all I had time to do was pop out of the tube station, snap a picture, and then hop back on. By the time I was at the Parliament Building it was snowing! I didn't realize it was cold enough for it. I probably should have enjoyed it while I could since I don't know when I'll see snow again (or cold weather) but I needed to get back to the airport to drag myself through immigration.

So, I've been running around London with my thirty pound bag on about 2 hours of sleep. I couldn't get comfortable enough on the plane to really do anything more than rest. The second I got a little comfortable, the girl sitting next to me would shift and fling half her body up against me. I guess she was cold-blooded or used to sleeping next to someone or something. I think the flight to Dar will be a little different. On the tube ride back to the airport, I was falling asleep so I imagine I'll just sleep from exhaustion. Not to mention there can't be nearly as many people going to Dar as there were from NYC to London.

Unfortunately I don't have any photos uploaded just yet, but I'll post them when I do! I wanted to put up a little update while I could since I'm not sure when I'll get the chance when I get to Tanzania.

Warmest,
Bryan