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Photo by nick.emmons
Photo by nick.emmons

When I landed in London after my trip to New York, I thought it was good to be home. It was the first time I felt that way about London.

(I was going to tweet this, but I didn’t want this thought to be lost.)

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Streets Travel

Thinking

Photo by joellybaby
Photo by joellybaby

This past weekend, while walking around Brick Lane, I entered a bike shop, and something I had never thought came to my mind: bikes look nice.

I like things that look nice. So the thought of buying one has been crossing my mind lately. It doesn’t mean I will ever do it though—I don’t even know if I can still ride one—but that alone is a big deal.

If anyone would like to buy me one, the one of the photo is exactly what I want 🙂

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Miscellaneous Travel

One Year Later

Photo by Image Zen
Photo by Image Zen

It’s been exactly one year since I’ve moved to London.

I’m proud to say that, after one year, I now know exactly in which carriage to get in to in order get out exactly in front of the exit.

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Travel

London vs New York – Part 2

Photo by me
Photo by me

Following my previous post, these are some of the things I didn’t like in NYC:

  1. It looks dirtier.
  2. The subway: it’s quite cheap to get around, but it’s too hot, you have to wait infinities for the next train, it looks dirty and there are almost no escalators (try changing stations with 2 or 3 bags of luggage).
  3. Arriving at JFK and getting on the subway: the signs are poor, it’s ugly, and it looks a bit deserted – I was expecting something very welcoming and grand, and all I got was a boring subway station, with a couple of people waiting around—I had doubts I was in NYC at first. London does it better.
  4. People don’t read on the subway: this is not a bad thing, but it’s one of the things that I like in London, and you don’t see it happening in NYC.
  5. Tipping: I don’t get the concept of compulsory tipping. Just add the gratuity to the bill, because tipping a bad service is just plain wrong.
  6. You’re all alone: you’re in a tiny island with millions of people around you, and you feel like it’s just you, the others don’t matter to you and you don’t matter to them. I suppose because it feels bigger than London, that sensation is more overwhelming in NYC.
  7. Baseball: loved having gone to a game, loved to watch how it all works, but it’s just not my game.
  8. The weather: I like it cold, and don’t love hot Summers. When I was in New York it rained a bit, but it was quite humid and hot. Not for me.
  9. It’s not pretty. There are a lot of amazing buildings, but it’s not beautiful.
  10. Did I mention tipping?

The verdict?

I liked New York.

Confession: it wasn’t what I expected. My expectations were (too) high and I was a bit disappointed: New York felt like an assortment of skyscrapers with millions of people living in it.

Truth: I could have experienced the city more, and I plan on going back and do a less touristy visit, and I still want to go there for Christmas someday, but New York dropped many positions in my list of future holidays.

I was afraid I was going to immediately want to move there and love London a bit less, but I ended up coming back to (still) my favourite city in the world: beautiful London.

We can’t all like the same things, right?

Next stop: Paris!

Categories
Travel

London vs New York – Part 1

Photo by me
Photo by me

I’ve just recently came back from my first visit to the USA. The city we picked out was, obviously, New York City. We stayed with a friend, in Gramercy, Manhattan.

Some things that I really liked in New York:

  1. People are seriously nice: I think it was the first thing I noticed when I got to Manhattan. Nobody pushed me to get into the subway (like they do in London), and people in the stores, restaurants and cafés were all very nice. Compared to NYC, London is a grumpy old city.
  2. No matter what time it is, the streets are always busy, which can make you feel a bit safer.
  3. The subway is cheap: I paid $20 dollars for a 7-day pass, that allowed me to travel within the whole network. Try getting that in London (a 3 day Travelcard from zone 1-2 is £18.4).
  4. Central Park: I loved its immensity and how it really feels like the heart and soul of the city.
  5. Going to the movies: I loved the enthusiasm of the audience and that nobody was having conversations around me (luck?). I watched Star Trek and The Hangover.
  6. Shopping: got some pretty sweet deals on popular brands. It’s very easy to go crazy, especially with bargains. There’s a lot of variety in London too, but not as cheap.
  7. You do get everything in just a tiny little island.
  8. The buildings: are amazing.
  9. 30 Rockefeller Plaza: probably my favourite building to look at. I guess I just watch too many NBC shows.
  10. Times Square: it’s so much bigger than what I had imagined. You honestly have a sense of being in the centre of the world.

Tomorrow: the other list, and the verdict.

Categories
Streets Travel

Owning a car

Photo by Kind of blue
Photo by Kind of blue

A lot of Londoners don’t own a car. I own a car in Portugal, but when I’m here I don’t feel the need for one (plus all the headaches and bills it brings).

I would say it’s because you can go almost anywhere easily by public transport (and sometimes faster). I find public transport is quite reliable and frequent (most of the times), as opposed to Portugal.

I like the freedom of not having a car (even if I still have to pay my car’s insurance every year…).

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Streets Travel

Cycling

Photo by Gaetan Lee
Photo by Gaetan Lee

A lot of people cycle to work here in London. I would say about 60 to 70% of the people I know do, but I guess that’s not the correct percentage for the whole of London’s population.

I’m still not convinced to do it myself, for various reasons: even though I’m getting used to it, traffic is on the wrong side of the road; I would have to carry the bike around; I would have to buy a bike (I waste a lot of time online when I have to buy something); I’m afraid of buses; I don’t mind the Tube (most of the times).

Maybe one day…

Categories
Streets Travel

In a hurry

Photo by Andy Houghton
Photo by Andy Houghton

“When I first came to London, I wasn’t in a hurry. I had nowhere to be at any particular time. But I saw how everybody seemed to be late for something, so I just started running too, even though I didn’t have to.”

A friend of mine told me this. I wonder if we’re all just copying each other.

Categories
Travel

Addison Lee

Photo by fabbriciuse
Photo by fabbriciuse

I tend to book very early flights to Faro, which means I have to be up at 4am and go to Liverpool Street or King’s Cross to get the train to the airport. At that time, the buses are infrequent and it’s not pleasant to wonder through the streets alone, so I usually take a cab.

Someone that goes to bed at 1am and has to wake up at 4am is usually grumpy, sleepy and not thinking straight.

I like how AddissonLee let’s me know when the car is on it’s way, and how they are always 5 minutes early. A service well done, that is all I need.

Categories
Travel

Traveling

Photo by gSquare
Photo by gSquare

I’d say people here travel more (to other countries). Why not? Tickets are so much cheaper than compared to, for example, Portugal.

A return flight to New York departing on the same day is 50% cheaper if you leave from London than if you leave from Lisbon. A flight to Vienna in August costs £20. You can be in Paris in 2.5 hours by train. Brussels in 2.

I’m surprised that there is so many people in the city during the weekends.