Happy Christmas!

Hi all!

I'm still working on expressing Morocco in the right way because it was just fantastic and unlike any place I've been before (despite being literally a five-hour trip).

So, instead, I'll flash forward to now - London! We arrived on the 23rd as the only people who were actually intending on spending Christmas in England. Fortunately, it seems like all of my friends who had been massively delayed or stranded by these recent European storms have made it safely home with their families, so I'm thankful for that (Oh, wait. Wrong holiday.) Despite all the problems from earlier in the week, our flight was only delayed by 2 hours, and it arrived safely

Anyways, I'm officially out of Spain. My whole theory about the benefits of leaving Salamanca first, then Spain as a whole may have been in error. Having gotten to see new parts of the country just makes me realize how much I really have enjoyed living in Spain for the past three-and-a-half months. And of course, I spent my last precious hours in Spain españar-ing: eating tapas at an airport restaurant literally dedicated to wine and jamon!

Obscure fact: Spain won the World Cup. In case you didn't know, it's also
 written on the sides of their planes.

So, we arrived in London, loaded down with my suitcases, but managed to survive riding the crowded London Underground trains without hurting anyone/myself. Our hotel is really nice, and it's in a great area - right near Tottenham Court Road and Shaftsbury Avenue (Harry Potter, anyone?). It's perfect for walking to a bunch of spots, such as Oxford Street and Picadilly Circus, which was the first thing we did. And of course, all the Christmas lights and last-minute shoppers were out in full force. Though I wasn't about to buy anything (thank you, terrible exchange rate and already-full suitcases), it was a nice re-introduction to London, which I had visited almost 4 years ago with Mom.

Action shot!

I was very excited to get Indian food for dinner (spicy food is virtually non-existent in Spain, particularly in smaller-town Salamanca. So is ethnic diversity, for that matter.), and just walk around town, despite the cold weather. It was an interesting experience walking down the streets and hearing English voices! Weird. But it was really entertaining - I don't think I'll ever get tired of English accents.

Other than feeling the subconscious obligation to speak in Spanish to every waiter, receptionist, and cashier, I haven't felt much difficulty in adjusting to leaving Spain. However, I think the biggest transition has been not in the language that's being spoken, but in what they're saying. See, in Spain, phrases like "please," "thank you," "you're welcome," and "excuse me" are used in relative moderation. It's not considered rude; that's just how it is. Therefore, if you're walking down the street, and someone bumps into you slightly, don't expect acknowledgement. At first, it's kind of irritating, but you adjust and realize that an accidental tap doesn't necessarily merit, "Oh, sorry, please, excuse me." So, when I arrived in Heathrow, I stopped at one moment to look in a mirror. A woman walking between the mirror and me suddenly began apologizing to me, as I would have done four months ago. And I just looked at her blankly, confused as to why she was so worked up.

A few hours later, a similar situation happened, when I accidentally bumped into a girl about my age on a crowded street. "Oh dear, so sorry!" she exclaimed. And my first worried thought was, "Oh no, I have to start being polite again!!"

Despite this new pressure, London's fantastic. And cold. But worth it.

We headed to the Royal Albert Hall on Christmas Eve for an afternoon carols concert. Just going to the theater itself was exciting - as anything mentioned in a Beatles song would be ("A Day in the Life," just FYI). Not to mention, this was the location for the Concert for George, the fantastic tribute concert to George Harrison from about 10 years ago, which I've only watched about 5 million times. So, having seen this theater onscreen so many times, it was a really cool experience to see a performance on the same stage.

While I was in Salamanca and then traveling, it's been a different holiday experience than what I'm used to. It's been great, but at times it's been hard to believe that it's the holiday season. This concert was the perfect cure for that.

The trippy ceiling

Not only was it full of holiday spirit, but it was also possibly the most British thing I've ever seen in my life. The orchestra wore powdered wigs and period costumes! (seriously)

And the the conductor was really funny, with a very British sense of humor, narrating the show and harassing the audience for our singing abilities (oh yes, it was a sing-along concert). We didn't know some of the songs (we're just ignorant Americans...), but it was thoroughly enjoyable.

Then, we headed out into the cold and took a double-decker bus to Buckingham Palace. By this point, the streets were fairly deserted, as most others were home for Christmas Eve/intelligently not wandering the streets in the dark and freezing weather.

We managed to find a Thai restaurant that was open, so I got chicken curry for a Christmas feast! It was indeed merry. My apologies to the Aagaard family: it may have been a bit more enjoyable than lutefisk...
Anyways, that's all the time I can devote to updates for the moment, so I'll sign off with a final Merry Christmas! I hope everyone is happy and healthy and has made it home/where they're supposed to be safely!

Last thought: disappointed with the lack of "Happy Christmas" here; it's all "Merry." Jeez, England, you're letting me down.