You need to have tough skin to live abroad. You don't have to be a loner but you need positive ways to cope with being such far distances from the loved ones in your life. This acquisition of learning to be alone is the best recommendation that I could give to a person considering living abroad in the Middle East over 8,000 miles from friends and family. I can rough out three of four months away, but any longer and I begin to really need the recharging from the people that matter to me the most. Although I was just back to the U.S. in March, it felt like that time again to visit my mom, sister, and niece in Connecticut, my father, grandmother, and friends in Georgia, friends in Tallahassee, and cousin in south Florida. And it wouldn't be right not to take out a little "me" time so and of Summer trip to Costa Rica will be the respite I need.
A one day layover to London was the preemptive icing on the cake that I needed to get the trip started. My flight came in from Abu Dhabi early in the morning. I was concerned about the Customs line because I had read complaints a couple of months earlier that they could take hours. Luckily, I made it through in less than fifteen minutes. Things seemed to be looking optimistic for me achieving my goal of getting another country's stamp on my passport and visiting London for the day. Informative guides were great at reassuring me that there would be no Customs check coming back in to the airport and that I would be fine taking the Lube (underground rail) forty minutes to town for a visit.
I paid about eight pounds or $14 US for an all day pass that would take me around town. I took the Piccadilly line in to downtown London and first got off at the Piccadilly Circus area, a site that was suggested by a British teacher that lives in Abu Dhabi as well. I was impressed with the massive statues all over town that celebrated various generals, politicians, royalty, and martyrs in British history. Way in the distance, I even noticed Buckingham Palace. I walked down to the historic Trufulgar Square and almost got to catch the many free arts and history museums in the area. They didn't open until 10am though, and I still had more sites to see on my one-day express journey. I was impressed with the cleanliness and ease with riding public transportation as the city braces for the big, 2012 Summer Olympics beginning in two weeks.
The train terminals were painted with music concert and theatrical performance posters and the culture and history of the town buzzed electrically in the air. My next stop was Green Park. From there, I took another line to a stop along the River Thames. I was surprised to walk right out of the terminal and stand right in front of Big Ben. Here I was, on my non-directed city tour, running right in to one of he world's top attractions. My intuition led me on the right track. I took great pictures and was content that the rain and partial gloominess of a typical London day had spared me the need of buying an over-priced touristy umbrella. I was able to see part of Westminster Abbey.
My last stop before returning to Heathrow airport was another historic area called Hyde Park. I walked around briefly and then decided it was time to head back to the airport so that I could prepare for the seven hour flight to New York's JFK airport.
My expectations were exceeded. London is definitely a place that I could come back to visit or possibly even stay for a short artist's residency. The city has a rich culture with spoken word and the arts and there are different opportunities with slams and spoken word features. I'm glad I took my chances, intentionally booked a ten hour layover, and had the courage to step out of the airport to peel back one layer of one of the coolest cities I've ever visited. This is London in a day!
