More London

This was a holiday weekend in the UK (Bank Holiday), the streets were alive with families and friends looking to relax and grip onto the last bit of summer. I was delighted to find that there were several free street performances being offered in honor of the holiday weekend. I read about one called “Block,” which looked rather intriguing. It was being performed outside, near the Olympic Park, which was not yet constructed the last time I was in London (in 2005). I had heard great things about the park, and I love street performances, so I decided to head over.



But, first, I stopped to buy an umbrella, since, despite laying mine right next to my suitcase, I still managed to forget to pack it.

The performance was really interesting. It was a combination of modern dance, acrobatics, and other movements, and I was impressed by the performers’ athleticism.


Here’s a brief clip:
Unfortunately, it started raining, so they had to cancel the performance. Within a couple minutes, it was absolutely pouring outside. A couple minutes is also the time it took for the wind to completely destroy my new umbrella. So, I sought shelter under an awning and waited for the rain to pass. The entire rest of the day was still dreary, but the hard rains only happened for twenty minutes or so. I took the weather as an opportunity to find myself some lunch, which I did at a cute Mexican street food place called Wahaca. They had a special vegan menu, and despite London’s prices on everything being really expensive, I decided to treat myself to a nice meal (and beer, too).

Mexican food nowhere near Mexico.

I then walked around the outdoor mall near Olympic Park for a bit, where I saw these for the first time. Too bad there was an age limit.




On my way to the bathroom, I was stopped by a sales associate from a skincare company. He gave me some free hand cream and ask if I was from Australia. I’ve never had my accent confused for Australia before; Canada, yes, but never Australia. I guess I took it as a compliment.

Olympic park was impressive, and I loved seeing all of the other people out and about there. And my umbrella-less self got lucky in that it didn’t rain much for the rest of the day. It was pretty windy though: By the time I returned back to my dorm (it’s been so long since I’ve uttered those words), I was really tired. So, again, I turned in early after preparing my day for tomorrow. The party never starts stops with me.

More shots from the park:


And the aftermath of a rainy/windy day: