Last night in London

Let me say this, my hotel during this last jaunt to London might not have the best internet options, but my God is it fancy. It was built in 1900 (I believe) and that's the outside of the building in the photo above. Really breathtaking. And then the rooms inside have been completely redone and are gorgeous and modern and, as the Brits would say, just fab. It's a pretty big step up from the dorm.

On my last evening in town, I wanted to go and get souvenirs/gifts for folks. I had been putting this off as I didn't want to lug any extra stuff around all this time. But by the time I got back from Dublin, checked into the hotel, freshened up and got out the door, it was 6:20 p.m. And one thing that I hate about London? The shops all close at 7. You might find one or two open until 8, but it's a rare thing.

So I booked it down to Covent Garden and Soho, but sure enough the shops were closing. It was a complete bust. So please forgive me if I don't have treats for everyone upon my return.

But I will say that it was nice just to be in Soho with the whole evening in front of me and nothing that I had to do. Most of my time in this part of town had been spent frantically searching for art supplies or internet cafes. But not that night.

So I just walked and window shopped. I stopped at this place called Gabys near the Leceister Square station (pronounced Lester Square. I know.) and got a Falafel to go. It was DELICIOUS. I just strolled around Soho eating the best falafel I have ever had and people watched. It might have been my favorite time of the trip. Funny, I know.

It was a gorgeous night -- probably in the 50s -- and the streets were full of young, happy people. As I was finishing up my sandwich I stumbled upon this fantastic little shop that was still open. It was called 52 Greek St. (that's also the address). It had vinyl records laid into the floor and it had all these really funny screenprinted t-shirts and all kinds of cool clothes.

I walked in and was greeted by the owner. I was telling him how much I loved his shirts and he said that he designed them himself. He comes up with all the designs and has them made, and he doesn't sell them anywhere else. I tell you, I could have spent a fortune in that store. Sadly, I only had about 50 pounds left when I arrived, and I needed to save some of that for my train ticket to Heathrow the next morning. So I had to just pick two shirts. One for Jamie and one for me. But if you people are ever in London, GO THERE. A fantastic little boutique. And not too pricey!

After getting my shirts (which I was thrilled with), I headed out to see some music. I ended up catching the Tube to the northern part of the city (which I hadn't explored much) to this club called Dublin Castle. There were four bands playing that night. My favorite was a group called The Strays.

This club was much more low key than Madame JoJos and the crowd was more like one you would find at the 400 Bar. Which felt a little homier, but the people watching wasn't nearly as great. Anyway, good music. Cheap pints. All-in-all, a great way to end my stay in London.