I'm certain that very few people think of the streets of London when reading Robert Frost's poem "The Road Not Taken." Today, however, I found myself quoting part of it on my rambles through London. There was no class this week, so I've had a bit more free time than normal. Generally I read two novels and lots of associated criticism each week, but with no class I had two weeks to do the work I normally do in one. Granted, both classes assigned novels of 600+ pages for this week, but it's still a more relaxed pace. This week, therefore, I've renewed my commitment to get to know London better.
The last three days I've become a huge fan of the "Epic One-Way Walk." Basically, I walk until I'm too tired to walk anymore, and then I find a bus to take me home. The first day, my friend Ane and I were walking to Paddington for Valentine's Day dinner (if you're curious, Lebanese is the appropriate Valentine's Day food. Ya Hala in Paddington. Totally recommend it.), so we had a specific destination and time frame in mind. Wednesday and Thursday, however, I started walking with no specific stopping place and that's much more fun. I accidentally made it all the way home yesterday (long story involving turning on a street that was heading east when I thought I was still going north...), but today I stopped walking after exploring most of Kensington High Street.
I've taken Robert Frost as my mantra during these walks (and the lady next to me at the crosswalk thought I was crazy when I recited aloud): "Knowing how way leads on to way/I doubted if I should ever come back" (ll. 14-15). When there's something that looks interesting or inviting or quirky or charming or ... I go that way. Yesterday I was sort of searching for a magical square my friend Jeremy and I accidentally found in 2006 (no luck yet), and today I wandered through Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. I found the houses lived in by T.S. Eliot, J.S. Mill, Randolph Caldecott, Charles Dickens, and so many more. (If you're curious, there is a map of the blue plaques here, or a searchable database here.) I've found delightful cafes, a lovely theatre bookshop, lots of swans and ducks and dogs, and places where I think "Oh, I've got to remember this and come back." I'm not convinced I'll return to them, but I'm much more confident that I could find them if I wanted to.Incidentally, sorry for the long break between blog entries. The first few months I was here, I was deliberately searching out interesting experiences to write about and then rushing home to do that writing. But there came a time when I no longer wanted to be a spectator of my life in London and I wanted to live it. Chinese New Year, various plays, folk dancing, so many novels, and meeting wonderful people have been among the highlights. I'll try to update the blog more regularly so you can come along on my adventures, but in the meantime there are more pictures on Facebook (the London albums are public).
