Arriving in London began an entertaining and tiring adventure. In the first 48 hours my first impression of London is that it is a city of dichotomies. Between the old and new, traditional and untraditional, wealthy and impoverished. Quite unlike any city you might find in the USA. Admittedly, the first day was pretty rough. We all had jet lag and just wanted to eat and sleep but it was a very good thing that we didn’t as we would have thrown off our sleep schedules for the entire week.
It began at the airport. After getting off the plane I began to notice the differences in quality expectations in the city. The bathrooms were nicer, the hallways were cleaners, and the employees had a totally different standard for polite service. In contrast restaurant service is fast, to the point, and no questions asked. Probably the easiest opposition to notice is the contrast between the old and new architecture in the city. It is important to note that many buildings in the city are at least twice as old as the United States of America. For example on the drive from the airport you see 20 Fenchurch building, which looks like an over inflated rectangular balloon, across the street from Tower of London. You can also see the London Eye from the gates of Buckingham Palace. Old and new contrast in incredible ways and forces you to confront both aspects of the city at every corner.
Unfortunately, when we acknowledge both aspects of the city we must recognized the differences in its people. There is a striking gap between those of means and those without. If you step of the tourist track just a few block you will see countless homeless panhandling in self assigned spots. Women with tears running down their face begging women in black jeans and heals carrying their designer bags. Most of us are taught to ignore the homeless as it may not be safe to communicate with them, which I do not dispute. But the sheer numbers of homeless on the streets can be very disconcerting. But the difference in this city aren’t all bad.
Our first night we were introduced to traditional London cuisine. The restaurant and bar Inn of Court is a classic pub setting with a more extensive menu. I ordered a Three Bird Pie, a meat pie stuffed with duck, goose and quail. Meat pies are one of the most traditional English fairs, aside from Bangers and Mash, and they can be found all around the city. It is more common now to have more experimental fillings but originally they would be filled with cheap meats that were too tough to be served alone. In contrast all along the street our hotel is located on are various types of Asian restaurants. Everything from Vietnamese to Indian offering classic and fusion dishes. Untraditional food is now the backbone of the London food scene. For every pub is two of three ethnic restaurants or retro bars. And that is one of the things that makes London such an entertaining city. It really does have it all.
Arriving in London began an entertaining and tiring adventure. In the first 48 hours my first impression of London is that it is a city of dichotomies. Between the old and new, traditional and untraditional, wealthy and impoverished. Quite unlike any city you might find in the USA. Admittedly, the first day was pretty rough. We all had jet lag and just wanted to eat and sleep but it was a very good thing that we didn’t as we would have thrown off our sleep schedules for the entire week. 
It began at the airport. After getting off the plane I began to notice the differences in quality expectations in the city. The bathrooms were nicer, the hallways were cleaners, and the employees had a totally different standard for polite service. In contrast restaurant service is fast, to the point, and no questions asked. Probably the easiest opposition to notice is the contrast between the old and new architecture in the city. It is important to note that many buildings in the city are at least twice as old as the United States of America. For example on the drive from the airport you see 20 Fenchurch building, which looks like an over inflated rectangular balloon, across the street from Tower of London. You can also see the London Eye from the gates of Buckingham Palace. Old and new contrast in incredible ways and forces you to confront both aspects of the city at every corner. 
Unfortunately, when we acknowledge both aspects of the city we must recognized the differences in its people. There is a striking gap between those of means and those without. If you step of the tourist track just a few block you will see countless homeless panhandling in self assigned spots. Women with tears running down their face begging women in black jeans and heals carrying their designer bags. Most of us are taught to ignore the homeless as it may not be safe to communicate with them, which I do not dispute. But the sheer numbers of homeless on the streets can be very disconcerting. But the difference in this city aren’t all bad. 
Our first night we were introduced to traditional London cuisine. The restaurant and bar Inn of Court is a classic pub setting with a more extensive menu. I ordered a Three Bird Pie, a meat pie stuffed with duck, goose and quail. Meat pies are one of the most traditional English fairs, aside from Bangers and Mash, and they can be found all around the city. It is more common now to have more experimental fillings but originally they would be filled with cheap meats that were too tough to be served alone. In contrast all along the street our hotel is located on are various types of Asian restaurants. Everything from Vietnamese to Indian offering classic and fusion dishes. Untraditional food is now the backbone of the London food scene. For every pub is two of three ethnic restaurants or retro bars. And that is one of the things that makes London such an entertaining city. It really does have it all.
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