ABCV: Austin Blues, City Views
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It rained today. I missed my friends in Austin as they start their new semester this week. I saw the city from ground level. London really is something.
Everyday, I will attempt to create a professional, articulate, hilarious and modern take on my day of thought or action. Inspired by Casey Neistat who created a vlog everyday for 450 straight days. I will call it: 365MeThoughts
To find the acronyms that are at the top, go to my Instagram page everyday and see what the images are and see if you can figure it out…
It might just be the weather in London. It’s raining, what a surprise. But I really have been thinking about my time in Austin a lot more than usual. Two people above made my experience so worthwhile, Seher (the ‘long lost’ cousin) and Menhal (the person that introduced me as “His name is Danial… he’s British). It wasn’t just about them though. It was all the Americans that made it special.
Jake (pictured above), was one of the first Americans I met in Austin. He’s a first year and he studies environmental science. So admittedly we got along. He has some pretty perceptive views of the world, well versed in travelling the continent and beyond. All round excellent personality and lifelong friend.
Michael is brilliant. Very intelligent and humbling character. He’s just finished his masters at UT Austin. I see him as someone to keep me accountable. We’ve agreed to be there to check up and make sure that we’re on track to achieve our goals. He’s got a blog too, you should check it out.
One more I promise, but Adarsh was my roommate for two months. He put up with me (and me him). It took some time to connect and really converse but he is a breath of fresh air. He completely switched career paths (away from conforming) and now is making a difference with the US crappy health care system. I know he’ll go far and it was a privilege to spend time with him in such close proximity.
While there are many others, I think I’ve made my point. I miss them. I hope to see them soon. London is always here and I don’t think I’ll be going anywhere for at least the next 1.5 years.
Yesterday, where I cut the blog short, I was in Central London with George and Roya. En route to Knightsbridge, I drove on the A13 past Canary Wharf. It was maybe the most spectacular sight. I wanted to just stop by the roadside and take it all in. It reminded me very much of driving along I-45 in Houston along mid-town and seeing the skyscrapers. At night, it was even more spectacular. It’s a must drive.
Today, due to train delays, I found myself once again beneath the skyscrapers of the ‘new’ financial district of London. I put new in quotation marks because it’s more than 25 years old now and no-one calls the City the ‘old’ financial district anymore. This time I was on the DLR. I got a seat at the front of the train and felt in control. Looking up at skyscrapers for me is somewhat satisfying but internally they give me a feeling of guilt. They epitomise the winners of capitalism.
Where the city grows upwards, the population line the streets — looking for shelter and a safe resting spot. It just doesn’t sit well with me. Despite that realisation, I drove over Tower Bridge last night, that was exciting and surreal.
Note: the new car performs extremely well in the city— it’s nimble, agile and quiet.
Last but not least, I just applied to a Sky News Insight Evening at the end of January. Thanks Hamida for the tip-off. The application was rigorous, I had to try and remember when I took GCSEs, it was painful to click 2013 for some of them. Five years go fast.
While five years does go fast, I would much rather be where I am now than where I was then. Perspective is a wonderful tool, eh?
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