If You Love Arsenal Stand Up!

So last Thursday was fairly chill at the flat. Matt and Sergio and I watched some TV in my room for a bit and stumbled upon some very interesting things on regular TV. At 10 PM we were looking for something to watch and Matt unfort. controlled the remote and left the TV on two naked guys in a hot tub.

Sergio started yelling all sorts of Spanish at Matt, but Matt just kept watching. We soon learned in a very graphic way that it was a documentary on gays in England. Matt finally changed the station after borderline pornography was on my TV. Matt was laughing really hard and Sergio was basically strangling him and still yelling Spanish curse words. It was great fun to watch them fight. I am amazed that stuff was okay to have on regular TV here. We have problems with cable shows in the US and they are okay with pretty much anything on regular TV.

Friday was Sergio's last night. Sergio, Chris, and his girlfriend Peri and I chilled at the flat and discussed Mexican/American relations until really really late. There was yelling, laughing, the whole bit. It was very educational, but by the end we were wondering how we got into the discussion and why we talked about it so late on a Friday night.

On Saturday I went to lunch with Sergio before seeing him off. I was really sad to see him go. We went to lunch almost everyday at work and hung out a lot. Hopefully I'll get to make a trip to Mexico City sometime soon.

After seeing Sergio off, I went to Canary Wharf to see The Simpson's Movie with my co-worker Ian. It was a fun event. Reuters is located there and they have a jumbotron with the latest news on it. I unfort. saw this while we were there: http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/07/28/britain.wwii.bomb.reut/index.html
A bomb was found at Canary Wharf?!?! How comforting...

We then went to the Westminster station because unfortunately there are very few handicap accessible tube stations in London. Westminster station is right under the building I work in. We went from there to Oxford Street and Ian, his sister, and a friend shopped Oxford Street. I got to just go upstairs to my room when I was done shopping with them. It was a fun day.

On Sunday Chris and I went to the Arsenal vs. Inter Milan game. It was incredible. A mostly incorrect stereotype about English football (soccer) is that there is a ton of drunken revelry. They actually don't allow beer at your seats. You have to drink next to the concession stands. This was surprising to us. We had 12th row tickets. It was great. The noise was deafening at times and the chants were hilarious. At random moments someone would stand up raise their hands to the sky and chant, "If you love Arsenal stand up! If you love Arsenal stand up!" Everyone in the entire stadium stands up, raises their hands and do the same thing. It is hilarious. Another interesting thing is that the water the field for the entirety of halftime. I don't get it. Chris and I participated in the most amazing wave I've ever seen. The thickness of the wave was something we should strive for in the US. One of the players on the Inter Milan team was thoroughly hated, Materazzi. Every single time he touched the ball for any reason, whether in pre-game or just to toss the ball for someone else to throw in, the entire stadium stood up and booed him. It was really funny.

In the US betting on sports is illegal in most places, but especially anywhere near the stadium. Here it is right between the bathroom and the concession stand. Crazy!

In the end Arsenal won 2-1 with a late goal by the young soon to be star Van Persie. I can't wait for my next English game... I will talk about that in a few paragraphs... I told my coworkers about the game and they were jealous. One of them has been on the waiting list for 2 years for season tickets and has been told he might get them in 7 more years. Crazy!

Last night I got dinner with Wes, a friend from UT. It was good to hear his stories from doing Teach for America in New York City. I gave him a bit of a tour this morning before he left for Interlaken.

After work today I got tickets for The Drowsy Chaperone. It won 5 Tony's on Broadway and it is unfortunately in its last week here in London. The musical was excellent. Very over the top and hilarious. I had a great time.

Now on to the upcoming trip. I'm taking off from work early on Wednesday and taking a train to Manchester...you might have guessed by now, but if not and you are a fan of the movie Eurotrip this might help: "My baby takes the morning train, she works from 9 to 5..."

I'm going to see a Manchester United game at home! I cannot wait. I only wish I brought my jersey!

I will stay in Manchester Wednesday night. The next morning I will get up early and take a train to Holyhead where I will catch a ferry to Dublin. I made a mistake when booking the ferry and accidentally paying 10 extra pounds for a club seat because I thought we had to have a seat on the ship...I am once again, a dumb tourist. I accidentally purchased a ticket in the exclusive club lounge where there is free snacks, tea, and wine. I plan on getting my ten pounds worth of pampering on the 1.5 hour voyage. I'm spending the next 3 nights in Dublin and then back to London by ferry and train. Chris and his girlfriend will be there Friday to Sunday. It should be a great weekend!

Let me know if you have any suggestions of things to see in Dublin or in the area! I hope you are all well!