Moving on

In moving out of the hotel, I had a lot to reflect on:

• I checked in May 25, with a 2-week reservation, and stayed for 5 months
• I read 12 books (My Year Off, Angela's Ashes, Time Traveller's Wife, How To Be a Brit, 'Tis, A Monk Swimming, Shantaram, Poems on the Underground, The Little Prince, Dummies Guide to Prince2, the Highway Code, and now the complete works of Sherlock Holmes)
• I've studied four chapters of my Italian book, and can say "I have a ski mask" in Italian ("ho una passamontagna")
• I joined a gym for 3 months, took 3 yoga classes per week, and lost 20 pounds
• I ate salad and hummus for two months (which probably contributed more to the weight loss than the gym)
• I found two tennis partners online, both of whom happened to be American.
• I joined a vegetarian meetup group, and met a lot of weird people.
• I've wandered around fifteen parks (Holland Park, Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, Regents Park, Primrose Hill, Hampstead Heath, St. James's Park, Shoreditch Park, Battersea Park, Alexandra Park, Highgate Woods, Queen's Wood, Cherry Tree Park, Parsons Green, Jubilee Gardens)
• I've gone to seven concerts (Rufus Wainwright, Diana Krall, Moody Blues, Royal Philharmonic [twice], Mozart Festival Orchestra, and a classical pianist at St Martin's-in-the-Fields)
• I've seen six shows (War Horse, Blood Wedding, Brief Encounter, Cirque Surreal, Ballet Trockadero, and some play in Camberwell)
• I've watched seven films (Indiana Jones, Dr Zhivago, Buster Keaton, Wall-E, Rocky Horror, Somers Town, the Visitor, and the Pope's Toilet)
• And three DVDs (Eddie Izzard, Bellevue Rendezvous, This is England)
• I've watched six hours of TV, not including the Olympics
• I've been to seven museums (Natural History, British Museum, V&A, Tate Britain, Tate Modern, Science, and National Portrait Gallery)
• I've ridden the tube 212 times (estimated)
• I've attended dozens of free performances at National Theatre, Trafalgar Square, Hyde Park, and the Scoop
• I've journeyed three times outside of London (Trowbridge, Crawley, and Warwick)
• I've watched two fireworks shows (Shoreditch festival and Thames festival)
• I've seen one comedy show, one carnival (Notting Hill), one poetry reading, one Thai festival, and one gorilla run
• I've visited two cemeteries (Brompton and Highgate)
• I've gotten my NHS (National Health Services) card, my library card, and my provisional driver's license
• I bought a long rain coat, a sweater, two scarves, and a stripey shirt, so I could blend in.
• I've whiled away ten afternoons at the laundromat
• I've met Jessica's parents five times (and they took me to two of those shows)
• I missed the Duck Race at Mosely Lock, and have not yet been to the Doctor Who exhibition

Of course, I still have much to look forward to:

• I am going to see an animated movie about worms on Saturday, and a classic British cult film (Withnail & I) on Sunday
• I am going to a (free) New Orleans festival next weekend
• The Lord Mayor's Parade is in two weeks
• I have tickets to see Steve Winwood early November
• In mid-November, I am having dinner with some of Jessica's co-workers, and attending her friend's wedding (not related)
• I am returning to California for a week in early December
• I am running out of money mid-December
• I am seeing the "Pitmen Painters" mid-January

Here are some photos of the flat. Only two complaints: When I looked at the place (twice), I did not appreciate how loud, how often, or how early, the airplanes flew past; and I can't get the wireless to work, but just having a reliable Internet connection is fantastic. I may even hook up Skype again and call some people in the US! Here's a map to my new place.