[Pictures to be posted tomorrow]
I started my Saturday off right by sleeping in til 10am. It was heavenly. My roommates seemed to think that just because I get up early every morning weekdays, I wasn’t capable of sleeping in. So when I finally got up they were quite concerned for my health. Haha.
I went running over in Kensington Gardens after I ate a belated breakfast and then spent the afternoon at the Dulwich Art Gallery for homework.
Tonight was by far the best part. Oh we just had so much fun. This weekend is the Chinese New Year so we decided to head down to Chinatown for the night. The real celebrations are going on tomorrow, but tomorrow is Sunday and partying in the streets isn’t really conducive to the Sabbath.
Emily, Michelle, and I took the tube out to Trafalgar Square where they had all the lights, booths, banners, and stage set up for tomorrow. We walked a block over to where Chinatown begins and at 6pm it was already starting to get crowded. Hundreds of paper lanterns were strung across every street and it was beautiful. I kept hearing poppers hitting the ground but could never find who was throwing them. Just while walking down the first block, I bought little chocolate covered peanuts from a street vendor, stopped by a booth where a woman was selling good luck charms, and watched another woman making candy. We found an awesome little buffet called “Mr Wu” that was only 5 pounds each. It was tiny and we had to wait in this little cramped hall for a table. We literally had to squeeze by people to get up the stairs to the buffet. But the food was so good and so reasonably priced! We’re definitely going back.
By the time we got out of the restaurant the party was in full swing. Nothing like it will be tomorrow night, but still a party. A few booths in the street, guitarists, poppers, children chasing each other with little paper dragons, and even a Hare Krishna parade! We totally joined in the dancing with the Hare Krishnas. It was sooo much fun. I bought a package of Chinese dessert called “Pockys” and a beautiful black scarf with rhinestones for one pound! On our way back to the tube, we passed several musicians, a bachelorette party (called a “hen party” here), and people drawing caricatures. The city was so alive tonight! It was a wonderful day in London.
