For being a Queen sized bed split into two mattress, it was a pretty comfy sleep! I thought I was going to fall in-between them. Went downstairs for an okay breakfast and coffee, I ultimately left at 11 and started making my way to my new place.
Navigating the subway system was a lot easier than I had thought. Once you find your Point A and Point B that is. At the station near the hotel, I stood in front of the map for a good five-minutes before I found my points and how to get there. I left from Heron Quays, transferred at Bank, and rode the subway until Old Street Station. I was told that her place was only a 15-minute walk away. Okay, in what direction now. I somewhat knew the direction, did some research on where to go before I left the hotel, and I didn’t want to use my phone for directions. After being turned around many times, because I didn’t know which way was North (cloudy day). Oh well, I’m learning my new neighbourhood! It was 12:30 when I finally found her apartment. She had asked me to come by for 2, so I went over to a cafe nearby, called AMPM.
I went in and the baristas commented that I had a pretty big backpack. I told them that right now my life is in my bag and told them my story. Awestruck, they asked me so many questions that it was ten-minutes later when I finally ordered my coffee. Sitting down, I began typing out m journal until 2 o’clock rolled around.
Knocking on her door, my new hostess (Meital) opens the door and invites me in. The main hallways was pretty cramped but that’s because I was wearing a backpack that was bigger than my torso. Getting inside and taking off my bag and sweater. Sitting down, we chatted for half a hour, then she had to run off to work. Handing me the keys, she went out the door. I unpacked, organized, and looked at my map for what was nearby in terms of shooting locations. Pub number 5, the Good Companions, from The World’s End was just a couple of blocks away. I grabbed my sweater and started making my way there.
My memory served me well this time around! I didn’t get lost or turned around once! On the outside of the pub it didn’t look like The Good Companions. On the inside though, it was just like the movie. Smaller than I had thought though, but still nice. I sat down, ordered a pint, and soaked in the atmosphere. After my second pint, I took to the streets and adventured around the area. Pretty much every road around it, besides the one I took to get there, was either a dead end or circled around on itself. So I decided to go back to my apartment.
Getting back for 5, I took a quick shower because I was meeting up with some friends for dinner and drinks at 7. We were meeting at Charing Cross Station. I didn’t know how long it would take me to get there so I left at 6:15. Clean, teeth brushed, taming my facial hair with some beard wax, I went out the door.
Jumping from one station to another, I luck out that there was a train at every stop when I arrived at the platform. In the end, I got there in 35-minutes.
Walking around the station (it’s a lot bigger than I had thought), four different entrances, two of which were on street level, and I was down below. Walking to each one, I decide to wait in the biggest entrance. I’m waiting there for about 30-seconds when I see my friends Kat and Colin. Kat and I give each other big hugs, but Colin and I pretty much jump into each others arms and bear hug each other. Man! It felt great! It’s been just over a month since I’ve seen someone that I knew! I also haven’t seen these two since August. Before that….the previous August?
Hitting the road, us three and four other friends that they brought, we make our way to a nifty burger joint a few roads over. Before getting there, Colin and I share a beer to kick things off. There, we meet up with another friend of mine/our, Borna. More bear hugs to give out! Ordering our burgers, they call our names out over a HAM radio when they were ready, we begin eating and I tell them of my adventures so far. The burger I got, without looking at what’s on it, was the Dead Hippie. Then I went up again and looked at the ingredients. Beef burger, onions, cheese, tomato, lettuce, and Dead Hippie sauce. Who knew dead hippies would taste so good!
Food in our stomachs, we make our way over to a Canadian bar. They really played up on that! Canadian flags everywhere, cottage-like atmosphere, Canadian sports teams jerseys hanging on the wall, they even had Canadian beer. Molson Canadian, three different kinds of Moose Head, and Sleemans. After a crazy expensive drink (about $9 for a bottle), we make our way to the next bar. Kat and Colin were raving about this place because they make their own beer and have live music.
Once in, I see that this place is a 3-floor pub/club. Music downstairs, standing pub on the main floor, and a sit-down area upstairs. We go up and order our drinks. Colin and I got a session beer while Kat got one called the All Day Pale Ale. She hands over her pint for me to try and I can see why it’s called All Day. I could drink this all day and it not effecting my taste buds nor get sick of it! We drift around the floors, trying to find a good spot. It took us three pints and a shot before we found one. We must have spent two and a half hours there, singing like obnoxious drinking Canadian, having a great time. We even got some other people to join us in the singing. After four more pints and three more shots, we decided to call it a night. Getting back to the station, we give each other big hugs, I give them a bottle of Icelandic schnapps to take back with them to AGWH (pronounced ‘Aag-Wah’), a Christmas party the my Torontonian friends have. They left through the main entrance to the station and I went downstairs. I turn the corner to find that the gates have closed. Huh, how about that. Not beaten, I look at my phone to see how far away my place was. A good hour walk away. My drunken brain thinks ‘Bah. I can do that in 40.’ And off I go.
Along the way I stop in two McDonald's. The first one because I was hungry and needed energy (and a washroom). The second one because the McDonald's here is tastier than ones at home and I wanted more.
Making the trip in 55-minutes (would have been 40 if it wasn’t for the stupid McDonald's), I get through the door by 2 in the morning. Wearing my last pair of clean clothes, I do a load of laundry. Started up Netflix and fell asleep to Astrix, wake up to the machine signalling that it was done, hang my clothes, and collapse on the bed.