London and I share many memories. My first trip at 18, my 24th birthday, my sister's wedding... you get the idea. Everyone remembers their first trip.”There is a well-known fact. Once the travel bug bites, you are infected for life.
“Once the travel bug bites there is no known antidote and I know that I shall be happily infected until the end of my life.”
Michael Palin
When I say the first trip, it wasn’t my first time flying but the first time I traveled alone, internationally. I was 18 years old, a college freshman and extremely eager at the chance to visit London. I remembered all of the mistakes I made on my first trip. I went out and bought new clothes, I had two suitcases, I had a packed itinerary, I took cabs everywhere in fear of getting lost, I paid taxis from the airport, I was guarded due to the perception of the country based on news outlets and media, I only ate recognizable food. (You get the picture) Today I am a minimalist that goes everywhere with a bag pack, travel with no itinerary, use public transportation, try new things and keep an open mindset of the world.
I visited a host of destinations such as the London Eye, the Parliament, the Tower Bridge, London Bridge, Big Ben, St.Pancreas International, Convent Garden, Tate Morning, City Hall, The Science Museum and Hyde Park.
I visit London frequently. It has become my destination of choice since that first trip. I’ve had trips as short as eight hours and trips as long as a month. The one thing I love about a city is, no matter how often you visit, you always have something new to do. The London tube takes you wherever you want to go. (with the oyster card of course)
Whenever I visit, I tend to meet great people. Some, I never see again and others become great friends and travel buddies. They introduced me to pub crawls, fish, and chips(I get this every time I'm in the UK) and bangers and mash. It's the reason I love London as much as I do now. London was the moment that I realized, the travel bug bit and I was born to be a NOMAD.
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