I brought the sun to London, I was told. Prior to my arrival, London had been pouring and cold. I am glad to know that my stay here is still blessed with a rather dry and a little chilly weather. My greatest encounter so far would be my stay here in West London, home to a typical English family of three. The home is decorated with the most beautiful lights in the exterior and inside this warm and cosy place, lies many more glitteries and pleasantries that remind us so much of the beauty of Christmas. I almost felt too cosy and my mind travels to the future, imagining this as my retirement home...
To be honest, I haven't had any English food so far, if you consider English food as steaks or fish and chips. Well, I actually have been having English as the diversity of food here is superb. The national dish is famously known as the Chicken Tikka Massala and from this you can tell that, the receptiveness of British towards the differences of culture brought in by their immigrants. I have tasted the famous Duck Rice in Bayswater, followed by a nice lunch in Kiasu Restaurant, a 3-month old restaurants owned by fellow Malaysians and Singaporeans, I was told. I had the most amazing Nyonya Chicken Curry, just like how my Peranakan grandma used to cook it. I gobbled down a full bowl of rice and the curry gravy was not spared a single drop.
I also managed to take a stroll along Oxford Street to entice my pounds. I bought three books at a very good price so far. The Christmas lights in Oxford and Regent Street are kind of minimalist with the careful usage of "Merry Christmas" greetings, I would say. When queried about this phenomenon, I was told that, Christmas is now known as "Festive Season" as not to cause any offence to the non-celebrating citizens. Of course, the informer was furious over this implementation by the government in trying to curb racial segregation. Well, at least, we can still tell as the feeling of Christmas is unmistakeable.
Oh yeah, not to mention, at last, I can have a taste of reading the most enlightenning newspaper, The Guardian. I feel sufficient and contemplating on my next to-dos here in London.
