If you had just walked into central London for the first time, you might have thought it is the end of the world. Central London is currently deserted. No buses running. No tubes working. No businesses open. The city has shut down.
You may be asking why. The reason... 6 inches of snow. Those of you living in the Midwest are probably dying of laughter right now. Let me explain why the city is dead.
London just had more snow than it has in the past 20 years. There were some children today who saw snow for the very first time. Besides being historic and exciting for some children, today was great due to my work giving me the day off. Yes, I had a "Snow Day" today. I don't even get snow days in college but in London they give you days off from life when it flurries. However, it was justified. All the trains were suspended and the buses pulled off the roads. Also, there was not a single snow plow on the road. Not only were they not out and about clearing the roads, but they don't exist in the first place. Trust me, I talked to the transport authority. They said they do not have any plows and had minimal salt. I would think that as one of the largest cities in the world you would have a plan for this sort of thing. Eh, I'm kind of glad they didn't.
Once I found out I didn't have to work, I decided to make the most of my day... and went back to sleep. After my nice nap, I needed to get some lunch and quickly realized I needed to go the grocery store. Unfortunately, the employees couldn't get to the grocery store this morning. No luck there. Thankfully, there is a McDonalds down the street from me. I went with my flatmates and bought a wonderful quarterpounder meal. While walking back, we were bombarded with snowballs. At first, I thought the source was most likely the guys that live below us. However, I soon learned it was a group of grown men frolicking in the snow. One of the men had their small son with him and he was joining in on the fun too. So we were attacked all the way down the street by a group of men playing in the snow. One of my flatmates finally got so fed up she yelled at the little boy. He then paused, stuck out his tounge, and hit her in the face with a snowball. Priceless.
After my delicious lunch, I braved the weather and tried to go meet up with Neili and Michael. I say "tried" because it literally took me 40 minutes to travel 4 tube stops. While waiting for one of the four trains runing that day, I couldn't help but laugh to myself about the way people were behaving. Adults were wearing full-body snowsuits and had on about four hats. One woman had plastic bags wrapped around her shoes. I wish my hands had been warm enough to get out my camera and document the ridiculousness. Eventually, the train arrived and, let me tell you, it was a mad rush. You would have thought that it was the last train to ever come through Earl's Court. It felt more like I was fighting for a place in the last lifeboat of a sinking ship than for a seat on the Eastbound District Line. But don't worry, I made it on the train. I eventually made it to Michael's and we had some delicious pizza and laughed at everyone in the park next to him. There were some pretty impressive snowmen.
Well, I am anxiously waiting to hear if I work tomorrow. There is a good chance I may not have to go tomorrow either.
Thank you, London, for not having snow plows and for running out of salt.
P.S. Most interesting person I saw today: A girl wearing a hat with a cat face and cat ears, taking pictures of the ground. Oh yeah, she had whiskers painted on her face. No big deal.
You may be asking why. The reason... 6 inches of snow. Those of you living in the Midwest are probably dying of laughter right now. Let me explain why the city is dead.
London just had more snow than it has in the past 20 years. There were some children today who saw snow for the very first time. Besides being historic and exciting for some children, today was great due to my work giving me the day off. Yes, I had a "Snow Day" today. I don't even get snow days in college but in London they give you days off from life when it flurries. However, it was justified. All the trains were suspended and the buses pulled off the roads. Also, there was not a single snow plow on the road. Not only were they not out and about clearing the roads, but they don't exist in the first place. Trust me, I talked to the transport authority. They said they do not have any plows and had minimal salt. I would think that as one of the largest cities in the world you would have a plan for this sort of thing. Eh, I'm kind of glad they didn't.
Once I found out I didn't have to work, I decided to make the most of my day... and went back to sleep. After my nice nap, I needed to get some lunch and quickly realized I needed to go the grocery store. Unfortunately, the employees couldn't get to the grocery store this morning. No luck there. Thankfully, there is a McDonalds down the street from me. I went with my flatmates and bought a wonderful quarterpounder meal. While walking back, we were bombarded with snowballs. At first, I thought the source was most likely the guys that live below us. However, I soon learned it was a group of grown men frolicking in the snow. One of the men had their small son with him and he was joining in on the fun too. So we were attacked all the way down the street by a group of men playing in the snow. One of my flatmates finally got so fed up she yelled at the little boy. He then paused, stuck out his tounge, and hit her in the face with a snowball. Priceless.
After my delicious lunch, I braved the weather and tried to go meet up with Neili and Michael. I say "tried" because it literally took me 40 minutes to travel 4 tube stops. While waiting for one of the four trains runing that day, I couldn't help but laugh to myself about the way people were behaving. Adults were wearing full-body snowsuits and had on about four hats. One woman had plastic bags wrapped around her shoes. I wish my hands had been warm enough to get out my camera and document the ridiculousness. Eventually, the train arrived and, let me tell you, it was a mad rush. You would have thought that it was the last train to ever come through Earl's Court. It felt more like I was fighting for a place in the last lifeboat of a sinking ship than for a seat on the Eastbound District Line. But don't worry, I made it on the train. I eventually made it to Michael's and we had some delicious pizza and laughed at everyone in the park next to him. There were some pretty impressive snowmen.
Well, I am anxiously waiting to hear if I work tomorrow. There is a good chance I may not have to go tomorrow either.
Thank you, London, for not having snow plows and for running out of salt.
P.S. Most interesting person I saw today: A girl wearing a hat with a cat face and cat ears, taking pictures of the ground. Oh yeah, she had whiskers painted on her face. No big deal.
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