Dear London Town

It looks like I have to share my favorite view of London with a few others.

I’m slowly dawdling across Waterloo Bridge in total m’fucking awe! Why don’t I do this more often? — Dom
(a few minutes later he adds:)
I’m such a loser but at moments like this I fall back in love with London. – Dom

…only needs to cross the Thames (in either direction) to be reminded of why she loves London. Even after eight years, it’s still impressive. –Ann

With a view like that, how could you not fall in love?

Dear London Town,

Much time has passed since my last love letter to you. The summer was busy with research, people visiting, a few trips and having ciders in your pubs and parks.

The leaves are now turning from green to yellow, orange, red and brown and finding their way from limbs to the ground. The weather has been gentle, with the nights being just a bit chillier than before. The heater has been turned on in the flat for the first time in many months. I’ve been lighting my favorite cinnamon cider candle to make the place cozy and sipping on hot chocolate while keeping my fingers warm around the mug.

I love this time of year and I love that I’m here for it, London. We’ve never really shared this time of year together. Here’s to Autumn and to you…

xx

(For more wonderful photos of Kew Gardens in Fall, check out Stuart’s blog.)

Dear London Town,

I wish I could say I missed you on my holiday, but I didnt. I enjoyed the carefree days of lounging by the pool, drinking coffee, eating my weight in pasta and trying to speak Italian with E’s parents. Such a perfect trip away…and so close! In less than a 2 hour flight, I can return some day.

Still, I have come home to your warm embrace! How strange, London Town! Has summer finally hit your streets? Perhaps you and I will need to sit in the park, drink Pimm’s, and reacquaint ourselves.

xx

Dear London Town,

It’s not you — it’s me. I need some time to unwind and think about what I need from life. I’m going to Italy to sit in the sun, eat pasta and relax for a few days. I promise I wont betray my love for you.

Be back soon.

xx

Dear London Town,

My favorite time of the day with you is at night on the bus driving over Waterloo Bridge. II look across at the skyline I so fell in love with many years ago. Your government buildings, your cathedrals and your theatres light the sky and pepper the riverbank.

Why are you so beautiful at night, London Town? Why do I feel like you know I’m looking at you? You flirt back – catching my attention and baiting me to love you more! Silly, Town, you know I love you. I told you so. Are you still unsure?

Each night, when I cross the bridge, I will blow a kiss to you. Maybe one day you will kiss me back.

xx

Today is the first day I actually felt the rain on my skin. Usually, London Town, I can see your streets and cobblestones moist with precipitation, but nothing in the air.

I left without my umbrella this morning. Your weather forecast suggested that I have a cover overhead, but I laughed at it and thought to myself that the predictions hadnt been accurate lately. Why would today be different?

As though it was biting its thumb at me, the sky above, full of gray, thick clouds, decided to wring themselves out onto my head as I walked through the streets of Holborn.

I am not sad that it rained today, London Town. No, you were just being you.

xx

I realize that you are trying to get warmer outside, but you really are taking your time!

On Monday there was snow on the ground. On Tuesday, you cheeky thing, you teased me with bright blue skies and a shining sun; but your wind blew so bitterly cold that it made my ears hurt!

Today, the sky was gray and filled with clouds. This weather makes me want to stay in and huddle by the radiator with a hot cup of tea.

It’s just too cold for us to see each other right now.

xx

Happy New Year from Kate Matlock on Vimeo.

London Town, you really had yourself a party last night. I’m glad I’m not the one who had to clean you up.

xx

Oh London Town, why must you be foggy today? It’s cold and dreary and that hardly sets the mood for welcoming in 2009. I’ve been watching the sky out my window this morning, hoping for sun and a reason to step outside to breathe in your smoky air. Alas, I have spent the time making my tiny room more cozy.

My room is on the 6th floor of my building, technically the 7th for Americans, as the ground floor is considered the first level of a building. I overlook our courtyard, where the bicycle storage is, and what appears to be an elementary school with a large play area. I dont recognize much of the skyline, though I am just a few minutes walk from the Thames and the South Bank area. If I get in the right corner of my window and look as far left as possible, I have a view of top of the London Eye. Currently it is lit up a bright purple at night, which makes it easier to spot from a distance, except on a day like this.

Oh fog, you stink. You make me want to curl up in my newly arrived duvet and snuggle against my Argos delivered pillows. It’s nice to finally have a bed that looks warm and inviting. Instead, I’ll enjoy my tea and scones with set honey and stay put until later tonight when I’ll walk along the riverside to watch what can be seen of the fireworks in your cloudy sky.

Dearest London Town, will you be my date for New Year’s Eve? I promise to blow you a kiss at midnight.

xx

Dear London Town,

I fell in love with you when I was 13. My passport got its first stamp at Heathrow and I got my first taste of jet lag. My sister was studying at Regents College at the time. It was spring break and I was excited about staying in her dorm room and visiting the sights of London.

I had the quintessential tourist experience. I ate fish & chips, fed the birds at Trafalgar Square, took photos in a phone booth and rode a double-decker bus. We wandered through parks and toured Westminster Abbey, Parliament and Big Ben, the Tower of London, and St. Paul’s Cathedral. We visited Covent Garden, the West End theatre district, and strolled along the Thames.

Today, those sights still hold a certain intrigue, though years later the skyline has changed with new buildings designed with modern architecture. I’ve declared since that first visit that some day I would come back here to live. I have wanted time to fully explore this city and all it could possibly offer someone who loves the idea of royal families and Jane Austen, but also finds herself a bit gaga over Burberry and Alexander McQueen. Yes, London, your crazy mixture of stiff upper lip and the avant-garde means that each day will be a new adventure.

I hope that I continue to fall in love with you. And I hope that you’ll love me back.

xx