Field of Dreams

Today was a very special day for Jacob Backon. On this day July 12'th 2007 I visited and took a tour of Arsenal's stadium. I walked the hallowed halls, sat in the dressing room, in the directors box, and in the away dugout. The pitch was sublime and although the stadium was noticeably devoid of people and players I did see the physio Gary Lewin. I was in his way and he said 'excuse me' as he was leaving the stadium. It took me a minute to realize who he was so I didn't get to say 'hey, you're Gary Lewin' which was of course information he didn't really need :) It was surreal being in the place I have watched on TV and where so many of the players I admire actually do what it is that they do every week. It's strange. The stadium holds 60,000 people 44,000 of whom are season ticket holders. To these people, the stadium is just where the team they watch every week plays. But to someone who lives 4000 miles away and has to watch the games online on some obscure Asian television network or wake up early on a Saturday to catch one of the three televised matches on FSC it is the holy grail of my soccer existence. My next step will of course be to see the team play in this stadium. This was a good warm up though. Direct exposure to an arsenal match without prior experience may have resulted in a heart attack.

So if you haven't figured it out already, I'm in London. Despite this supposedly being an English speaking country I still hear more French and Hindi? Arabic? than English. This is most likely due to July being such a popular travel month. It's still really annoying. I was looking forward to being in an English speaking country again and these bloody foreigners are ruining it :) Seriously though, London is quite nice. Last night I walked along the Thames and the weather was gorgeous. I have been loathe to do much since everything is so ridiculously expensive, but I read an article today that says a strong currency is a precursor to economic collapse so I'm expecting the country to fall into shambles any second. Today the weather was less nice and I have developed a scratchy throat and a dull burn behind the eyes. I'm a little worried I might be getting (S - I - C - K) which would be really annoying so I've been chugging blueberry juice and taking it easy. I guess I'll go on the Jack the Ripper walk next time I visit the city. It could of course be allergies as it is rather humid here but I've done the one thing I really came to this country to do so why risk it.

I am thoroughly tired of cities at this point (today is the official half-way point of the trip). I go to Paris tomorrow but not even the allure of this thoroughly romantic city makes me want to stay. I'll be there one night and then head to Switzerland. I have a feeling Switzerland will be uber crowded as my guidebook and my inability to find lodging for under 200 euro's a night has suggested. So I might just soldier on to Croatia where it will hopefully be less crowded and my money will be worth more. Right now I would love to find a quiet little place and spend a few days just relaxing. The Dalmatian coast is supposed to be beautiful so this would be ideal.

So the next few days will be spent primarily on trains. It's a long way to Croatia and I have to make sure I get to Northern Germany in time for my flight so while I have 14 days left travel time seriously cuts into that. I have definitely learned a lot about traveling. One of the disappointing things has been that, unless you want to camp out everywhere you go, travel is not designed for going without a set in stone plan, at least in the summer. Perhaps if I had gone during a less popular time of year I would have had more freedom but my options at this point are limited. Well, that has been part of the learning experience. I'm not sure where I'll be when I next write but keep checking!