The musical part of my current visit seems to be cursed by bad weather. It has been sunny and hot most of the time, except for the days in which I went to outdoor events. It started with thunderstorms on the first day of Wireless Festival, and it is wet today, just before I go out for the final day of the festival, but the worst so far was the Coldplay concert at Crystal Palace. It wasn’t the only thing to say about it.

At first, I was amazed by the size of the place. A large athletics stadium in which a lot of people were expected to stand cramped as close as they could to the stage. I later learned that 40,000 people attended the concert. Very impressive, no doubt. Most of those people seemed not to be bothered too much by the rain, but many ran into the covered area as soon as the drops got bigger. Some of the lightening even got loud cheers (for which later Chris Martin thanked the crowed for standing out in the “thunder and lightening, very very frightening”).

The first band that came on was unfamiliar, and I couldn’t hear their name. I still need to look it up, as they were really good and I will probably like to listen to them again. There was something in both their sound and appearance that reminded me of Starsailor.

Then Interpol came up. I was really looking forward to hearing them, and they did not disappoint. It was a shame that people around me did not share my enthusiasm, and it was hard to find a point to stand in which was both comfortable enough and did not have too many people blubbering around me so I can listen properly (and also a point that was dry enough when the rain started again). However, Interpol did not do anything out of the ordinary during the show. It was a bit like listening to the album, except being surrounded by people and getting wet. Maybe if it was them headlining and them that people came to listen to it would have been different. I would like to see them again sometime in a different environment, and a smaller venue.

When Coldplay finally came on, the rain did not disturb anyone anymore. They once again proved that they deserve their audience love as even with the gentle-most melodies, Christ Martin’s amazing energy was reaching the furthest end of the huge stadium.

The show was accompanied by a visual show of lightening and strong rain, but it did not matter. The crowd was up for it. During the more quiet songs everyone lit their mobile phone displays an lifted them in the air. Didn’t it use to be lighters back when I was younger?

Even though the show was great and the music was brilliant, I realized that stadia shows were not the thing for me. I would have enjoyed it more if I would see more than just little characters on a distant stage (and this only after I found an elevated place to stand in), and if I wanted to watch it all on a screen, I might as well have waited for the DVD to come out. Yes, the show was recorded according to the sign, so I guess a DVD should be expected soon. These places are also not designed for high level of acoustics so my home cinema system can probably do better.

All in all, it was wonderful. The music, the atmosphere, the energy. Next time, however, I’m sticking to smaller places.

It feels strange to do all this typing of stuff I wrote in my notebook and then backdate them. It is probably the nearest thing to live blogging I can do. It will be even stranger when I start posting photos, as I haven’t taken many. I took some interesting ones with my phone, but there’s a limit to what I can do with it. E took quite a lot of pictures, and I will probably post some of the ones that he took. (At the moment I’m typing Live into Blogger, by the way, on my of my internet breaks).

Last night’s show was great, but I feel that I need to put more thoughts into writing about it, so I’ll do that quietly into my notebook and post it later. Coming back to my bed at the B&B was hell, though. It took me about two and a half hours! My mum’s flight was very delayed as well, so at least she didn’t have to wait too long for me. We chatted when I got in, and a bit this morning, so now she knows about E too. I am quite happy with the way I told her about him. I just kept putting his name into the conversation, as if it was obvious and she knew exactly who he was. There wasn’t too much of a reaction, and this is good enough for me.

We spent the day walking around in London and doing a bit of shopping. I bought some CD’s that I’m looking forward to listen to, but it will have to wait until I get home. I enjoy being with my mum, but it will be very important for us to spend some time apart, or we will drive each other crazy. At least my mum is someone who would understand if I tell her something like that and won’t just get insulted or something like that.

Not much time left before I get logged off… I’ll keep you posted soon.

A few notes before the Coldplay concert:

1. The Crystal Palace National Sports Centre is a huge venue, which means there will be a lot of people going in here today. It also means the people who manage the place are used to big crowds, so maybe it will be well organized. Maybe there will even be some proper toilets inside.

2. Crystal Palace may be on the ugly side of London, but the sceneries from the hills must be the most beautiful ones. Maybe I should come here again some day with my camera.

3. The forecast for today said thunderstorms. So far it is very sunny and there are only some light clouds up. On the other hand, it is starting to get very windy, so anything could happen. I have my raincoat with me, just in case.

As for other things, it was hard to say goodbye to E. I know I will miss him. Now the busy part of my holiday starts, spending time with my mother, seeing friends and a bit of shopping. I will probably need a few more days off when I get back. I have a strange feeling it is not going to happen.

It is almost the end of our holiday together, and I am already starting to worry about my lack of ability to survive a whole week without E. We had the most wonderful time together, though it probably got to the stage where we need a break from each other. Earlier, I was wondering around the old city of York on my own for about half an hour. It was a relief to finally be on my own, but I also kept thinking about E.

Tomorrow E will be on his way home, and I will stay in the UK for another week. To make it just a little more difficult, my mum will be joining me in London, which means I will probably have to tell her about E. This is something I am very anxious about. I know my mum will be happy to know I have someone in my life who is making me so happy. On the other hand, it will mean the Inquisition will once again open for business… This is something I am not looking forward to, to say the least. I am still not sure how I want to do it… Maybe it will just come to me.

Finally – I am a tourist. I always enjoy going places I’ve never been to before, so now understanding the language spoken around me is just a convenience.

We’ve been having the most wonderful time in Yorkshire. We hired a car, which turned out to be just too big for me to drive, so E had to do all the hard work. We got lost several times on the way to see my friends on our first afternoon and a few more times while traveling around the North Yorkshire Moors yesterday, which only took us to most magnificent places with beautiful scenery. I think every tourist should allow some time for getting lost and finding some lovely unplanned places to visit.

We’re on the 10:30 from Kings Cross to York. After an eventful night, at least for some neighbour’s. It wasn’t too late when I got back to the B&B last night, but after an afternoon at a wet Wireless Festival (More about which will come later), I was totally knackered. I was also slightly dehydrated and a bit hungry which didn’t make things much better. A shower and a big hug were much needed, and shortly after I started nodding off. It did not last for long, as shortly after loud music and shouting filled the air as a party to take off next door. E kept sleeping but I just couldn’t. I kept tossing and turning as my headache grew worse, until finally E was woken up as well, understandably grumpy.

It wasn’t until after 3AM that I could finally get some sleep again. Quite annoying, considering that we had to be up earlier than usual to catch our train. All our hosts could do in the morning was apologize for their neighbour’s rudeness.

We’re expecting to have a nice long day in Yorkshire today, visiting a friend and spending the evening with his family. I hope the Nurofens will have a long enough effect…

Today it is expected to reach 32 degrees. Considering the local no air conditioning situation, we are planning to find a nice cool department store and stay put. Some plans just had to be changed…

Notebook
I finally found a proper notebook. I am not writing in it yet, but it will be put to use soon. I am writing this the old fashioned way, and will be typing it when I can and backdating it. There are a lot of thoughts running through my head which I would like to capture, but for some strange reason, I do not feel the need of going into an Internet Cafe. Considering my addiction it is very strange, but somehow I just don’t feel the need of getting connected to the outside world just yet.

Is There A Place Like Home?
Until not long ago, London used to feel like home. Coming back here used to have this strange feeling of relief, of coming back from a hostile environment to something familiar. Now it no longer feels that way. Coming here is just like coming back to something which is unfriendly in a different way. I don’t know when exactly it changed, or what caused it.

On the other hand, London does not feel like a holiday destination. Coming here, I do not get that excitement of coming to a new, unfamiliar place. There is no thrill of not understanding the language spoken around me, or the need to decrypt direction signs and learn a new culture. London is still very familiar, but not very welcoming anymore.

However, I don’t have much of a homely feeling Israel either. I never have. There are just too many things that I do not like in that place, and I still believe that the only reason I’m still living there is the people close to me. It is my friends and family that I care about, not the location or the local culture.

Saying that, what should I regard as a home? Do I have one at all? This is a very frightening feeling. I am still looking for a place where I will belong.

The Tourist
I love traveling, but for some strange reason I don’t like being a tourist. When traveling, I tend to try and blend in. Maybe being a tourist feels a bit like being a target for anyone who would like to take advantage of foreigners who are unfamiliar with the local customs. Maybe it is just the feeling of being out of place. It always takes me some time to warm up to the idea, which is also the reason it takes some time until I get the courage to pull out my camera and take photos of the world around me. I only took one picture today, and that was with E.’s encouragement. I still need to loosen up a bit.

Pain
My tooth hurts. I just took an Advil, and I hope it will go away soon. Toothache on a holiday is a very very bad thing.

Heat
It has been a very long and tiring day. We walked quite a lot in the London heat. We tried to avoid it by stepping into cafes and shops, but the English have just not grasped the idea of air conditioning yet. Our host, who was brought up in Australia, joked about it at breakfast today. Maybe it is their hanging on to tradition. Air conditioning is just not part of it.

We’re here, on the longest day of the year, and it is quite likely that we will be fast asleep by the time the day will end. We woke up early in Israel time, which means the middle of the night in the UK. No wonder we are so tired now. So far we only managed a short walk around the area we’re staying in and I called a few people, but only got an answer from one. There will be more calls tomorrow, and I am guessing that I won’t see many friends before next week.

I am just happy to be here with E. For both of us it is either the first time, or the first time in many years that we are traveling in a relationship. As I am writing this (first in an old-fashioned pen and paper way), he is next to me in bed, and it feels good not only to finally relax, but to do it with someone I care for so much.

We have all our tickets ready, real ones or E-tickets, flight tickets, train tickets, concert tickets, the lot.
We have all our accommodation sorted, in London and York.
E. bought a lovely new camera.
My work is all covered, with only a few presentations left for the last minute, and documents that should be done by Sunday.
All that is left for us to do is pack our bags, check them in, and fly away.

I am so excited! I can’t wait to go on holiday! I can’t wait to spend a whole week with E.! I can’t wait to see all my friends, catch up on live music and some shopping! This is going to be so good!