Back from London

Well, it's been over a week since I last posted! Wow! Part of that had to do with spending as much time as I could with SHG before he went back to Houston (boo, hiss on that), and then I was in London all last week for the Geological Society of London meeting on Structurally Complex Reservoirs. It was a good meeting, I will write more on it (well, about it an me professionally, since several things hit me during it) later this week. The weather was very cold but the sun was out!! Yay! I had only seen the sun twice for 5 minutes each since getting back to France in mid-February, so that was a treat. I really like London, and it was the first time there for me in about 4 years. What really struck me is how much more rude the people were this time around than in the past. It will never cease to amaze me how pricey it is as well, although I have been told that Oslo has eclipsed it to become the most expensive city in the world. I thought it was Tokyo. Then again, what do I know, I am just a geologist.

The "highlight" of the trip was the Turkish youth hostel circa 1923 we stayed at in London's West End, right by Piccadilly Circus. What a complete and utter fucking shit hole this three star disaster was. The rooms themselves were quite basic, though I would not call them three star, more like one. The agent our company uses booked us in rooms with shared toilets and showers: fine, this is common in Europe. It was disgusting in the bathrooms. The ceilings of the shower stalls were covered in black mold, and looked only slightly less appealing than the floors. No hot water. I won't get into the toilets. Screaming drunk/high/fucked up people at all hours. Lumpy bed from 1964. All this for 100 Pounds Sterling (about $200) a night. Breakfast not included. In France, the toilets/showers must be en suite to even be two stars. We left after two nights out of four when I needed a shower. The new hotel, The Thistle Westminster a mere two blocks away, was very nice and just fine. No Internet, but just fine otherwise. And at 185 Pounds Sterling, it should be.

I took pictures for the inevitable bitching that will come from Travel tomorrow. I was going to post a couple here, but I decided on some self-censorship in the interest of taste.

So, here are a few lines of text for google to find:
Regent Palace Hotel London
Regent Palace Hotel Piccadilly: Review
Regent Palace Hotel Piccadilly is a fucking shit hole.