Grocery Shopping

I got up this morning, and was craving some tea. Not just any crap tea that I could purchase at countless corner markets, but actual Yorkshire Gold tea. Were I to be considered an actual "tea drinker," surely Yorkshire Gold would be my tipple of choice. Since as aforementioned, no corner store carried this particular brand, I decided to take a walk down the road to Sainsbury's, which is a big grocery store. Confusingly enough, I guess it's more like a Target now, since they had clothes too.

Anyways, it was about a 20 minute walk or so, at least a mile away. It's kind of hard to explain exactly where I'm staying in relation to the end of the city, but were you to walk down Mile End road towards the Thames, you'd run more or less right into the above building, designed by Norman Foster. I think it's kind of interesting to juxtapose the sleekness of that building, the business-y grandeur of it with the surroundings just up the road. We're seemingly right in the middle of a fairly large immigrant neighborhood, probably mostly Indian and Middle Eastern. There are a ton of halal food shops, and there are lots of men and women in Muslim looking hats, robes, and headscarves. Right down the way from our school, near the grocery store, there is a huge open air market, with people selling food, clothing, household goods, etc. If it wasn't for all the English signs, you might think you were in Islamabad or something.

It all goes to show that there are a plethora of people in this city, just as in any city. Lots of different people trying to make a life.

Needless to say, it's interesting to see this other side of London, the lived in side. You definitely don't expect postcards from immigrant street markets selling halal chicken doner kebabs.

It was fun to go grocery shopping. Since I didn't really have to open my mouth, I could just take in the pleasure of being another person in this city, surrounded by the masses. Just like so many others, all I wanted was my mf-ing tea.