Operatic Bookends (Gonzo Writeup)

How to finish a glorious trip. Go see Phantom of the Opera...

I'm back in Halifax after catching a quick flight to London on Ryan Air, then 2 nights and a day in the big city, followed by the flight back across the Atlantic to good old Halifax, a place I love.

I started the trip in Dublin with a museum and an opera. Finished the trip in London with a museum (Tate Britain) and 'The Phantom'. Filled the middle with walking and beer. The first night in London coincided with the UEFA Champion's League final between Barcelona and Arsenal. I had been following the series for a few months and with the English papers, so was quite keen to see this in London. If Ireland is full of Polish people, London is full of Spanish people.

Spent the evening in a local pub with about 1/4 of the crowd being Spanish (and hoping for Barcelona), the rest Arsenal fans. Sort of glad Barcelona won, as the Spanish crowd was realy quite emotional. My hostel was full of Spanish folks and I got to talk with quite a few of them (plus a Hungarian, Croat, German, South African and Pole)

The RyanAir flight from Shannon to London Gatwick went fine. On time, cheap and worth doing again. Stayed in a hostel that didn't take people over 50. (Huh?) Good thing I'm only....42

Time to let this stuff soak in a bit, sort of the pictures and do a proper writeup to post on the Gonzo page

Cheers. Bruce