I went to London this weekend (no I didn’t see the Queen) and was just hanging out…in the rain…and having a relatively interesting time. Everything was fine until today when I got back to Leamington.

I was coming from the train station and walking down that little road that leads to the bridge when I heard music. It was very loud music and not really recognizable, but what I was mainly wondering was where exactly it was coming from.

As soon as I rounded the corner to come over the bridge, I saw it. Laid out across the grass of the park where the gazebo is were a multitude of tents and food-stands and tons of people milling about. I could smell the food grilling and on the far left side of the field was a large stage-like tent with a band playing.

It looked exactly…and I mean EXACTLY…like the Anchorage Food Festival (and also somewhat like the Girdwood Forest Fair). I swear that for a brief instant, if you had asked me where I was, I would’ve said “Alaska, of course!” Honestly…it was so similar, it actually scared me. Some of the things for sale REALLY reminded me of Girdwood…lots of tye-dye and those knitted caps with the long ends. People in dreadlocks looking like the Girdwood hippes reallly added to the effect as well. And me? Well I found myself suddenly extremely AK-homesick and would have given my right arm just then to be transported back there wandering around downtown Anchorage with Janelle, stopping on 4th Ave to get a reindeer dog and then maybe settling in over at Simon’s for a bottle of cider and some of that really good sourdough we liked so much.

My eyes welled up and I nearly was in tears the whole walk back to my flat. How pathetic am I??? :) As I was walking through the maze of tents, this solicitor started talking to me about some kind of environmental thing I think. Since I was rather emotional and heartsick at that moment, I just looked at him and said, “Ya know, I’m not really interested” and kept walking. I just don’t think I could’ve dealt with someone wanting me to sign a petition right then. Was that rude??

Anyway, I got home and would’ve called Janelle, only I know she was still sleeping and didn’t want to wake her so I thought I’d type it all out instead.