You wouldn't know me when the pressure kicks in.

Buildings and cars

It has been about 5 years, but I have finally made it back to London.  Not much has changed.  People are still rude, Brits are still a minority and the streets are still dirty.  It was good to be back.
In preparation for the 2012 olympic games the city has now constructed signs and maps that indicate where you are in relation to other major attractions.  Odd that city officials hadn't thought of this extremely helpful public service earlier.  Now I am able to think of this city in terms other than the tube map.
I had initially intended to buy a "flight" on the London Eye, but it was closed due to cold weather.  I think it was about 4ºC, which didn't seem very cold compared to Malmö.  But apparently it has been England's coldest December in 100 years (since 1910 - 100 years exactly).

Attempting to visit Piccadilly and Oxford Circus 2 days before christmas was a big mistake.  Even though the city revamped the bus system in terms of requiring a ticket before boarding, it was still an incredibly slow means of transport.  Regent street was a mess, but I randomly heard a girl end her phone conversation with "Hej, hej..."  I asked if she was Swedish, but no dice.  Finnish - burn.  

Adverts for products I don't use or consume

I noticed a new feature in several places around the city (which appeared to be funded by HSBC) where you could "hire" a bicycle from a rack and pedal it around the city.  Then when you are finished, simply return it to the closest bike rack.  I thought this was a great idea, except for the fact that I didn't understand how to unlock a bike.  In replace of a coin slot there was a key pad.  Apparently you must obtain a key code somehow to use this feature.
You are half way there London.

Squeaky doors and leaky pipes

I went to see my old neighborhood before I boarded my train to Leicester.  It has actually undergone very rapid urban renewal and a rather welcome degree of gentrification.  Woodgreen seems like a decent place to live now.  I doubt I would consider moving back there, but it would be nice if that neighborhood had cleaned up 5 years earlier.