Welcoming the spring: Ioannina

Easter break at Ioannina, northwest of Greece.

Η λίμνη Παμβώτιδα των Ιωαννίνων - Lake Pamvotis of Ioannina

The Vikos Gorge (Greek: Φαράγγι του Βίκου) listed as the deepest gorge in the world by the Guinness Book of Records

I am dreaming of London

 

Sometimes I think that I will open my eyes in the morning and I will still be in my flat at Angel, North London. I would take a quick shower, grab a toast and filter coffee and then rush off to work in the red double-decker bus. I would spend a good 8-hours work in the lab, doing experiments, reading papers and occasionally have a break and catch up with my colleagues. At about five o'clock, I would eat my cereal bar, change in my gym gear and put on my trainers. That was the best part of my day. I would plug in my iPod tunes and rush out on the streets, starting from Old street, pass from the Monument and on to the London Bridge. 

The sun would be setting, painting the sky and clouds with magical colours, I would take a deep breath and look at the HMS Belfast, the Tower Bridge and the glass City Hall. The bankers and consultants of the City dressed in their expensive suits would be hurrying on the streets, checking their emails on Blackberry or talking business on the iPhone. Some tourists would be having their photos taken with a view of the Tower in the background. I would just keep running to the beat, enjoying being part of this city, of this scenery, feeling right at the centre of the world. 

I would run all across South Bank in parallel with river Thames while people would be  having a drink or two in the pubs. I would run until the Millennium Bridge being overlooked by St Paul's Cathedral and then make my way back to the gym for a refreshing shower and sauna. 

I would return exhausted back home to Angel on my own in an empty room. My laptop would be waiting on my desk to connect me to the other side of the world and through the screen in my parents' house. I would feel lonely and miserable for a while. The loud sirens from passing ambulances or police cars on the street would disrupt my silence to remind me that I was living in the busiest city of the world...