Day 78
Location 16: London
Jan. 17, 2023
Without fail, every famous European sight–the Eiffel Tower, the Berlin Wall, and Mona Lisa–share a single characteristic: they're engulfed by tourists with a raised hand, clutching a phone, struggling to capture a photo for which thousands of iterations already exist.
This phenomenon is documented by Instagram accounts (like this one) that share collages of similar, typical photos taken by tons of people. Collages of common scenes like "a goat cheese salad, a backlit hammock" or "a dreamcatcher bought from Urban Outfitters"¹. The inadvertent uniformity of the human race is both comforting and unsettling.
Atop London's Sky Garden views, this phenomenon persists. These people are pathetic. Unable to be present and enjoy the world in front of them, they settle for a facade of the view via a 6.06" screen to acquire future self-validation from peers they don't respect. I would never! I think to myself as I lift my 6.06" phone to snap a few photos. Luckily I have a blog to write, so none of that applies to me! I pathetically lie to myself.
Tonight marked city number 6 in my side-quest to play basketball in as many cities as possible. However, this marks the first time I've played in an organized, competitive, indoor, full-court, 5-on-5 game. It was magical. Immediately a top-3 moment of the trip, which to the layman might sound like the trip is going poorly. That's not the case. I just really, really, really like playing basketball.
Teaser For Tomorrow!
All the guys were really nice, and some of us exchanged our excitement for my return the following week. However, nobody knew I'd be looking a little different in my second appearance...check out Day 79 for the explanation behind the previous sentence and the gif below.
