First Week!

Typical Red Phonebooths

I survived! And yes, it was crazy. Hectic, non-stop, stressful, etc. But also fun. Yay! I've meet people and seen things and stuff, but there's always more people to meet and things to see!

I'll start from the beginning, I suppose.

I got off the plane and customs/immigration was a nightmare. Not really, it was fine. It just took forever. And considering I slept for about an hour on the plane, I was exhausted and rather cranky. But not hungry, because they seem to want to feed you every five seconds on international flights. I sat in the very middle of the plane (of course) with two other girls from my program and one woman called Liz who is about 27. Anyway, we got to talking because she had studied abroad in London when she was in college and was suuuper helpful. She wrote down a bunch of stuff we absolutely had to do and was very open about her experiences. It was apparently life-changing, etc. and she was in fact returning to the UK to attend the wedding of a friend she met while studying there. Cool! She was lovely, and gave lots of good advice.

From the airport we were transported via coach bus into the city itself, which took maybe an hour. Traffic sucks here too! We arrived at our hotel, the St. Giles off of Tottenham Court, and I promptly took a nap. I'm still suffering from jet lag, probably because I napping. We went out to dinner and then strolled down Oxford window shopping. It was a nice, relaxed first evening and I got in touch with all of the people that are studying at Westminster with me. There are about 100 kids in total studying with the IFSA program, but all studying at different universities. There are about 20 of us at Westminster, and probably 10 in my building. Anyway.

The next day was full of meetings. We talked about culture shock, safety in the city, differences between the UK and US academic systems, and politics. Well, we didn't really talk, we listened. For a whole day. Which would have been awful except for the fact that I'm still totally not over the accent thing and all of the program directors are really entertaining. That evening, we went to the theater! We saw Wicked, which was wonderful. My seat was in the balcony, so I got to see the dragon this time (mom!).

Trafalgar Square

Friday was more meetings. And then a walking tour! 30 of us followed a small British woman around town for 2 hours, and it was actually enjoyable. She was great. Promised no history, and told us all the places the "young people" like to go. We walked through the theater district, Picadilly Circus, Covent Square and Trafalgar Square. Haven't made it out to Big Ben and Parliament yet, but that's on the list for this week. We went up a cute little cobblestone way called Neal Street, which had really cool shops (and shoes). I'll definitely try to find it again. Also went through China town, which is apparently always beautifully decorated and smelled AMAZING. Going back for dinner some time.

Big Ben from Afar!

Saturday! Was move-in day. I really just bummed around all day because we couldn't move into the building until after 2 pm. Lame. But we did have to check out of the hotel at 10:30. Getting all my stuff down the stairs was a nightmare. The elevators here are all AWFUL for some reason. They are really unreliable and they break down like every five seconds. And they're slow. And cramped.

But I do like it here! I like how efficient everyone is, and how polite and orderly, for the most part. Everyone stands on the right side of the escalator. Everyone stands in a neat line for anything at all. No throwing elbows to get on the train or the bus, etc. The city itself is also stunning. Such wonderful architecture everywhere, and such history. It's also very easy to navigate. Simple transportation systems that operate very reliably, though SO expensive. Anyway.

Shower on the Left

Needs Decorations

My room is very small, but cozy. Everything is new and in really good condition. The kitchen is wonderful. And I get my own bathroom! But it reminds me of an airplane, except with a shower. But the VIEW is amazing. Amazing. Only downside to city dorms is all the rules. Really tight security. My keycard won't even let me into the other hall on my floor. It's crazy. My room is inspected for cleanliness like twice a semester or something. And the policy for overnight guests is a little strict (I'll figure it out, Eric.) 

View From the 9th Floor

 But yeah! Otherwise, I am good and happy etc. I even have friends! Here they are:

So sorry about the long post. It's been a long week! Next one soon. Probably full of me stressing about how much I have to buy and how expensive it all is. It'll be a fun read.

LOVE YOU ALL! xox