Where I'm At With All This London Business

First and foremost, I am happy to report that I received my visa. Since everything was "airmailed" between downtown Chicago and the suburb of Chicago where I live, the process only took a couple of days. (I highly doubt anything was actually airmailed because that would be completely illogical.) The visa looks like a large sticker on the first "visas" page of my passport, and even includes my picture in a fashion that somewhat resembles the image of the Virgin Mary. The funny thing is that when I first reviewed the visa, I got very confused because the dates are written in the British fashion, so my visa is valid from 5/1/09 to 1/5/09.

Also...BIG NEWS...I will be interning at Stella McCartney this spring!!! I'm excited because her brand is a big name in fashion, and also includes perfumes and organic skincare! Since I want to hopefully work in the beauty industry post-graduation, this internship should give me great experience. I just hope that marketing will not be extremely over-my-head challenging, since I need to consider that I will be working at a high-end line in the middle of a financial crisis.

My grandfather saved this article for me to read today about the frugality Brits are turning to. It was quite interesting from a marketing perspective. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-london-austerity_goeringdec21,0,5440042.story

Also, I am now the proud owner of several new travel books to occupy my time! My aunt and uncle bought me Lonely Planet's Europe on a Shoestring for Christmas, which I requested. I feel the book can help me decide what travel destinations I am most interested in, how to get there, where to stay, and where to eat. Also, my uncle let me borrow three Barron's combination phrase books/travel dictionaries in Italian, French, and German.

Finally, I have created a packing list, to-do list, and list of tips to remember that I gathered from myself, my family, the Arcadia website, and the Samantha Brown website on http://www.travelchannel.com/. My packing list is very comprehensive and already includes 117 items. I feel like 117 will be A LOT. I'm not sure how to pair down yet, but I smell a suitcase purge in my future.

I am still having problems with figuring out what luggage to bring and what cell phone service I will need across the pond. My Dad and I did some research today and determined that Virgin Atlantic requires that I only bring two bags, with each weighing no more than 50 pounds and each having combined dimensions of 62 inches (the sum of height, weight, and depth).

Since my last entry it was also determined that I will be taking a Virgin Atlantic flight instead of an American flight. I will be cancelling my American flight reservation tomorrow morning.

A lot has happened in the past week. It is all very exciting. This coming week I am expected to find out where I will be living, which will be interesting. Until next time, cheers!

Eliz

Preparation To Attend University Abroad

So I am accepted to go to London. Very great. But I thought I'd blog really quickly about some of the prep work that goes into studying abroad in London.

First, I have had to write many essays this semester. I believe I needed six for the actual application. Then, I've written some for scholarships, my homestay form, and other various required Arcadia University forms. Plus, there are many online and snail mail forms that need to be completed. Studying abroad requires a lot of paperwork. I can't imagine what it would be like to apply to study in America if you are from another nation! I have a new respect for the people who fill out all the paperwork to get a US visa or green card.

On a new note, I'm having some issues with what to pack. I will probably be one of those people who pack too much and have suitcases too heavy to lift. However, at the moment, I do not want to "waste" my money on buying everything I need in London when my money could instead be spent on travelling. In my eyes, I have a lose-lose situation concerning whether to pack as much as possible or buy as much as possible. With that, I am also at a loss as to what styles of luggage I need - duffles, backpacks, spinner suitcases, etc.

I should additionally note that I leave for London in about a month and a half and I still do not know where I will be living or where I will be working. With that, I have been approved to take certain classes at City University, but I will not be scheduled for them until I meet with my advisor once I get to London. Therefore, I will not know whether I will have a three or two day weekend until after I arrive.

I have yet to figure out how I am going to do my banking while I am there. However, I was told to get a pay-as-you-go cell phone plan, because apparently they are notably more commonplace in England than in America. I heard you can even fill up your minutes at gas stations! Kinda random.

The last thing I want to mention is that I am having a difficult time deciding what travel guidebooks to take (and how many). Right now, I am leaning towards a pocket London book, a large London book (probably my Fodors London 2008 book), a large Great Britain book, and a large Europe book. However, those are a lot of books with a lot of weight. Also, it is very hard for me to figure out which Great Britain and Europe books would be best to bring because I keep getting conflicting recommendations (including from online reviewers). I have no idea who to trust about which guidebooks are best (and the least heavy).

Sustainable Night Club

A new eco-friendly night club opened this week in London. Here is an article about it: http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSL0934834320080710?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0

I'd want to check it out when I'm there next. Also, the article gives the names of two night clubs that the princes frequent. I wonder how expensive those are.

Westminster Abbey, Tea at Jolly Hotel, Souvenier Shopping, and My Flight Home

I'm writing this from Tucson way after-the-fact, but I feel like I need to finish talking about the last two days of my trip.

I decided to include a picture of the door to our flat.

So...we slept in very late on Tuesday morning and got a late start. Then, as we arrived at the tube stop, we realized they had it gated off and there were security guards standing in front of it. We really wanted to make it to Westminster via tube because it was pre-paid, so we asked what was going on. Apparently just one stop west of ours, someone had "fallen" in front of the train. I actually was really affected by that news. I had heard of that happening on the railroad tracks in Chicago, but it was never that close to me. I easily could have been on that train, or even seen it happen. That affected my emotions for a couple hours. Apparently it happens pretty frequently in London, accordinding to our airport cab driver. I can't imagine a more selfish and visual way to go. Not only do you take your own life, but you traumatize everyone who watches from the platform and the conductor to a point they may never recover, and you ruin the commute of thousands of people (since it happened at Monument station that has three or four train lines). I couldn't even decide if I'd rather think someone accidentally fell or really committed suicide.

So we were told to take the number 15 bus to Westminster instead, since our Oyster cards would still work with the bus system. So we go to the stop and a ton of other people are there. There was a boy from Kentucky (highschooler?) with his grandmother who randomly started talking to us who was also going to Westminster. We couldn't figure out which bus to take, since they were all labelled 15, and once everyone at the stop decided to get on one, not everyone could fit. Apparently the boy's grandmother got on the bus and he didn't make it. So he started freaking out since they didn't have a way to contact each other, and he got on the next bus with us. We didn't know what to do. We got off at St. Paul's Cathedral because the bus driver told us we should transfer to number 11. So then I randomly asked the boy if his grandmother would have gone back to Tower of London to find him again. Apparently it dawned on him that she would have done that, so he bolted away, crossed the street without looking very well, and got on a bus going the other direction. It was extremely weird, but I hope he found her.

So we got on a double-decker and rode it to Westminster. We rode on bottom, so I can't tell you what riding on top is like. But when we got to the bus stop, we walked along-side the Parliament building until we reached Westminster Abbey. FYI...it's another place that a student should bring his or her ID, because you get a discount. I forgot mine at the flat and felt bad.

Westminster Abbey is so cool! You can't take pictures anywhere inside the abbey, so I have no photographic proof that I went there. You get a map and an audio guide when you walk in. However, there's a ton to see there, so the audio guide kinda gets old fast as you get crowded in among all the people in the chaples listening to the same thing very loudly in languages you don't understand.

There are several highlights to the abbey, though. I really enjoyed Elizabeth 1's tomb because the audio guide said the face plate was molded from her real death mask and is the most accurate portrayal of what she looked like. She had a rounded, bent nose.

I think it's so weird that queens would have their tombs made to look how they wanted themselves to look instead of how they really looked back a long long long time ago. Where they really that insecure that they wanted to go down in history as looking like someone else? I also really enjoyed the different things they had with King Edward 1...like the coronation chair he stole from the Scots that is still used today. Yeah, that's my bloody and conquering great-something grandfather for ya. Another cool thing is that I saw the oldest door in England...from the 1000's. Also, there's a really cool circular room that has very old paintings on the walls and is a place where monks would sit in the mornings. Finally, make sure to go to the gardens. The oldest cultivated garden in England is there, and you can only go on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays the audio tour said. It's pretty. Here's a picture of me pretending to listen to my audio tour in the "college garden":


So we went through the entire abbey and never found King Edward 1's tomb. The abbey was closing up, but we decided to ask to see if someone could tell us where it was at least. We were pointed by an old woman in a green robe to a monk (I know they're called something else now) who helped us out. He actually un-did all three gates that had been closed up in order to show us. The reason why we missed it was because his tomb was just a large box. According to the monk, Edward 1 willed himself to be moved from his plain tomb in the abbey to Edinbourgh as soon as England counquered Scotland. However, England's never conquered Scotland so he remains in his non-ornate box. I also saw the tomb of his wife, Eleanor, which actually has a statue on top. The monk said that's most likely not what she looked like but how she wanted to look. The best part about the whole thing was that he took us into a chaple that's closed to the public in order to see the tombs up close instead of from the walkway. I think it was called Saint Edward the Confessor's Chapel. I felt priviledged.

After Westminster was closing, we decided to go try to find a place where we could get high tea. We stumbled upon a hotel a few blocks away that turned out to be beautiful. It was called the Jolly Hotel I believe. We ordered tea and I found out I actually like English tea with milk. Usually I hate black teas. But my heritage is British so it makes sense I suppose. We drank tea and ate almost all of our pastries, sandwiches, and scones. Overall, it was a terrific experience.

The hotel was really cool too! It had a gorgeous ceiling, and when we read about it's history, the pamphlet said there is an underground tunnel connecting it to the House of Parliament. That is because Lords and Representatives have stayed there often over the years. However, the tunnel is closed now it said. Sad. But exploring the rest of the hotel was fun, and they had a fake Number 10 Downing Street which I think was someone's office. Of course, I had to take a picture with it since I'd never get that close to the real Number 10 Downing Street.

After we left the hotel, we walked to Trafalgar Square where we found souveneir shops that were still open (many things close early there). We bought a lot because the prices were pretty reasonable.

The next morning, I woke up at 3:30 in order to leave by 4:50 for the airport. It was so early, but I didn't feel tired because it was like I took a rejuvenating nap. However, I DID get tired on the plane and slept most of the ride home. I had wanted to watch another movie, but I just ended up watching the end of Penelope. I wish I had watched the whole thing because it's not something I'd probably spend money on renting, especially since I know the end. But I really wish I knew what happened in the beginning. Overall, though, the actual flight itself was uneventful. However, going through Heathrow airport is a nightmare. Even at 5am the baggage check line took forever. Then we had to go through tons more security then I went through in America. Then, I walked through the duty-free shopping where I wish I could have spent more time (haha I'm such a girl). But we had to go because it takes FOREVER to walk through Heathrow. They literally told us to give 2o minutes for our walk to our gate. Then, once we got to our gate, we had to go through security AGAIN. It was overwhelming and I never once had anyone in England stamp my passport. I question if passport stamps are a thing of the past.

Ok that's all I can think of now about my trip to England. If I think of more pointers or things to remember, I may post again. Until later, cheers!

Tower of London, Harrods, and Chinese Food

Since 2:30 today when I last blogged (but didn't finish), I went to the Tower of London, Harrods, and to a Chinese restaurant. I will write about them later, but for now I'm going to bed. It's almost 12:30 am and tomorrow I will be going to Westminster Abbey.

-updated-
Let's start with the Tower of London. I liked it a lot, especially because I've recently watched Elizabeth: The Golden Age and The Other Bolyn Girl, where both movies have main characters that stayed/were beheaded in the Tower of London. Next time I go, though, I want to go on a complete tour by a beefeater (who I learned are very noteworthy retired armymen who can actually live on the Tower of London complex). Julia wasn't liking it much because he talked about a lot of the gorey history...but I kinda got in to it. However, we kinda decided to explore for half of it. I went to see where Sir Walter Raligh stayed for 13 years and began his book, The History of the World (which is there in a glass case). I also got to see where the young princes stayed...there was a whole exhibit devoted to the mystery of their murders.

A cool thing about the complex is that they have a glass monument that's supposed to be on the spot where all the famous beheadings took place. Not that I think that the beheadings are cool at all...but I really like the mood the artist decided to make for the scene. There's a pillow on top of two glass circles: one circle is a list of the names of the famous people who died here (who sometimes weren't guilty but just fell in disfavor of the monarch), and the other glass circle had a prayer for their souls.

Also in the grounds, there is a British soldier who guards the door to some important governor-type guy's house who lives at the Tower of London. Then, there's a really cool chapel that we got to go in when we were back with the tour. It holds tribute to the many people who died at the Tower of London, and you can only get married there if you were baptised there...and the only people that can be baptised there are grandchildren of beefeaters. So I'm guessing it's an honor to be baptised and married there, since it means your grandfather served the country with high honor, but I still think it would be weird to be in the presence of people who were beheaded while saying your vows.

The last cool thing I saw at the Tower of London was the crown jewels. I picked out the one I want on the off chance that everyone in England dies and my connection to Edward 1 gets me crowned. It's this cool sable with a giant diamond on the top. I'm not quite sure what I'll use it for yet, but I'm sure I can find some daily use for a heavily bejeweled staff. Oh- word of advice: don't plan on buying anything at the Tower of London gift shop unless you want to drop way more money than whatever the item is worth. Think about your willingness to pay for every object...then multiply it by four (which partly includes the unfavorable exchange rate) and you'll get the prices at the many Tower of London gift shops.

Also- note to students: bring your student ID to every tourist attraction where you have to pay money. Many of them give student discounts to full-time students (which really add up).

After the Tower of London closed and we had to go, we grabbed an ice cream cone at Ben & Jerry's right outside the complex. We decided it wasn't too late to go to Harrods, so we hopped on the tube at Tower Hill and be-bopped over to Harrods via one line change. The tube stop ended right next to Harrods...which was awesome because you basically walk out of the tube and walk right in.

Harrods was beautiful! The aesthetics they've mastered are noteworthy. However, the frugle shopper that I am, I decided to do a price comparison. I went to the Origins counter (since I have all of those prices memorized) and found that with the currency conversion, you'd pay $50 for a $36 exfoliator. From that price, I concluded that everything in the store I could buy in America for cheaper, so I decided not to buy a thing. I'm pretty cost-conscious on this London trip, because I'd rather save up for travel expenses when I come back next spring. So, instead of making a purchase, we took pictures. I got a picture with the giant bear in the gift shop that would take up my entire room in Hinsdale. We also went to the Princess Diana memorial...which was really awkward to take a picture at because I'm just smiling and it's a really sad memorial. Finally, the last thing to mention about Harrods is their bathrooms. They're so cool! Very nice and you can spray yourself with purfume. I was all over that, and spritzed myself with some Valentino rose-something-or-other purfume that smelled amazing. I'm sure it was unthinkably expensive.

We left to go home when Harrods closed, and were very hungry. We wondered a little bit to find food, since most places stop serving food really early in London. Even pubs stop serving food at 9! But we finally found a classy Chinese food place that was open. I ordered my chicken in black bean sauce, and it was delicious until I ate a super hot chile (with its seeds) that I thought was a tomato and wasn't supposed to be in there. I downed three glasses of water in thirty seconds, and the waitors weren't understanding that I needed refills immediately. I was crying and laughing and I felt like my tongue was covered in a layer of acid. However, it started subsiding after about four minutes. It hurt to eat for about ten minutes, and then I started tolerating the pain more and more until it was all gone. I'd never done that before, and I can't understand how those crazy Americans eat their hot chile peppers. Eating out is so expensive in London, by the way. If you're trying to conserve money, only do it if you have to.

One more thing I'll mention before I stop. It is very rare to find paper towels in any public or restaurant bathroom in London. It's a very hand-dryer friendly place. So...you might want to carry a little tissue (both kleenex and toilet paper) with you if you plan on going to pubs or other less-nice places in case they're out of toilet paper. You don't want to be cought with nothing at all.

London Eye, Camdon Lock, City University, Buckingham Palace, and lunch in The City

It's 2:15 on Monday, and I have a lot to write about. I was so tired when I got home last night that I didn't feel like blogging and wanted to go straight to bed.

So yesterday Julia and I took the tube from Tower Hill (where we've finally found the quickest way into the station, versus the first few days we crossed the street several times which is actually unnecssary because of a closer entrance) to Embankment and then switched to the Northern line and took it to Waterloo station. The trip was very easy. Luckily we bought tickets in advance online because the eye was PACKED. I mean, we went on a sunny Sunday so I should have expected it. But even though we already bought tickets, we probably stood in line for a good 45 minutes. My legs got very tired. Julia, being the positive person that she is, kept saying that it's just like as if we were at Disney World, so we just have to put up with the crowds and the waits and enjoy the experience. For anyone else, I'd recommend going on a week day.

I definitely could see why they said to come on a sunny day, though! The views were amazing! You can see so far. I took a video which I will try to post back home when my internet connection is better. Basically, you are in a big glass time-capsule-looking room with ~24 other people. There's a bench in the middle, but with so many people it's almost impossible to sit down and still see. The aerial pictures you can take are wonderful, and you can see the river Thames (pronounced tems) very well because you're just circling above it. We had the misfortune of having someone in our car with BO, but it wasn't a trip spoiler or anything. Overall, it was really cool and I have several pictures. Here's several for you to enjoy:











After the eye, we took the Northern line up to Camdon Street, where we had read about the Camdon Lock market that goes on every weekday. I'd never been to a market before, which became obvious when I thought that the stores right outside of the tube station were the market. Julia knew better, though. She asked a man at ALDO (I had to stop in because they were having a sale...but it was packed) where the market was. When we walked there, I definitely realized why she wanted to take me to one. It was REALLY cool! It's located right along a canal, and there are all these jewelry, scarfs, crafts, and other art stands to enjoy. There's fun ethnic restaurants, too. I didn't buy anything because of how much money everything was, but I'd love to go back when I have more money to spend (it wasn't EXPENSIVE per say, but I'd rather save up for traveling). Overall, it was great to experience a European market like that.
*my comment: it was nothing like the markets in Nogales. The vendors put a lot less pressure on you, and it's very laid back and cultural.


After leaving the market, which closed at 6, I went to a London shop and bought a really cool sweatshirt I saw from the sidewalk on my walk through town from the tube stop to Camdon Lock. In fact, it was so cool that Julia decided she wanted to buy the same one. Then she also bought a similar one for Alexa since we knew she'd be jealous. So now we get to be the funny matching family.

***I will edit more later. It's time to go to the Tower of London!***

-updated-
After we went to Camdon Lock, we took the tube from Camdon to Old Street, which we thought was the closest stop to City University - where I would take classes when I study abroad next spring. I now know that I would advise anyone traveling to not assume that you will find something if it is not on your map. City University was just off the map on each map that we were carrying and every map in the tube stations. Luckily, a woman directed us to go back to the previous tube stop, Angel, which was slightly closer to City. However, when we got off at Angel we still couldn't find it. Where it said City was on my map didn't even exist. So we went to get Thai food at a restaurant we found.

While eating some yummy Thai food, we decided to ask the couple sitting two tables away from us if they knew how to get to City. The man smiled and said that he used to work there for 10 years. Lucky us! They literally were the only other people in the restaurant other that a foreign couple. Fate was on our side. He directed us, and when we set out we actually found the campus! It's rather small, but pretty. The buildings are brick and Northampton square looks very old, in a good way. After we walked around the square where the campus is, we decided to head home because it was getting dark and we don't like to ride the tube at night.

Then, the next morning we woke up early enough to get to Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard! We got there about 45 minutes early and still couldn't see well. I'd recommend to anyone that they get there over an hour early and sit on a curb along the cobblestone street. Also, preferably get a curb closer to the palace unless you want the palace in the background of your pictures. But the closer you are to the palace the more things you're likely to see. Luckily, even though I couldn't see over the tall Asian-Americans in front of me, I was able to raise my arm up to take a clear video every time the soldiers marched by. One more thing you should remember, though: make sure you give yourself enough time to watch the whole ceremony. I had no idea the ceremony lasts an hour or more!! We had to leave half way through so I could make it to my lunch with Candace. Since we couldn't see well, we weren't totally bummed about leaving anyway.

We took the tube back to Tower Hill and walked back to the flat. I had pleanty of time to find Caffe Nero, where I was supposed to meet Candace. But, since Julia wanted to work, I decided to go find it about a half hour early just in case I couldn't. Of course, I found it right away so I ordered a mocha (which they covered in whipped cream...all of which I scraped off because it was taller than the amount of coffee they gave me. Tip to remember: if they ask if you want cream, it means WHIPPED cream and LOTS of it). Then, I sat in the window, people watched, and did the one thing I know you're not supposed to do in public- counted my money. Basically, I did that because 1.) I felt a little safer in the financial district that no one was really looking at me and everyone was just trying to get to their next meeting, 2.) I wanted to know how much money I had left to see if I needed to cash my last traveler's check at HSBC right next door, and 3.) I wanted to look at my coins cuz I had no idea what was what. It worked out, too, because I ended up being able to lighten my wallet by paying for my entire lunch in coins when Candace came.

Meeting with Candace was really cool. I got to hear all about where she had gone and what her life was like studying at City and working in her internship in The City (the financial district). Even though she probably thought I was asking way too many questions, she really helped me get a feel for what she was experiencing. I hope the rest of her time in London turns out as cool as what she's experienced so far!

One more quick thing I want to put out there before I take off- I haven't figured out whether I need to tip cab drivers or not in London. Greg told me no, and our cab driver from the airport said he didn't expect a tip, but I read in my travel book that they expect a 10% tip. That's definitely something I need to figure out.

The English Riviera...Brighton!

We took a day trip to Brighton this morning. It was so easy! We had to take two tube lines and then the train...but I swear it wasn't bad at all. The trip from London Bridge Station to Brighton is pretty short, too. About an hour.

Brighton is a seaside tourist town, as well as a heavily gay community. I enjoyed it a lot because it had a lot of character. It was kind of a combination of the New Jersey Boardwalk and Boystown in Chicago. It's fairly easy to navigate, too, once you get a map in the Visitors Center in the train station.

One weird thing was that we had to pay 20 pence to go to the bathroom in the train station. I refused to pay so I waited for a restaurant. There's no way I'd ever pay to enter a bathroom unless it was extremely necessary.

Also, there's parts of Brighton that are really cool and other parts that aren't so cool. And you have to walk to the cool parts. But the Brighton Pier is fun. The beach is completely covered in rocks, so be prepared for not walking barefoot. The pier basically resembles a carnival, with junk food and lots of rides. It's a very summer-fun atmosphere.

There's a group back alley streets in Brighton called "The Lanes" that have narrow passageways that lead to different shops and restaurants. There's a ton of jewelry stores, some name brand clothes, and then some fun/funky stores. There are a lot of restaurants, too. We ate at one of the MANY Italian restaurants. I love that portions are smaller in the UK...cuz I can finally finish my plate.

The first place we went to was the Brighton art museum. It was cool, but not the most interesting thing in Brighton. I'd recommend doing that last on a trip to Brighton if you have time.

We also went to the Pavilion, which is an Asian-influenced castle built by George IV on the site of a barn he had a good time at with his mistress. It's really different - the place is decorated with dragons everywhere. They do an audio tour which I recommend. I actually found it interesting, but it's long since the palace is so big. I also recommend getting tea and cherry pie (there's other treats too but I loved the cherry pie) in the Victoria tea room. We sat out on a balcony of the palace and overlooked the grounds. It was an amazing atmosphere.

After the tour of the palace we also went to the grounds and meandered through the English gardens and sat on the lawn. Then, we ate at a Pavilion food stand, where there was a live band playing. It was really fun enjoying the music and people watching. Got to see a lot of gay couples- and one had a two-year-old kid that was dressed ridiculously (red and white striped leggings, patterned wellies, graphic tee, and a fur-lined coat vest). Loved it. Here's a video from the grounds.



My second strange bathroom experience for the day was that there was a male bathroom attendant just chilling in the women's bathroom. Like, he'd just chill and monitor all the women in the bathroom. Also, a woman came in with her 10-ish year old son. Come on...he's a little old for that.

Overall, I liked Brighton because of how eclectic it was. Come with money- there's so many things to do and so many places to shop!

I Went All The Way To London And Ate At Pizza Express

I've noticed people here don't follow the unspoken rule in America that you always walk on the right side of the sidewalk. Seriously it's so much more annoying. You're constantly weaving in and around other people. You'd think that maybe I'm just supposed to walk on the left side because they drive on the left side...but no, I tried that and it didn't work. People are literally walking straight at you sometimes until at the last second one of you chooses which side you're going to take. Also, groups of people walk in a line down the sidewalk without accomodating people coming from the other direction by moving to one side. I hear that it's much more acceptable to split up a line of people on the sidewalk here than it is in the states.

HSBC is everywhere! I cashed my traveler's checks there.

Tower Bridge was fun! Me, Greg, and Julia took the tour and did sightseeing at the top and learned (sort of) how the bridge was built and how it runs. That part I don't really care about...but they had all these things kids used to do and wear in the Victorian era that I got to play with. Here's a video of that.



After our Tower Bridge tour, we crossed the bridge over the Southwark, where we were pleasantly surprised with what we found. There was a cool row of shops on the Thames bank in a little pedestrian alley. Just being along the Thames was nice, and I got a lot of cool pictures of Tower Bridge there. I'd recommend that area as a be-around-just-the-locals activity.

Also, Southwark was not pronounced how I thought at all. It is pronounced "Suh-thick." What? Why do the Brits add and remove letters from words at will?

We took the tube to St. James Cathedral after Southwark, and it was really pretty! We almost stayed for the 6-o-clock service. But instead we got to watch from the back so we could leave at any point...which we did after listening to some cool songs.

Yes, I ate at Pizza Express in London and it was delicious! Haha it's actually NICE pizza...not like Pizza eXpress at school at all!! I ordered a chicken pizza and ate the whole thing.

After dinner, Julia had to work so I went to Chelsea with Greg for a few hours. I saw his dorm complex, where the rooms are TINY! I hope my room isn't that tiny when I study in London or else I may feel claustrophobic. Since there was nothing to do at Greg's dorm, we then went to a Croatian pub to watch a Croatia vs. Turkey soccer game. I started getting really tired there, and, to be honest, kinda bored because no one ever scored. It was 0-0 half way through overtime when I finally got so tired that I took a taxi home. Overall, I'm glad I had that experience, though.

Not A Square To Spare In The Pub's Toilets

Again, it's really late (2:45am) so I want to make this as quick as possible. I've noticed that Google gets the times I write posts terribly wrong, so I'll try to keep that in mind.

This morning we slept until 12:30. It gives you bad feelings to waste a morning in London. I don't recommend it...except we were very jetlagged.

Around 1/1:30 we went to Sainsbury's, which is a city grocery store. City grocery shopping in the states is overwhelming enough. I'm just glad that my first out-of-country grocery shopping experience was English-speaking, or else I would have been in over my head. The place was too busy to manuever around in. I miss wide isles that don't have business people scurrying to the queue up and get out with their one sandwich for lunch. Then carrying home a weeks worth of groceries for seven blocks is no fun either. I suppose the only bad thing about it was that we were trying to actually grocery shop at a store that everyone else treats as a convenience store. I hope I don't make it sound worse than it is. It was just...a very new experience.

(added/edited at 10:30am Friday)
Taking a shower in my bathroom is very strange. There's no separator from the rest of the room other than a two foot wide pane of glass at the end with the spout. Also, the water smells funny in my opinion. As if it has extra chemicals...which means there's probably minerals left in the water that they don't leave in in the states or something.

I have no idea how to use the washing machine. We didn't find it until the second day because it's in one of the kitchen cabinets. Also, I think it is both a washer AND a dryer, because there's only one barrel.

The kitchen feels small, and the refrigerator looks just like the other cabinets. The flat gets very hot because it doesn't have air conditioning (which I've learned most places in the UK don't). Strange...it makes them seem behind the times, but I guess they figure it rarely gets hot enough here. I can't open windows easily because there's no screen so the bugs would fly in. Also my street is very loud and next to offices, which is odd because I can look right in at people working in the mornings. Lastly, I still haven't figured out how to turn on the "tele."

Starbucks is ridiculously expensive here. Basically, it looks like the same price a drink is in the US is the price here...except coverted into pounds. The price listing for a mocha was 3.5...which means I'd be paying $7 for a mocha. No thank you.

-We wondered all around looking for the tube station at the Tower of London. Once we found it Julia bought us unlimited "oyster cards" for the week, which scan as you walk in. No swiping like in New York. It's a neat technology, and it works through plastic cases. Very convenient.

Leicester square is busy and overwhelming. Don't go there if you don't like crowded sidewalks. We walked through the theatre district, Trafaulgar Square, and had a brief stint in the National Portrait Gallery. It's cool the museums here are free. I wonder what amount of taxes allows that to happen.

After Trafaulgar we walked to St. James Park. I was getting very tired by then and needed food badly (we found out later). Of course...the park is MASSIVE and surrounded by residential stuff, not restaurants. So I walked through the whole thing and then through a posh neighborhood where all we found were restaurants that cost 27.50 pound for an entree (too ridiculous). Finally, after a ridiculous amount of walking, we found a place called Albert's Pub (or maybe it was called Alister's...I can't remember) where I almost expired on the table unlil I downed a latte and an apple pie. (The apple pie came with custard...which I expected to be frozen like at Culvers...No, it had pudding on the side.)

The bathroom at the restaurant was bad news. It was in the basement, smelled bad, and was completely out of toilet paper in every stall (and only had a hand dryer, so no paper towels). Blast! It was an awful experience.

After we ate dinner, Julia was suffering from a headache. It was really funny because she went up to a guy who worked at the pub and was like, "Do you know where I can buy a Tylonol?" He looked at her funny. Then she said, "Like a Motrine?" Finally I chimed in and said "Medicine for headaches." He understood that and said "Oh! Headache pills." So we meander the streets to a small convenience store where all of the medicine had different names! If you are brand loyal to a particular medicine, make sure you bring plenty if you travel to the UK or else you might need to buy a substitute.

So I had plans to hang out with my friend Pat tonight, which never happened. Our cab driver was very helpful to find us the pub I was supposed to meet him at, but no one had heard of it. He literally was asking people off the streets and even went into a different pub, which we told him was unnecessary but sweet of him. So, in the end, he drove us back to our flat. On the way, he gave me opinions of attractions in London. The cab drivers here are so helpful and nice! And they must make a good living too because both I've had so far have mentioned they have several children and that they vacation in Spain and Greece. A final funny thing was when I told the cab driver I have three to four months off for summer every year. He was floored and said "What do the parents do with their kids for so long?" Apparently in the UK they get about six weeks.

Final note, I read this in an email forward my mom sent and thought it was funny: Both roundabouts and metrication will help you understand the British sense of humour.

Cheers!

Arrived At My Flat

It's 3am so I'm going to make this really short. I'm laying in my bed in my flat. It's a nice place. The rooms ARE smaller in the UK! It's funny because there's very little space between my bed and the next wall. There's maybe a foot. But I don't need space, which is good. Here's a picture:






I really like our flat. It's cozy and it's in a great location. Tomorrow we're going to start sight seeing! I saw Big Ben and we drove along the Thames on the way to the flat. The cab driver was SOOOO nice and so knowledgable. He said he and his partner own the cab company, and he gave me a lot of tips about things not to do and people to look out for. He has a daughter my age, and told me about her horrible experience on the tube at night. He seemed very accustomed to Americans, and didn't mind answering all of our questions. And he laughed when I said it was my first time being in a car with a driver on the right side who's driving on the left side of the road.


The flight was long, as expected. It was nice that they have a ton of movie, TV, and game options to keep you occupied. Also, they show you exactly where the plane is on the map, which was cool. I ended up watching The Other Bolyn Girl, which was great because it got me thinking about British history...which I will be thinking about a lot as I tour the city! Also, I got to see the sun set over Ireland, which was really cool. Here's a picture:



Do you see it? It may look like darker clouds, but it's actually land! That's your bonefide birds-eye-view of the Ireland coast right there.

Ok it's bed time. More to come later. Goodnight and toodiloo.

Just A Quick Note About Notes

(They call currency bills notes in England)

I exchanged $400 this morning for £185. BLOODY HELL I'm gonna go broke.

The exchange rate was $2.09 to the pound, and then I paid a service fee. I went to an American Express Travel Exchange store in Oak Brook, which I'd say was convenient. (Go to the store early, though, because I went at 10am and bought the last pounds they had...which was a small amount.) I have three £50 travelers checks to cash at a bank in London now. Whatever I don't spend on this trip, I think I'll just save for next spring when I'm studying so I don't have to lose more money exchanging it back and forth.

Also, in preparation for my trip, I called my credit card company to alert them that I will be in England this week. Apparently, you have to give them exact dates, so I'll have to call again for next spring. Kind of inconvenient, since I had to wait on hold for a customer service operator after listening to a list of 9 options. But hey- now people wont be able to steal my credit card as easily! Good things.

UK Adaptors Are Getting Me In Barney

So I'm leaving for England in a day. I've been trying to dot every i and cross every t, but I feel like I'm forgetting something.

I've spent a lot of time with my dad trying to figure out if I need a power converter. Apparently, according to my dad and his research, all I need is a UK adaptor for my laptop, hair dryer, iPod, camera battery charger, and cell phone chargers. The only thing of importance that I would need a converter for is my curling iron/straightener. I left my curling iron in Tucson accidentally which I use to straighten my hair if it dries funny...so this means that my second-string of a hair straightener wont be making the journey with me to London either. Hopefully the humidity wont disagree too badly with my hair chemistry! (Hah total girl thing to say)

By the way...plugs in the UK are freaking chunky...check out the difference:

Also, I really wish that I had thought about my money situation sooner than this week. I may get traveler's checks tomorrow (disclaimer: I am NOT 80 years old). Since I don't have a debit card- just an ATM card- and I use Fifth Third, I'm not sure if an ATM will work for me abroad. I could always use my credit card, but the exchange rate + fees on an ATM (which I hear they call a cash machine in jolly ol' England) would be large. Also, I hear I need to tell Fifth Third that I'll be in London so my activity is not flagged as possibly fraudulent. Probably Bank of America, too...since that's my credit card. Here's a little picture of what I need to happen.

I'm still trying to figure out the best day trip for me to take. There are so many options! I've read about "the 25 best day trips from London," and I've narrowed it down to 5. I won't say where, because I'm sick of the conflicting opinions I've been getting. They only make deciding more challenging. I'm a little freaked out about how cold it will be there, but I think I've packed well. Now all I need to add are a couple more things to my suitcase and I'm good to go!

Cheerio!

Crossing The Pond Soon, Or So They Say

Hello,

I will be going to London on Wednesday, June 18th for the first time. Not only will I try to write in this blog while I'm there to document my experiences for myself, but also for anyone else who wants to read about my travels. Recently, I've come across a couple of blogs concerning Americans in the UK that have interested me, so there's always a chance that someone else can learn something through what I write.

I've never seriously blogged before, so we'll see how it goes. It may even be a good way for my friends (or as they say in England, mates) to keep tabs on me. Well, for now, cheers!