Loving London Life (just for the sake of alliteration)

I hardly believe that I've only been here for 4 days. I already feel comfortable with the city, the transportation, the people. It's been a much easier transition than I ever would have expected--thanks mainly to Academic Studies Abroad (ASA, my study abroad program: academicstudiesabroad.com), Lee Frankel (the ASA director), and some truly amazing study abroad students that have become my home base here.

Depicted here are my lucky socks worn the day I left for London. I'm convinced they are the reason my flight out of San Francisco left on time (despite the thunderstorms):

To catch you up on London life (which--trust me--feels impossible with the amount of happenings in a such a short span of time):

Day #1 was a bit overwhelming and tiring. Flying in was an adventure in itself. On my first flight, I sat next to the sweetest Brazilian boy, who gave me one of those little cheek kisses when we parted. I thought to myself, "I hope all foreign boys do that!" Before my second flight, I met Molly and Patrick from my program and we spent a 7 hour flight watching movies, trying to sleep, getting to know each other and laughing about british slang. (my favorite word is still "dodgy" although the made-up slang my group has come up with is high on the list fasho.)

Anyhow, the jetlag became pretty intense toward the evening making it hard to go out and enjoy the london night life. I ended up staying in with my roommate, Rainy (another theatre major!) after a long day of grocery shopping, unpacking, and walking the nearby streets.

Here is me with Patrick from ASA (who ironically ended up with the seat next to me in a half-full plane)

Day #2 brought fatigue. It was a chore to pull myself out of bed and prepare for the day, still completely unadjusted to the time difference. The day was long and informational, filled with orientations, a trip to the tube station to buy our Oyster (frequent flyer) cards, a "Jack the Ripper" walking tour (Tourguide: Laurence), and an evening out for some pretty delicious pizza.

The First Tube Experience

The Chandelier Shop

Walking in London with new friends

Zebra mini

Day #3 became a complete tourist day. We journeyed on our bus, which, when looking back, mostly stirs memories of listening to silly music and audio commentary, taking pictures, and laughing a lot. After deserting the National Museum for the much more alluring Big Ben off in the distance, we took several terribly touristy pictures with that famous clock tower and the London Eye, and then hopped on a boat tour down the Thames. Luckily, a massage from Alice and some (as usual) entertaining conversation, kept my seasickness at bay. The day somehow led us to a downstairs restaurant/cartoon exhibition in St. Michaels Abbey. (Thanks to a tip from Andrew's Aunt-- alliteration. Love.)

Faking a candid "take-in-the-art" pose

The excitement of the top deck wore off with the icy wind while in motion

The gang in front of our bus


Day #4 and London is feeling more like home. On the way to a pretty awesome service at Westminster Abbey with Andrew and Zach (from ASA), we ran into "Tourguide: Laurence" who was in the middle of a completely different tour in a completely different part of London. He recognized me and seemed just as surprised as we were to run into each other! The abbey was breathtaking, the little boys in the choir were equally talented and adorable, and the sermon was quite interesting. Leaving the stained glass and the crazy british lady who had been sitting next to me, we rushed back out into the cold london streets and hopped on what we thought would be a short bus trip (luckily our british accent attempts kept us entertained). More tourism ensued, including a brief visit to St. Pauls Cathedral and a not-so-brief-but-still-slightly-rushed walk through of the Tate Modern Museum. Tonight, my roomie gave me a mini cooking lesson, which I'm definitely hoping will become a new routine, as I have always wanted to learn how to cook.

With Steph, Andrew, Alice, and Zach on a balcony of Tate

The walls of the museum lobbies were filled with words. I found a favorite.

So far...

Favorite british slang: "Dodgy" (meaning Shady or Sketch)

Favorite quick bite: Pret a Manger-- which we have fondly dubbed "Pret" (which is especially convenient for those who can't pronounce French---or don't even realize it IS french ;)

Silliest moments: Andrew "letting the cat out of the bag"--quite literally, british accents on the tour bus (including Zach's new slang), and Courtney trying to carry her ridiculous amount of baggage from the school lobby out to the front entrance while everyone watched. But there are WAY too many.

Weirdest: running into one of the only Brits I know, Laurence, in a city of millions, a day after we met. AND the crazy lady next to me in the service muttering about her mother and the stature of liberty and telling me how the light makes my hair look so lovely.

Something different: The toilets. Flushing them is almost a mini workout.

Something the same: Eating Cadbury eggs in my apartment after a bowl of farfalle pasta

It's been so much fun I only just now remembered that I broke my phone today (it fell down two flights of stairs!) Luckily I have a cheap phone to replace it for now.

And a new adventure begins tomorrow: CLASSES!... I almost forgot that I'm here for studies...how odd :)