One week into London

So I have been in the great city of London for one week now! There's a lot to catch up on so let's get started.

First arrived at the Royal National Hotel near Holborn and Russel Square. Michelle and I checked in and got ourselves settled in and then off to Faraday House! We had an orientation meeting that night where they just went over safety information and talked to us about being in London and how to act and such. That night we went to a pub/restaurant with Katie and other people and I had a Guinness! haha It feels great to be able to just order drinks haha. We were quite jet lagged still so we called it a night after dinner. The next day started with a housing and transportation orientation. We learned about our oyster cards and all of London's other forms of transportation lol then came the important part- Housing! We def didn't want to be homeless!! By the end of the meeting we managed to have 7 people. So we started looking for a 7 person flat. We waited until around 2 to hear back from a well-recommended landlord who then told us he didn't have anything and then we panicked! we called around and made several appointments for that day. We ended up at another real estate agent who had a giant ugly fish name nobby that scares Katie ahah. He made us wait around so then we bounced and went to go look at apts with William. By the third one we were set. We live on StourCliffe Road right off Edgeware Rd. next to Oxford Street and Marble Arch.

We didn't get to move in right away because he needed to bring the beds and get things fixed. Little did we know that we would be doing the manual labor. After much deliberation, we settled on Ryan and Alex in the first room,which unfortunately is the smalled room. Me, Katie and Michelle in the master room which includes a bathroom that smells like sewer and Melissa and Safa in the back room. It took us a while to get settled in. No one wanted to unpack LOL and we also had to go grocery shopping because we were sick of eating out!

After we moved in that morning, Ryan and I went to go explore on our own! We wen to Queensway which is a small version of Chinatown because it's only one street. I remember we went there last time to have dim sum so I will def be returning to have some dimsum there! There were Chinese restaurants and lots of little stores and also a big shopping center! Ryan was looking at some Arsenal stuff so maybe we will go back and he can buy it and we can get a good price! There is also an Asian market there so we can go there for groceries and it's closer to our apt than Chinatown!

On Sunday, we went with the school to Greenwich. It was freezing cold because we were right next to the Thames but it was lovely! There is a giant elevator that takes you beneath the river where you then walk in a tunnel to the other side and then take another big elevator and then you arrive in Greenwich. The center is very small and very quaint! We first headed over to the Greenwich Market which is an outdoor market with food stalls and small craft stalls! It is similar to the Portobello Market and Borough Market but smaller. Michelle and Ryan both had some Thai food and had curry! and I had chorizo and potatoes in a tomato base sauce with rice! I think it was either Portuguese or Indian food but either way it was delicious! It was nice to eat hot food since it was freezing out! The we walked around and hiked up to the Royal Observatory. The view was amazing! We could see everything up to the Thames. Greenwich is the place where time started, where Greenwich Mean time and the prime meridian is. Then we headed over to the Queen's house and the National Maritime Museum. Overall, my trip to Greenwich was a success! I have never been there before so I was excited to go somewhere new and I learned a lot as well!

Monday rolled around as did classes. I had one class yesterday which was PRL 530 - PR in an international setting: Great Britain. My professor is Sheila Gunn and she was the press secretary for former Prime Minister John Major. She def has a lot of background, knows a lot and has a lot to offer but sometime she spaces out and her lectures are quite bland. Hopefully this PR class goes smoothly unlike all my other PR classes. For today, I have COM Law. I finally decided on taking MAG 400 instead of switching to COM 346 but it's still up in the air.

Here are a few other random stories and then I will end with a little spiel.

One night for dinner we went to an India restaurant near the hotel. No idea what it was called but it was me, Ryan, Michelle, Katie and Alex. Man, did we made quite an impression. They probably hate Americans but it was great! To make a long story short here are the little things that sums it up. Alex orders a Chai tea and puts a bajillion spoons of sugar in it! Katie says loudly that she had a "screaming orgasm" which is a name of a drink by the way and she is unable to understand the waiter when he asked if she would like the bone taken out LOL then Michelle announces to the restaurant that she is born and raised in the US ahahaha and I ordered a Normal Naan as opposed to just naan and Ryan attempt to order a Soco and Ginger Ale but waiter fails to understand but the right drink still arrives. HAHAH what a night!

We had quite a journey trying to eat Fish n' Chips. Apparently pubs stop serving food around 6 and people just start drinking and 6 lol so after we moved in, we finally got to eat fish n' chips. We went to a restaurant nearby that is quite cheap actually. Everyone except me had fish n' chips since I am not a fan of fish! lol instead I had sausage with beans and chips, it was yummy! I had a Crabbies to drink which is an alcoholic ginger ale and it was so yummy! It just tasted like regular ginger ale!

Another eating occasion includes eating at La Tasca. We had Spanish tapas and some Sangria. It was tasty and we had an array of food. nuff' said.

Alright, here's the end. I have been in London for a week now. I've been to familiar places we well as new places. This is going to be an amazing semester already, I can feel it. I rode the tube by myself and just by doing that I felt so immersed in the culture already! I have great flat mates and an awesome apartment and now I just need to get through classes and explore a new place, location, country and destination! also super excited for the Arsenal Game on Feb. 1

and of course...find Fernando Torres!!!

Countdown to London: 5 days

There are five days left before I embark on my journey to London. I have started packing already so that is definitely a good sign. For my last few days in LA, i've been trying to make sure I have everything I need, see everyone I want to see and do everything I need to do , because for the next 5 months, I won't be seeing home. I have been to London 3 times already. The first time I went was for the 2006 World Cup in Munich, Germany. I have always wanted to go to London and was finally there! I still remember when I first arrived to the city, I fell in love with all the history and culture the city had to offer. The second time I went to London was when I also went to Paris. London was still as amazing as the first time I had been there. Last summer, I went to World Cup 2010 in South Africa and we stopped by in London for a few days in our layover. This time, I was done with all the tourist attractions and set out to find the real London. I went to where the locals were and ate foods the locals ate. My last trip to London was truly amazing because I felt like I really connected with the city this time and I wasn't just a tourist. For my upcoming semester abroad, there is so much I want to accomplish. One of main goals is to get an internship. If I can an internship, that would just make my time in London so much better! I'm not going to lie but I can totally see myself migrating to London if the opportunity permitted it. This city is so full of life and I can't wait to breath it all in - as cliche as that sounds, it's true. I'm going to be living in this city for the next 5 months and I want to make it the best experience possible! I've got my two best friends - it's going to be quite an adventure. oh, and of course I need to find my soccer star love - Fernando Torres. In 5 days, the adventures will begin and I can't wait for it. London - i'm ready for you!

p.s. - save the turtles!