The second week of being in London hasn't been overly exciting. Not a whole lot of new sights were seen, but that was going to come eventually.
I went to the Museum of London with a couple friends, Nick and Jacob, and there was a lot of information there. It went through everything from the middle ages to the Romans, and there were movies on the Great fire and the plague. It doesn't really surprise me when I look closer, that the fire and plague could kill so many people in so little time. London hasn't changed from how it used to be too much. Buildings are all really close together and there are a ton of people in a small space. So it wouldn't take much for a fire or disease to spread quickly and be deadly. I still can't imagine what it would have been like to be living through the days of the fire, where you don't know how long it's going to last or if it's going to get to where you live. I was thinking, it wouldn't be hard for a fire to break out in London today, with everything so close and with traffic so bad, if help couldn't get to the fire in a hurry, it could get out of control very fast. The traffic and small streets wouldn't help much either, by blocking they way for help to get to the fire.. interesting thoughts.
Wednesday night, everybody in the program went to Les Miserables. I had never been to a musical before, and it didn't let me down. Sure, our seats weren't the best, but man can those people sing. I was surprised by how many of the songs in the first half I had actually heard, although it did start to drag on and I feel like some of it could be cut out. The second half was full of action and was very good in my opinion. It was also interesting just sitting there and watching people. There was people dressed in jeans, then right beside them would be somebody in a complete suit. Once again, beer is a big thing. They served alcohol before it started, and you could even order a drink for intermission, where they would just have a ticket by your drink on a table during the intermission so you didn't have to wait in line and order another.
I had my first class of the semester on Wednesday, which is Art in London... for three hours. It's a good thing we're going to be going to different museums every week because I'm not like Diana and I don't think I would be able to sit through another hour of a lecture on art. Then we had our compulsory classes on Thursday, which is basically just talking about what we see and the British way of life. It could have some interesting things, where we get together and share what we have seen throughout the week and what we have done. We have the classes at the University of London, and right outside where we had our classes, there is a farmers market every Thursday, there are so many markets in London, which brings me to my next event.
Saturday I was feeling lazy, and wanted to do something. I looked outside and saw it was actually sunny in London, that's a sight. So I decided I was going to go to Camdon Market. I ended up going by myself and exploring some of London, but it was a good experience. It was an eye opener. There were so many stores selling everything from souvenirs to tattoos and piercings. So I decided to go into some of the souvenir stores. They didn't just sell souvenirs, there was everything from key chains to coffee mugs to bongs and pipes to condoms. These are small stores, so it was definitely a shock to see all these things within ten feet of each other. Then I ended up running into other people on the program and a friend from Central that is studying in Wales, but came to London for the weekend, so that was nice.
That's all I have for now, have a great week!
Saturday, 28 January 2012
Monday, 23 January 2012
Week 1
Well, it has now been just over week since I have arrived in London, and thought it was about time to start a blog. So here we go.
I flew into London with five other guys and there were no problems.. until we got to customs and immigration at at the airport in London. Four of the five made it through, including me, but one was held back. I guess he showed a paper that said he was working here in the UK, but he didn't have a working visa, so that caused some complications, and to add onto it, they couldn't call Central because it was a Sunday and nobody would be at the campus. Luckily, we all had the same papers and after about a half an hour, they let him go with us. So we made it through customs. Then we were supposed to get picked up by a shuttle that would drop us off right outside the door where we were staying, but we couldn't find him. Eventually we called the company and they sent somebody to get us. It was a long day at the airport.
On the way to Vandon House, where we stay in Central London, it hit me that I wasn't in the states anymore. Cars driving on the other side of the road, cars driving crazy, I wasn't sure we were going to make it to Vandon. But about 45 minutes later we arrived at the door of Vandon House. I got my stuff moved into my room and tried to get a little settled in. A couple hours after arriving, the director took all of us to a pub called The Feathers, which is just a few blocks away. There he got platters of fish and chips, calamari, chicken, and some sausage stuff. I heard the food wasn't very good before I left, but I haven't had anything I haven't liked yet. Then, of course, after the meal, the director told us he was leaving and we were on our own to get back to base.. within hours of landing in London. But needless to say, we did make it back safely. That night, some of the guys and I decided we wanted to go out and explore. So on our first night, we walked around London for about an hour and a half, to Buckingham Palace, multiple parks, and saw the Eye of London, that thing is huge.
Monday we had a lot of information thrown at us. We went across the street to Westminster Chapel and our director, Mark Simmons, talked to us about many different things, including life in London in general, vocabulary, and the classes we have to take. We also had a policeman come talk to us about how to prevent crimes from happening and just being safe in general while we are in the UK. We then had a short break and a small lunch before going on a walking tour. The tour was at least two hours long and man does that guy know a lot about London. I would find myself standing there in amazement that he knew that much history about the city. After the walking tour, we had a house meeting, in which we were told the rules of living in Vandon House. That night, three other guys and I went to a restaurant called The Slug and Lettuce, because we found out it had food for 50% off. It was an experience. We walked in and I'm sure everybody that saw us instantly knew we were Americans. Eventually a lady that worked there came over to us and told us to sit down at a table. We still think she was on drugs or something. She had so much energy and instantly started making fun of us calling us Americans, but it was funny for us too.
Tuesday I had my internship meeting. I was a tad bit nervous, but not for the interview, for getting to the interview, as it was my first time using the tube on my own. As it turns out, it isn't hard at all. I get on the tube about 5 minutes away from where I'm living, and stay on it for 16 stops, where i get off and walk another ten minutes. The company is FitPro, and it is quite impressive. They have over 120,000 members worldwide and they have 3 bi-monthly magazines they publish. They also have their own music and a recording studio on site, along with a gym for staff to use. They also serve as a warehouse and sell workout machines. After my interview, I got back and had an intercultural training session. It could have been much more entertaining. There was a lot of good stuff, but we were all still tired and getting over jet lag, and don't know how much of it actually stuck to us. That night we all went to a bowling alley and bowled a few games and also had ten huge pizzas, probably the biggest pizzas I have ever seen. I'll admit, I was a bit shocked when I heard we were going to go bowling in the UK. After the bowling, most of us went to a pub for a few hours and just hung out and had good time. I'm amazed at how decorative the pubs are and how dressed up people get to go into them.
Wednesday morning, I had my advising meeting where I was asked a few questions and got my schedule set. I will have my internship Mondays and Tuesdays, then an art class on Wednesdays, where we go to a different art museum in London every week, then two classes through Central on Thursdays to teach us about the British culture. That was all that was required for me on Wednesday. The rest of the day and Thursday were spent just walking around London with a couple friends. We went to Regents Park for four hours. I'm amazed at how massive the parks are, right in the middle of a city with 8-12 million people.
Friday we got up and went to Birkbeck College, where we will be having our classes. We also had our first class I guess you could say, where we learned what we would have to do for the classes, and also about travel in the UK. After all that we went back to Vandon and at 2:00 we had a scavenger hunt. It took us three hours and took us all around London. We even stopped and asked a policeman if we could get a picture with them and if we could wear their hat for extra points, he also instantly knew we were Americans. Long story short, we won. But there were complications. For example, at the end we were starting to head back and got on the tube, just to find out the tube was closing for some reason, so we had to work our way around the closure. That was fun.
Saturday and Sunday were pretty much lazy days. Saturday I went on another walking tour with the same guide as earlier and ended in an outdoor market where I got a duck sandwich for lunch. I had never had duck, but it was quite good. I also found out that FitPro had contacted the director and asked if I could start a week later, so I don't have my internship until the 30th.
That's about all that's happened so far. One of the biggest things I have noticed is space. Everything is so small and condensed, but goes up many stories. It's also weird thinking that I'm seeing buildings that are older than the United States is as a country.
I flew into London with five other guys and there were no problems.. until we got to customs and immigration at at the airport in London. Four of the five made it through, including me, but one was held back. I guess he showed a paper that said he was working here in the UK, but he didn't have a working visa, so that caused some complications, and to add onto it, they couldn't call Central because it was a Sunday and nobody would be at the campus. Luckily, we all had the same papers and after about a half an hour, they let him go with us. So we made it through customs. Then we were supposed to get picked up by a shuttle that would drop us off right outside the door where we were staying, but we couldn't find him. Eventually we called the company and they sent somebody to get us. It was a long day at the airport.
On the way to Vandon House, where we stay in Central London, it hit me that I wasn't in the states anymore. Cars driving on the other side of the road, cars driving crazy, I wasn't sure we were going to make it to Vandon. But about 45 minutes later we arrived at the door of Vandon House. I got my stuff moved into my room and tried to get a little settled in. A couple hours after arriving, the director took all of us to a pub called The Feathers, which is just a few blocks away. There he got platters of fish and chips, calamari, chicken, and some sausage stuff. I heard the food wasn't very good before I left, but I haven't had anything I haven't liked yet. Then, of course, after the meal, the director told us he was leaving and we were on our own to get back to base.. within hours of landing in London. But needless to say, we did make it back safely. That night, some of the guys and I decided we wanted to go out and explore. So on our first night, we walked around London for about an hour and a half, to Buckingham Palace, multiple parks, and saw the Eye of London, that thing is huge.
Monday we had a lot of information thrown at us. We went across the street to Westminster Chapel and our director, Mark Simmons, talked to us about many different things, including life in London in general, vocabulary, and the classes we have to take. We also had a policeman come talk to us about how to prevent crimes from happening and just being safe in general while we are in the UK. We then had a short break and a small lunch before going on a walking tour. The tour was at least two hours long and man does that guy know a lot about London. I would find myself standing there in amazement that he knew that much history about the city. After the walking tour, we had a house meeting, in which we were told the rules of living in Vandon House. That night, three other guys and I went to a restaurant called The Slug and Lettuce, because we found out it had food for 50% off. It was an experience. We walked in and I'm sure everybody that saw us instantly knew we were Americans. Eventually a lady that worked there came over to us and told us to sit down at a table. We still think she was on drugs or something. She had so much energy and instantly started making fun of us calling us Americans, but it was funny for us too.
Tuesday I had my internship meeting. I was a tad bit nervous, but not for the interview, for getting to the interview, as it was my first time using the tube on my own. As it turns out, it isn't hard at all. I get on the tube about 5 minutes away from where I'm living, and stay on it for 16 stops, where i get off and walk another ten minutes. The company is FitPro, and it is quite impressive. They have over 120,000 members worldwide and they have 3 bi-monthly magazines they publish. They also have their own music and a recording studio on site, along with a gym for staff to use. They also serve as a warehouse and sell workout machines. After my interview, I got back and had an intercultural training session. It could have been much more entertaining. There was a lot of good stuff, but we were all still tired and getting over jet lag, and don't know how much of it actually stuck to us. That night we all went to a bowling alley and bowled a few games and also had ten huge pizzas, probably the biggest pizzas I have ever seen. I'll admit, I was a bit shocked when I heard we were going to go bowling in the UK. After the bowling, most of us went to a pub for a few hours and just hung out and had good time. I'm amazed at how decorative the pubs are and how dressed up people get to go into them.
Wednesday morning, I had my advising meeting where I was asked a few questions and got my schedule set. I will have my internship Mondays and Tuesdays, then an art class on Wednesdays, where we go to a different art museum in London every week, then two classes through Central on Thursdays to teach us about the British culture. That was all that was required for me on Wednesday. The rest of the day and Thursday were spent just walking around London with a couple friends. We went to Regents Park for four hours. I'm amazed at how massive the parks are, right in the middle of a city with 8-12 million people.
Friday we got up and went to Birkbeck College, where we will be having our classes. We also had our first class I guess you could say, where we learned what we would have to do for the classes, and also about travel in the UK. After all that we went back to Vandon and at 2:00 we had a scavenger hunt. It took us three hours and took us all around London. We even stopped and asked a policeman if we could get a picture with them and if we could wear their hat for extra points, he also instantly knew we were Americans. Long story short, we won. But there were complications. For example, at the end we were starting to head back and got on the tube, just to find out the tube was closing for some reason, so we had to work our way around the closure. That was fun.
Saturday and Sunday were pretty much lazy days. Saturday I went on another walking tour with the same guide as earlier and ended in an outdoor market where I got a duck sandwich for lunch. I had never had duck, but it was quite good. I also found out that FitPro had contacted the director and asked if I could start a week later, so I don't have my internship until the 30th.
That's about all that's happened so far. One of the biggest things I have noticed is space. Everything is so small and condensed, but goes up many stories. It's also weird thinking that I'm seeing buildings that are older than the United States is as a country.
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