Week One: What a crazy, fun, and exciting week!

Sorry this is so long, just a lot happened during the week and there was not a lot of time to post!

This past week has been extremely crazy but fun as well, if you couldn't tell by the title. I’ll start at the beginning to make sure that I get everything! My last Sunday at home, my family and I were able to play some games and spend time together, which was wonderful! This is the first time that I am this far away from them, so I am glad we had the opportunity together!

So the real craziness started Monday, and continued into Tuesday, with the plane trip to Chicago and then on to London! The plane trip was fine, though the one overseas was long, and I didn’t get much sleep on the plane, but that happens. I arrived and went through customs without an issue, though since our plane took a while to taxi, there was a long line for customs. But I made it through, got my bags, and met the person who took me to the London Centre. The ride was so cool! I couldn’t stop looking at everything around me, and of course, it was raining! But there was so much to look at, and soon enough we were at the centre, and it is absolutely gorgeous! Very Victorian, and very ornate, I love it! I met with my professors and found out that my room is on the first floor, in the number 29 side of the building (the centre is technically two adjoining homes, numbers 27 and 29). It was a relief to not lug my luggage up the stairs! I unpacked, and then went out with a roommate to explore the city! Afterwards, I went and got a tube pass, and then we had dinner, which was soup. Then, since it was September 1, we went to Platform 9 ¾ at Kings Cross! It was such an amazing experience to be there! I loved it, especially as an avid Harry Potter lover!! I even got my picture taken at the platform! Ahhh! I love Harry Potter, though I didn’t see them at the station… :/ We just had to keep going on the hopes that we could counter jet lag more quickly and efficiently (didn’t really work for me, but oh well)!

On Wednesday we had our orientation to the centre and the upcoming semester. It was pretty standard. Then we got to go and explore our neighborhood! There is a lot just around us, tons of shops and places to see, a mall, several tube station entrances, and Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. I explored those the first day a bit, but we passed by them on our walk. They are gorgeous parks, and huge!! In the afternoon, we went to one of the local library branches and got library cards that we can use while we are here, which is super cool! I hope to be able to have the time to try them out! In the evening we adventured down to Primark on Oxford Street. Primark is like this clothing store with a ton of neat and nice clothes and such, but for great prices. So it was fun to explore!

On Thursday, we went on a walk for our London Walks class. We’ve been given a small book with a map, some directions, and historical background for about 20 different walks to do around London. Seven are required, so we did the first one Thursday. It took us to the Tower of London, where we explored the areas where the ancient walls of Londinium, or old London, used to stand. We saw memorials for WW1, the Merchant’s Building, Christ’s Church, parks, and markets. One market was huge, called Spitalfield’s. I tried steak and kidney pie, and it was pretty good! There were also a ton of different little stalls with different trinkets or clothing or such, and it was really cool! We also went to a park, Postman’s Park, where there is a wall with memorials for ordinary people who died doing heroic acts. It was very touching and heart-warming, and such a wonderful tribute. We were also able to see bits of the old wall still standing, and see the different layers in them from the Romans and then the medieval time. It is just so cool to live in a city with so much history, and where the old and the new sit right next to each other and just work! In the evening, we walked around Hyde Park some more and just talked.

On Friday, we went on another walk, this one on the south side of the Thames. We were able to walk across Tower Bridge, which was so cool! It is huge, and gorgeous! Then we just walked along the riverfront. We saw Southwark Cathedral, which is huge, ornate, and has been used by Christians for one thousand years! It was beautiful inside and out, and just amazing. There was also a tribute to Shakespeare inside, as well as Harvard Chapel, named for the founder of Harvard University who was baptized in the church. There was a market next to the cathedral with tons of different foods from different cultures and countries, and they were fun to try! Farther along the walk there were advertisements for dungeon tours, and then we got to see the Globe Theatre! We walked along the outside a bit, and it was cool to see that it actually does look like it did in Shakespeare’s time. We crossed and then re-crossed the pedestrian bridge, and continued down the river. We ended by walking past the London Eye, the Houses of Parliament, and Big Ben! To finally see them in person was the neatest experience! That night, I went with another person to see if we could get cheap last minute tickets to Wicked, and we got in!! We had great seats, most likely due to a student discount, and the show was absolutely amazing! Well worth it, and I’ve wanted to see it for years! I loved it!!

On Saturday, I went with a couple others in the morning to the London Temple. It was about a two hour journey one way, 45 minutes of which were walking. But it was great to go, and the temple is so pretty! My feet hurt but I am glad I went, I needed to go! Soon after we got back, I went with a couple others to 221B Baker Street, famous for Sherlock and Sherlock Holmes! Very fun!! Then we just randomly hopped on the tube and got dinner. When we got back, we decided to go to the store and get dessert, and then we talked.

Today, we went to church at the Hyde Park Chapel. It is really pretty, and has a Visitor’s Centre as part of the building. We walked through Hyde Park to get to and from, and it was a really pretty walk! Tonight we get our church assignments for the rest of the semester, and tomorrow we start full swing into the semester! It should be fun, but busy!

Overall I am loving my experience in London so far, and I am so grateful that I have this opportunity and for the help that I have received from my parents, family, and friends to get here! I’ll keep trying to be as detailed as possible, but it is so hard to put into words the wonder and awe I am currently feeling; I still can’t believe I am in London!