I’M IN LONDON!

I arrived at Heathrow Airport Tuesday morning around 6:40am (my time, 5 hours ahead of the east coast). As we were flying over England, all I could see was farmland. It looked pretty from thousands of feet up in the air.

Some people hate flying, but I had a really great experience. Departure and landing went smoothly, all I could do was laugh as we were landing for some reason. The stewardesses were nice, the food was good, and we didn’t crash. Once we got off the plane, Jake, Hillary (the other two who sat in my section on the plane), and I speed-walked to the immigration gate to beat the crowd. The airport didn’t open till 6am so there weren’t too many people working, which meant the longer we would have to wait. Fortunately, though, the line moved rather quickly. After I was asked a few questions about why I was there, I got my visa stamped and was on my way to get my luggage.

Hillary, Jake, and I got two carts for our luggage (didn’t cost anything to use them!). I was so relieved to see my luggage on the belt! We then followed the sign to customs and went through with no one even speaking to us. We thought they would search our bags, but nothing happened. I was pushing one cart through to the exit when I saw a crowd of people anxiously awaiting strangers and loved ones. I quickly spotted an “Ithaca College” sign and was greeted by Sarah and Bill, London Centre employees.

We moved off to the side and waited for others in our group to come through since we were ahead of them by quite a bit. Soon after, I inhaled London air for the first time and boarded a Coach-style bus. As we drove by residential areas of London, I was trying to take everything in. The cars are smaller than in the US and the license plates are a solid, dark yellow with black or blue numbers and letters. It was weird seeing the drivers on the other side of the car and driving in the opposite direction. It took about 30 minutes to get to the hotel where we left our luggage in a storage room because our rooms weren’t ready. We walked a couple of blocks to the London Centre. Once we arrived, some people rushed to find the computer room, others needed a bathroom, and some just sat in the lounge. We had about an hour of free time before orientation began. The staff provided a lite breakfast consisting of fruit and juice. I got on the computer to send a quick “I’m alive” email.

Sam and Taylor (my flat mates) soon arrived. Sam flew in from Boston and Taylor came to London a week before the rest of the group with her mom. After orientation, Taylor’s mom met up with us and took us to see the flat. It’s less than a block from the West Kensington tube station, across the street from a pub, Tesco (it’s like Sam’s Club or Costco) is down the street, and there is a laundromat a couple blocks away, which I have not checked out yet. One of the main streets of London, Cromwell Rd., runs east/west to the flat.

The setup of the flat is weird. You walk into the flat and there is a horizontal hallway. All the way to the left is my room, then Sam’s room, the bathroom, the kitchen, and then Taylor’s room is on the right. We don’t have a common room; there is a small table in the hallway with three chairs. There are two chairs in Taylor’s room and a couch in my room; Sam has the TV, which comes with 4 channels. It’s certainly not in top condition, but it will do for the 4 months I will be here.

The location of the flat makes up for what it lacks. Like I said, I walk less than a half of a block to the tube station. The London Centre is 2 stops to the east (I get off at the Gloucster Rd. station) and my internship is 2 stops to the west (I get off at the Hammersmith station). You can go to to see the tube map.

A group of 4 Ithaca students are living in the same building, which I’m really happy about. Others are living in Earl’s Court, Hammersmith, and Marble Arch. Luckily for me, I take the District line to and from school and my internship; I don’t have to switch lines. I went to Oxford St./Marble Arch Saturday and Sunday, had to switch tube lines, and could barely fit onto the tube because there were so many people. The area reminds me of NYC. Crowded streets and chaos, no thanks, but I will shop there.

The tube system is very easy to understand… I haven’t gotten lost yet.

Cops, bikes, and range rovers escorted a limo down the street. We think it was the Prime Minister going to the airport to attend Ted Kennedy’s funeral.

Hillary, Courtney, Kristin, and I went to the British Museum. What’s great about the majority of the museums in London is that they are free. We only had a couple of hours to look in the museum (we took a few wrong turns) till we had to attend an orientation session with a London police officer. We’re going to go back sometime to see the rest of it. I’ll be posting pictures soon.

On Thursday night Sam, Taylor, and I went to the pub across the street and two sailors came to our table and one of them showed us magic tricks with cards. He was sooo tricky; we are still trying to figure out how he did it. We also met three Australian boys at the pub- they had real Australian accents and were a lot of fun to talk with.

On Friday, I went to ESPN America to meet my internship supervisor, Nick. The office is located in Walt Disney’s office in Hammersmith and on the same block as the Hammersmith tube station. Nick is a lot younger than I expected him to be, which is cool. I can already tell I’m going to learn a lot and have fun! He showed me around the office and introduced me to everyone in the marketing department. They were all very nice and excited to have me. The majority of them are young, which is great for me. Nick also said that I could mingle with Disney’s interns- I want to meet other people my age and this is a great opportunity to do so. I’m going to be working on a variety of projects- I’m excited to learn and get to work. My first day is this coming Wednesday!

The IC group took a 3-hour walking tour with Bill, the program director. We saw Big Ben (the huge clock), the London eye, Parliament, Buckingham Palace (saw the Changing of the Guard), and eventually ended up at the extremely crowded Borough Market. It was fun to see a different part of London, but it was exhausting.

Later that day, I went to Oxford St. to check out the beach football (soccer to the Americans) event ESPN coordinated. It was really cool- the whole area was covered in sand and the kids were having blast. I chatted with Nick and a few other employees before I left to further explore Oxford St. (a big shopping street).

Courtney, Kristin, Hillary, and I ate Snog (frozen yogurt). They play techno music and by the time we finished eating, we were all subconsciously bouncing our heads to the music. Snog was really good- I got natural with strawberries and bananas. I think natural is their version of vanilla, although it tastes nothing like vanilla. It was yummy!

On Sunday, us 4 went to Oxford St. to buy some things for the flats. Like I said before, Oxford St. is like NYC. I bought a couple shirts and scarves along the way. Hillary and Courtney live in Marble Arch so I thought I could take the Central Line from there to Notting Hill Gate then to Gloucester Rd., etc. I forgot that the huge Notting Hill Carnival started Sunday. Huuuuuge mistake. Millions of people go to this carnival.

I got off at Notting Hill Gate only to be told to walk 20 minutes to the Queensway station in order to get on the District Line. I took the Queensway tube to Bond St. to Westminster to Earl’s Court (I obviously had to change a few lines along the way). It usually would take 30 minutes, tops, to get home from Marble Arch. It took me over 1.5 hours to get home. Ughh.

On Monday, I will be one of those million attending the carnival. I think I’m going with Hillary and her friend and eventually going to, or at least try, to meet up with Nick and other people from ESPN. Should be fun!

And so it begins…

[I wrote this while I was on the plane.]

My parents and I took the complimentary shuttle from the hotel to Newark airport at 2:30 and was dropped off right in front of Terminal C. The driver was friendly and helpful. My brother Daniel and his girlfriend (Jacqui) met us there then we got in line to check my luggage and get my boarding pass. The line looked long, but we didn’t wait nearly as long as I expected to. We didn’t have a great experience with the woman working the line; she didn’t like that we were unsure of what to do once we got to the computer. I had two huge suitcases- one weighed around 47 pounds and the other weighed 50.5 pounds. These bags aren’t supposed to way more than 50 pounds so I quickly removed my glasses and put them in my carry-on bag and weighed it again- exactly 50 pounds. Woo!

At this point it was about 3:30 so we decided to look for something to eat. There wasn’t anywhere to eat except a little café/bakery-type area. I split a roast beef sandwich (which was on a pretzel bun) with my dad. I was getting antsy.

Around 4:00 we headed to the security gate. I said goodbye to my parents, Daniel, and Jacqui. When my mom started to cry, I began to cry a little. I wasn’t scared to leave, but I got in line, took off my shoes, took my laptop out of my bag, phone out my pocket, and cleared security rather quickly.

I went to the waiting area for my flight to check-in and see if any other IC students had arrived yet. I didn’t see anyone so I began to wander around. I bought Cosmopolitan: The UK Edition from Borders and checked out the Duty Free store (makeup, perfume, and alcohol are sold at discounted, tax-free rate).

I ran into Jake, a friend from school, and he told me where the group room was. There were four others hanging out in the room. They offered complimentary drinks, pretzels, and Oreos. There was also a TV. I chatted with everyone for about 30 minutes until we headed back to the gate to board around 6:00. Our flight was scheduled to depart at 6:25, but was delayed till 7:45.

We eventually boarded the plane around 7, moved a little bit, and then sat for about 40 minutes before we finally took off. The plane is three rows deep with three seats in each row. I have a window seat, Jake is next to me, and Hilary is next to him. Luckily I’m sitting next to people from my school; some people are sitting next to strangers and not talking. Take-off was not bad at all, it was actually fun. It was cool looking out the window as we got faster and higher.

There has been some turbulence, but nothing scary. Each passenger received a small pillow, blanket, and earphones. Each seat has its own small TV and we can watch movies, TV shows, or listen to music. I watched an episode of Friends and the movie The Soloist. I was about asleep when dinner came. Dinner was chicken or beef (I choose beef), a side salad with lite ranch dressing, a roll, and a cookies and cream brownie. I ate everything except the brownie and it was very good. The stewardesses are all very nice and accommodating.

I’m now watching Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, but I hope to fall asleep soon.

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Soooo much has happened (all good things) since I wrote that on the plane. I'm loving London. I’ll update when I can!

<3

hours. we're down to hours.

I'm at the hotel in Newark, NJ- right across the street from the airport. The view from our room is pretty and the planes aren't loud at all.

I definitely packed way too much, but I take a few things out every time I go through my suitcases. It was difficult to decide what to bring and what to leave home.

Going to sleep in a few... long day tomorrow!!!

Sooo excited! I'll write when I get the chance :)

two weeks!

I'm ecstatic about this semester, but I'm surprised it's coming up so soon. These next four months are more than likely going to be the best and most exciting ones of my life. I'm documenting my time in London for myself (when I am too old to remember it, I can look back and relive my youth) and for my parents, relatives, and friends (who want to stalk me/know what I'm up to).

Two weeks stand between me and my departure. I have my passport, visa, and all other important documents. I've looked online for potential flats, things to do, and places to go. I've got two London maps. I've registered for classes. I have an internship. I've seen all of my doctors for check-ups. I bought our "book of the term" (Bill Bryon's "Shakespeare: The World as Stage").

You may be wondering what else there is to do. Well, I need to read the book, buy a few more essentials, savor my last days in Owego/America, say bye to friends, and pack. That's a lot to do in two weeks.

I'm trying not to worry about: 1) not being able to fit everything in my suitcases; 2) missing home, Ithaca, family+dog, friends; 3) not finding a place to live that is reasonable in location and price; 4) getting lost on the tube; 5) getting lost on the streets... I could go on and on. These things aren't keeping me up all night, but everytime I think about it... London is one day closer.

Holy moly.