With the help from two of my best, Max and Conor, I got to the airport in plenty of time. After checking my bags and passing through customs, it was officially time to say 'see ya later' to my incredible friends, the city I love, and the environment I was most familiar with at Boston University. I found my seat on the plane and was luckily provided with a window seat. This was going to be my first time flying solo and my first time leaving the East Coast. Surprisingly, my nerves disappeared as we took off across the pond. Though we experienced a lot of turbulence leaving America, the flight wasn't too bad.
Interestingly enough, I fell asleep for about an hour of the entire
flight but was lucky enough to wake up just as the
jet was flying into the sunrise
over the Atlantic. It was the most beautiful scene I've ever witnessed; completely surreal. Once I saw we were approaching Europe on the video screen tracking our flight, I peered out the window to check out Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom. The flight was about to end, and I couldn't help to stop and stare at my new home for the next four months. Believe it or not, the first hit of culture-shock came as we were about to land when I saw that all the houses had red roofs (ruffs), which I felt was odd considering all the places I have lived always had gray or black ones. Weird observation,
but I found it interesting.
I was picked up at the airport by a car service, and was on my way to my residence in Kensington. The driver was very nice, and was helping me become accustomed to the culture in London. Many culture-shocking moments happened, such as the realization of Celsius vs Fahrenheit (good thing weather.com does both!). I learned which places to go grocery shopping, and also learned a little about how the seasons should work over the next four months. I saw a lot of differences in signs, such as roundabouts, and "Look Right." One sign stated "Humps for 300 yards." I didn't ask the driver to translate that one
for me; I'll assume it was referring to speed bumps.
Finally, I made it to my new home! Nothing was more refreshing than receiving my keys and seeing where I would be staying. I quickly made myself at home and was ready to take a nap. Unfortunately, my stomach had other ideas, so I went out to discover a place to eat. Feeling exhausted from the flight, I decided to not impress any of the locals as I wore my BU sweats, glasses, and Guiness hat. Ironically enough, the first group of people I passed was a group of three girls wearing Northeastern attire. One of the girls shouted "Yea Boston!" and we all shared a smile. Maybe home wasn't so far after all.
After about thirty minutes of walking, I stumbled upon my University, The Royal College of Music (you fancy, huh?), Hyde Park (which
is only two minutes away from my building), and a Starbucks. I optioned for the Starbucks to feed into my coffee addiction. Sticking with old habits, I ordered an iced coffee and was very disappointed to realize Europeans don't know how to make iced coffee. Pouring hot coffee into a cup of ice makes watered-down-luke-warm-yuck, not iced coffee. As my first meal, I went to the supermarket and bought myself a frozen pizza to bake at home.
After consuming the pizza (fat), I took the best power nap of my life and decided it was time to do more exploring (this time I showered and looked somewhat presentable before being in public. Your welcome, London.) Since I turned 21 today (ehhh), I decided it was time to buy my first drink at a bar in Europe! I went to Queen's Arms just around the block from my building and ordered a pint of London Pride (highly recommend it). After enjoying a pint, I went off to discover some places to eat out with some friends for different occasions. I was pleasantly surprised to find that London has a little bit of every heritage represented.
On the walk back, I decided to check out a little bit of Hyde Park. I ventured through the section dedicated to Princess Diana and saw some of the most beautiful flowers dedicated to her. It was a great experience to take the time to remember just how important she was to all of England.
Before I walked back into my building, I found another sign of home: the British version of the Hubway. I know Europe had it before Boston, but it was still comforting to be reminded of home. By this time, the culture-shock and travel stress had really begun to subside, and I found myself more than pumped for the experience of a life time; living the dream.
