After we woke up, we ate breakfast, got ready for the day, and then decided to go check out the area that our school is in. We had orientation at 2:00, so we walked around beforehand and grabbed lunch in "The Patisserie" which was a really cute little restaurant across from our Tube stop (the Tube is the underground subway system here in London- it reminds me of the Loop in Chicago). They were playing Lady Gaga’s “Pokerface” on all the TV’s there—it made me smile. Just a sidenote, I am watching the British Today’s 4Music Top10 countdown, and they are playing Justin Beiber right now. I am REALLY smiling now. However, I disagree and think that “One Time” should be number 1, and not number 9. I’m just saying.
Anyways, we had orientation and we got a bunch of really helpful information. We have an Oyster Card that will give us complete access to the public transportation here. It’s worth almost $1,000 and will make our semester so much easier. I also found out that we can also go to the Imperial College Union and join clubs and societies there. Shannon and I were talking about signing up for the Dance Club, the Wine Tasting Club, the Yoga Club, or even the Photography Club. The Wine Tasting Club sounds really cool because that isn’t something that we have back at home.
After orientation all my roommates had to stay for another orientation that was for their internships. I still had some errands to run and I didn’t want to go by myself, so I went with another student named Corey that isn’t do an internship either. We went to the oddest store I’ve ever been to. I had been asking people where I could get mattress toppers because my bed was uncomfortable, and everyone kept telling me to go to this one grocery store. Finally I found some helpful cops that sent us to Argos. We got there, and it was so different because it was just catalogs everywhere. You had to search through the catalog, get the number for what you wanted, and search it to see if it was available. After you found all the items you wanted, you had to take it over to a machine that kind of looks like an ATM machine, and you had to order it. My card wouldn’t work in the machine, so I had to get into another line and pay a cashier. Once you pay, you take your receipt over to a different counter where there is a big warehouse in the back, and they bring your items out for you. What an experience!
I learned quite a few things today.
1.The first thing that I learned was that you can’t take pictures of the Tube. It was actually really embarrassing because I snapped a picture, and then once we loaded the Tube there was an announcement over the intercom that you aren’t allowed to take pictures with a flash. Good thing I was able to laugh it off. Won’t make that mistake again. At least I got a cool picture out of it.
2. I never knew that crossing the street could be so difficult. Oh, but it proved to be one of the most difficult things so far. Since they drive on the other side of the street their turning lanes are so confusing (for Americans, at least). The lanes are really narrow and they don’t yield to pedestrians. It’s not like walking on campus at Ole Miss where everyone stops for everyone.
3. The chairs at lunch were really small and asked Shannon “What is someone is fat?” And then we both talked about how we haven’t seen any fat people since we’ve been in London.
4. Signs always say “Mind your/the __.” On the Underground (aka the Tube) the signs all say “Mind the gap” which means watch out and don’t get too close to the tracks. On the shuttle from the airport, the signs said “Mind your head” because you had to duck down to get out. Just a cute little saying that they have here!
5. (Ironically they are on number 5 on the countdown—Fireflies. Really? I was hoping that song wasn’t popular over here). Today as Shannon and I were exploring, I asked a store worker where the nearest pub was, and his response was “We are in England, they are everywhere.” Touche
Alright, well I’ve got to rest up for another big day tomorrow! “Kind regards”…
3. The chairs at lunch were really small and asked Shannon “What is someone is fat?” And then we both talked about how we haven’t seen any fat people since we’ve been in London.
4. Signs always say “Mind your/the __.” On the Underground (aka the Tube) the signs all say “Mind the gap” which means watch out and don’t get too close to the tracks. On the shuttle from the airport, the signs said “Mind your head” because you had to duck down to get out. Just a cute little saying that they have here!
5. (Ironically they are on number 5 on the countdown—Fireflies. Really? I was hoping that song wasn’t popular over here). Today as Shannon and I were exploring, I asked a store worker where the nearest pub was, and his response was “We are in England, they are everywhere.” Touche
Alright, well I’ve got to rest up for another big day tomorrow! “Kind regards”…
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