As the great Walt Disney once said, "The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." So that's what I've attempted to do this week, that is, "begin doing" and to begin experiencing the things of this side of the pond!
London may be all the way across the North Atlantic Ocean, but the most considerable difference I faced, coming from small-town Iowa, was the city size.. London is massive! With a population of about nine million, the Home of the Big Ben is the largest city in the UK and larger than any city in the States. So not only do I have a little jet lag, but also a bit of British, big city, culture shock. It's a whole different way of life here; I'm starting to get a hang of it, but still have a lot of adjusting and learning to do these next four months.
For the first 5 days, I was staying at the Hampton Inn of Waterloo, this became my home base for a while and I got to know the area well. The Waterloo train station was just a couple blocks down the street and by the third day, was my go-to place. I was taking the tube everywhere and practically every day... we need one of these in Iowa! When I wasn't bumming off Pret's wifi (a common coffee shop in the area), I found myself wandering the streets of Covent Garden, checking out the shops, local fitness studios, and restaurants.
Since my arrival, I've visited a couple of different fitness studios and my favorite was called, "Another Space". It's a super-modern studio in Covent Garden that offers HIIT, Yoga, and Cycling, and the Hot Yoga class I had gone to was exceptional. The room was infrared heated (which is cool because your muscles gain the benefits of the heat without being dehydrated), the mats were all Lulu, and the instructor was one of the best I've had. I highly recommend getting the 3 class pass for £38 and seeing what all the hype is about.
While living in an area that offers over 20,000 restaurants, you wouldn't think it'd be too hard finding a restaurant -and to clarify it's not- but finding the best ones, was where I faltered..there's just TOO many options!! I spent countless hours on Yelp and TripAdvisor looking for the "must visit" restaurants of the area and ended up lucking out on a couple!
The best restaurant I ate at was called "Flat Iron", a steak restaurant found in the heart of Covent Garden. It only offered steak and a few sides, but for those few things, they knew what they were doing because my meal was exceptional. I ordered a medium-well steak, that came with a side salad, and also ordered a side of creamed spinach, all amounting to about £13. I was seated at a long table where I met a couple from South Africa to my right, and two local gals on my left, Georgia & Abi. The locals were getting a meal in before a trip to the theater and I ended up talking to them for most of my meal. I wasn't trying to intrude on their nights or anything, but they seemed not to mind and were fun to converse with, especially since they were so knowledgeable of the area. To add to my great experience, after finishing up my meal, I received a token and got free ice cream on my way out! So this restaurant was a score, and funny enough, I didn't find it on some website, it was recommended by the barber I went to a day prior.
That barber's name was Finn, and for about half an hour, he filled me in on what he thought I should know. Finn was in his mid-twenties and although most of his information was about local bars and clubs, he did have some good advise. The Flat Iron recommendation was great, but even better, he let me in on this thing called a "Tesco three meal deal". For £3 you can get a sandwich/salad/wrap, a bag of chips/granola bar, and a drink!! What a deal! Even with his criticism of the gal who cut my hair last, going there was a solid choice. I got on the in with a true Londoner, and also got a good hair cut! What else could I ask for?
My favorite experience so far would have to be attending Hillsong Church in Central London...this place is extremely cool!! I was a little skeptical at first, I knew they had amazing music but it wasn't their main location (it's somewhere in Australia I think), so would it even be the same quality of music? Were they even going to present the gospel or was it just going to be a mini-concert? These were a few of my many questions and, rest assured, they did present the gospel and the message was great! Then, as expected, the worship was seriously outstanding. It really did feel like a concert; their music was just that good, like better than the stuff on the radio!! They did such a great job welcoming me too, I was met with a massive welcome crew that led me in and showed me around a bit. Then I met some other volunteers, one of which bought me a coffee and helped me find a seat! After the service, I went to the welcome area and met yet another volunteer, Eric! He took me to an upscale food court/bar area where we met a few others who also attend Hillsong. They were all in their 20's I'd say, and it was reassuring to meet such great people in such a big church (about two thousand attend).
The biggest reassurance I've had so far though would be meeting the other students in my program...I've met some cool people! There's about 120 of us from America; I've met almost all of them and let's just say, I'm pretty fortunate. Although about 80% of the program is girls, I was lucky enough to connect with a few guys that're pretty similar to me. One of them, Maaz, is also from Iowa State, and it took me traveling to London to finally meet him. Crazy enough, we're a door down from each other now, so I spend a lot of time in room 310 with him and his roommate, Mark. Suffice it to say, I've got a pretty solid group of friends and most of us live in the same building too, The Atlantic.
The program I'm in is an international program, so although I'm in England, I'm probably not going to run into any Brits during class. However, I have met a lot of people from other countries all over the world so I'm not complaining, all I have to do is go outside and I'll be surrounded by locals. The class' I'm taking this semester aren't going to be too bad, they're all technically pass/fail because my gpa doesn't transfer, so that'll help me relax a little. They don't give too much homework here either, it's mainly a few heavily weighted things that make up most of my grade. It's hard to tell exactly how they'll be, but I'll keep you guys updated on that as they progress.
This past week has been a great beginning to what's looking like a really fun next four months and I'm excited to keep you guys in the loop! Oh, what's that? Sorry guys, Harry and Meghan just called, apparently they need help sorting out some royal drama...Gotta go!!
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