‘Ello from London!

Yes, I am now in London and have been here for 5 days! It’s still hard to believe that I will be staying here until mid-April for school. But, it’s been wonderful so far.

I got in around 10:30 am in London, but it was only 5:30 am back in the States. And I do not sleep on planes so I had been up for a long time. Once checked into the hotel room, I started feeling very overwhelmed. The hotel room was small. Not like the average American hotel room at all! A small motel room was probably bigger than this room and it held 3 people! I’ve been insisted that it’s not that everything is small here, everything is big in America. It’s probably true, but wow- it was shocking for me.

Another thing I noticed is there are not a lot of “overweight” people here like back at home. Why, I’m not sure. Because I would originally assume it’s because the food here is bland and everyone walks around a lot, but honestly, after eating here, I wouldn’t say the food is bland. Maybe but I haven’t noticed it. I actually have enjoyed my meals here- I’ve had a mix of Indian, Portuguese, Italian, British, and American and enjoyed them all.

The tourist attractions of course were wonderful. The London Eye gave spectacular views of London. I really enjoyed walking through Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum (the original one) and Hyde Park. Hyde Park actually has a Winter Wonderland filled with little shops and carnival rides during Christmastime that I went to. And of course, the shopping is spectacular (although expensive). I thought Harrod’s was exquisite- especially the Egytian escalator. And the people here are very helpful. My father and I were obviously two American tourists more confused than ever and they all helped us get our way around.

I’m understanding the Tube and bus routes better now after 5 days as well. Sometimes the transportation can be a hassle, but it’s the fastest way to get around. And I’m also starting to get the hang of pounds. The currency rate between U.S. Dollars and UK Pounds is not very good, but I’m starting to understand that 48 pounds does not equal $50 USD, no, it’s about $75 USD. The only thing I’m still struggling with is Celsius. I had to download the app so I could differentiate between the two.

Now, after 5 days I’ve moved into the Residence Hall. A lot of students here are from Penn State, which is wonderful. There are a lot of students too from just about everywhere and anywhere in the USA. Everyone is very friendly since we’re all in the same boat. Tomorrow we have a lot to do so we can all get started with school on Monday. And so it begins…

Location: Chelsea, London, UK