Officially a Londoner.

Cheerio! 

Ah.. where to begin. Here is my attempt to do London justice and tell a bit about my first couple weeks in London. 

One wonderfully amazing thing about London: plays, plays, plays, and plays. There's this place, Leister Square. It's basically the Times Square of London because, well, it looks similar and there are a million broadway plays. (Here they are actually called West End plays, but it's the same thing) And the best part, you can roll into a theatre one hour before a show starts, ask if there are tickets, and if there are, then you get them for a student price. Which is usually the best deal ever. SO. This week we popped in the Queens Theatre 30 minutes before showtime. And no big deal, but WE SAW LES MIS 5TH ROW!! They just happened to have 7 tickets for us, 5th row dead center? WHATTTT. I had goosebumps the entire time. The play was absolutely unbelievable. I can't even. Anyways- we did the same thing later in the week and saw Phantom of the Opera. UNREAL. UNREALLL. 

I love London. I love everything about this city. There's street markets and shopping and amazing food and plays and British people and ah I'm in love. I'm learning a lot too. Our classes are so fascination because we've actually seen the places and have read the novels we're studying. And I'm learning just about different cultures and people and public transportation and all kinds of things. It's such an an adventure and an amazing experience. I love the group and the teachers and it's become like a big family. 

This past weekend we took a day trip to Brighton. Okay, best place ever. It's a beach with this giant pier with the cutest shops and amusement park rides on it. We got some good ol' fish and chips and a yummy milkshake and strolled the beach and pier. Then we went to the countryside for some more exploring in the beautiful towns. We had the privilege of touring Virginia Woolf's house and her apple orchard and churchyard and that was such a neat day. So charming. Nothing beats having a tour guide read an excerpt of Virginia's writing as we sit in her favorite 'writing room' in the apple orchard. 

Yesterday was yet another lovely day in London. We spent the morning shopping on Oxford Street, enjoying a couple hours in Primark, one of London's gems. Then had a delicious lunch at Nando's and Ben's cookies. Turns out the infamous freshman 15 is quickly followed by a sophomore 20. I'm over it. YOLEO. 

We also visited the Museum of London and Tower of London this week which was pretty spectacular. The Crown Jewels are a sight to see. And St. Pauls Cathedral. Climbing 500 steps to the very top.. so worth it. What a view. 

One new fact about London Sid: I am now a mega One Direction fan. Maybe I shouldn't be admitting this, but really. They're great. My friends and I jam out to their music every day, whether that means dancing around the apartment or dancing down the streets of London with our headphones in. One Direction is a big deal here in London, and I must say that our first outing in London when we arrived was seeing their movie in town.

I'll do my best to continue the emails and blog posts, but for now.. I'll be living life as a Londoner. Reading Pride and Prejudice, strolling into broadway plays, visiting the countryside, riding the tube, listening to 1D, shopping on Oxford Street, dreaming about those British accents, and eating lots of Digestives (no, not some sort of gross medicine or something.. rather, the world's greatest, and most addicting chocolate carmel cookie)

Cheers.