BES Journal 1

    I arrived in London January 10th and have been here an entire week. It is both a culture shock and not one. In a way it is similar to the city life in New York, such as the busy streets, the subway (the tube), and a variety of people walking quickly past you. Yet at the same time, I've never been to London before, and it is quite different from North Carolina. For example, taking a double decker bus is new to me and something I was excited about just because I'd never been on one before. I love the architecture of the buildings, the way historic and modern collide to meet somewhere in the middle.
     My first day here I went to a Gourme Burger restaurant near Woburn and the food was pretty delicious. I was surprised at how skinny the fries were, like strands of hair. I've yet to try something different than American food. I've been mostly eating burgers, but I need to try something that's popular here and different from my usual appetite.
    I went to the British Museum, which was grand and interesting. I went to see Big Ben and the London Eye. That was pretty exciting. I think it didn't really hit me that I was in a different country until I saw Big Ben. I was busy with settling in and buying groceries typical to my return to college from visiting home for break, so when I stood in front of Big Ben, it hit me that I was actually in London.

    One thing that surprised me about being here is that pedestrians don't have the right of way. The first few days, I didn't know when to cross the street and would look around to see if anyone would go first, then quickly follow them, ha. Also the driving on the opposite side of the street. I knew that in London everyone drove on the other side of the street, but being exhausted from the flight, I completely forgot. From the airport I took a shuttle straight to Woburn Place and was surprised when the driver drove on the other side. I remember my head bobbing trying to fight sleep and sitting up immediately, feeling alarmed when I noticed the car was on the left of the street. I was also surprised and a little nervous at how close the cars were to each other and how quickly the car seemed to be moving.
    I've also figured out how the tubes work, where to get off, and where to get on, which is a success for a directionally challenged person like me. I think the tubes here are much cleaner than the ones in New York, which are usually full of trash, and the people here are less creepy, haha.

    One thing I really like about London is simply walking around and seeing everything. Everyone drives everywhere in North Carolina and it's not the same as breathing fresh air, as well as seeing everything up close. I love seeing tall buildings and busy people. It makes everything feel exciting and important.
                                  /

    I'm excited to be here and hope I get to accomplish all the things I set out for. I hope my experience here only continues to get greater and that my adventures will be grand.

Cheers,
Kimberly