I’m now in my second week of my great adventure abroad and can’t believe how the time is flying. Monday I meant another start of the school week. I’m not going to lie it really sucks that I have to do school work while in London. I don’t mind going to class, and I actually enjoy taking all the field trips but the homework part is really cramping my style. I feel like I’m missing out on a lot of London action sitting in my room having to read, write, and study. That’s the life of a college student though.  The museum of childhood was where I was Monday. I’m not much of a museum person at all so it really wasn’t that interesting to me, although some of the toys were neat to see. Tuesday was another day filled with museum time. This was actually interesting to me because of the topic at hand; children and disease. I felt like the things I learned were more pertinent to my major. In the morning I wandered through the foundling museum. There I learned how Corem started the foundling hospital to save orphans from the streets and give them a life they could prosper with. The story was very inspiring. Later at the Wellcome museum I seen an entire display on DIRT and some additional information about disease throughout England. Thursday was a very exciting day. I took a tour through Wimbledon were I seen the very courts that world famous tennis players played on. I got some great souvenirs to take back home to my family. They were exceptionally jealous because they are all tennis fans. During lunch we ate in the Wimbledon café and naturally had to have some strawberries. They seemed like the best strawberries I had even eaten. They were the perfect combination of sweet and tangy. After I was finished at Wimbledon I strolled through regions park. The scenery was amazing. The rose gardens were so vibrant and beautiful. The park was very relaxing and I got some great pictures as well. Friday I began my day early. My friend Ashley and I wanted to get a head start on the shopping we wanted to complete for the day. We woke up at 7am and grabbed some breakfast and were on our way. All before 2pm we had been to an unreal amount of shops and  of course took some great pictures of the places we went. During lunch on Friday I enjoyed my first cup of English tea! I chose to have green tea and it was paired to perfection with the biggest burrito I have ever had that I picked up down the street at a Mexican burrito joint. That night the family (my friends and I) bought tickets to the zoo after dark! The silent disco was the best thing ever. It was so much fun and free! Saturday I went to a polo math. It was very similar to a high school football game. I felt a little silly walking up in my dress, heels, and hat. Regardless it was fun! That night i attended a foam party. It was so similar to the ones I have been to in the states, but of course more expensive drinks. : ) Sunday Ashley and I went to Brighton. This was my first time on the britrail! I was very excited to finally fill in a date on my pass! The beach was definitely different. Full of rocks instead of sand. We had some amazing food and an amazing time : ).

Preparing for my trip to London I tried to imagine how I would spend my days and nights while abroad. I assumed I would come out of this experience with friends made and stories to tell. During my first week I have already accomplished both of these. I have a wonderful group of friends that are like my family. Given the amount of time we have known each other I would have never thought I would have made such a strong connection with my new family. Every one of the ccsa students has only heightened my experience thus far in England.

During my first week I have stayed busy. Monday was the start of my classes. I have chosen to take two classes while in London so I stayed busy throughout the week. It was a meet and greet kind of day. I also watched my first ballet on tv and really got a look as to what the class was going to be like. Tuesday I toured the royal opera house and took a harry potter walk. Wednesday was the glorious fitness walk through Hampstead Heath Park. This was a bit of a challenge for me. I am not the type that works out in any way shape or form. Well, this walk was not meant for someone like me that doesn’t work out. I was proud of myself in the end when I finished and completed every task without giving up on it. I especially enjoyed the stretching session at the end of the walk. I have a feeling that when I get back to the states I want to join some kind of fitness group such as yoga or Pilates. It was really relaxing and the perfect ending to the fitness walk. Thursday I went to the London museum and the Charles dickens museum. I am not much of a museum person so it was hard for me to pay attention to everything the museums had to offer. Friday was Camden Market day. When I walked out of the tube station and seen all of these shops my eyes lit up like a little child on Christmas morning. This place and the other markets that are in my future London trip were definitely not in my budget plan. It was so fun to walk the streets and browse through all the wonderful things that was for sale. I wondered to myself when walking through all the places if locals always come to Camden market and how they control their want for all types of things. Saturday and Sunday were my lazy days. I didn’t do much. I caught up on some sleep to fuel me for the week to come. I started to plan out the rest of my weeks I have left in London and where exactly I want to go.

 London is full of adventures. I plan on taking advantage of every day I have left.

I seem to always leave things to the last minute. For this trip I actually started to make lists of things to prepare for my departure out of the country, I dont know what I would have done without them. So here I am wednesday the 6th, the day before I leave and I have every hour packed full of things I must complete before I leave. My sister came to stay with me and has made things 20 times easier. She's such a great helper. I am getting very anxious to depart from the US and begin my adventure not only as a travelor but as a student in another country! Let the fun begin