Day 1

5.9.18

I would say the first actual day in London was a success. I got 9 and a half hours of beautiful sleep, and it was much needed. We had sessions, pretty much all day but I did learn some stuff. They talked to us mostly about mental health and where to go for what around campus. The Health Center was another big topic today. We still get care, but we have to get a receipt for our carrier. I think... Speaking of center. That was something I asked Tim today; are they going to take points off if I spell stuff as we do back home? Like 'color' and 'center' are both spelled differently over here. He isn't sure. We will also be getting our classes soon which will be very nice, not to mention helpful. I am fairly confident that I will be able to go home and stay home when Emlee's wedding comes around. Kristen, the woman in charge of our orientation and kind of the International department and we can't figure out where she is from, told us that the classes we will have most often do not have exams. Their exams are in January. Dad is happy about that, but he won't book anything until later.

The food over here is.... different. They do breakfast differently; it is a lot smaller than what I am used to which kind of sucks because I usually eat a big breakfast in case I forget to eat the rest of the day. It happens more then I would like it to. St. Marys also does not provide lunch, so I went out to lunch on Kings St. with Tim, Handley, and Bailey. We went to the George pub, and the cajun pasta was excellent. It wasn't to spice, but it had a good kick. The chicken on it was lovely. I could tell they just cooked it with no seasoning on it. I also got a Pimm's which was very good. It is a drink over here in London that is only a summer deal, but man is it good.

Kings St. not far from campus with lots of little shops, cafes and pubs to try! Also my new favorite happy place.

I went up to Kings St. which is a part of town that is very similar to Gaslight back home. That was maybe the best part of the day, wandering around Kings St. There are all of these shops, bars, and restaurants to check out.

A large group of us went out again after dinner. We ended up at a bar called the Bear with 2 for 1 cocktail until 8.

It was 7:15.

I ordered a Sex on the Beach, a drink I promised myself I would never get! I enjoyed it, however. After that, we had no choice but to head back to campus. Everything closes around here at 6. I haven't figured out why but that is fine. I wish I could have found some ice cream.

I do know where I can get snacks. We had to stop at basically a 7/11 for a few of the group to get their oyster cards, which lets us travel around on the public transit quite comfortable, and they had a lot of things to choose from.

There are a lot of differences between here and back home. The whole driving situation is off, but I am right by the airport, so I hear every plane. Hearthrow has more flights then Dayton.

I am trying to not think about home. I miss it. I miss my cats. I know there will be other small things that I will miss, but I don't think I have been away long enough to understand how much I took them for granted. That is something I am going to try not to do over here. I usually read a lot while traveling and I will be on my phone while out and about. I don't want to do that here. I want to keep my head up, see everything and soak it all up. It is beautiful here, and I want to embrace the short time I have here. I don't want to take the daily stuff for granted.

I miss Aidan. But he will be here soon. I am already planning our first trip! Something tells me Ireland is where I should go. It might be because my mom said that is where my grandma wanted to go, but I don't know. He first needs to get here.