My experience in London has been FABULOUS so far, albeit a bit
different than that of my fellow ICLC students. For starters, I was born here
in this fair city and moved to the United States when I was three years old.
Therefore, I am lucky enough to be a citizen of both countries. My father is
British born and has lived here his whole life. To make a long story short, he
was over in America playing cricket, my mother was at the game and the rest is
history! Although I am just as much British as I am American, I have only been
back to visit once since my departure in the early 2000’s, so I am loving
experiencing most of London for the first time with my friends.
My dad came over with me and we started off the trip down in the
country with my family. It was one of the best weekends of my life. We ate fresh
food from the garden, reconnected with all of my cousins and went to the
Shepton Mallet County Fair! It was so cool to get a taste of rural England.
There was a cheese show, a craft tent and, most notably British, ferret races!
Afterwards my dad showed me his old high school and the cricket grounds he used
to play on as a young lad. I enjoyed the view of country life before diving
into the big city!
Although most things are the same for all of us, there are two big
advantages that being a citizen brings. First, I did not have to apply for a
visa in order to be eligible for an internship or to work at the London Center.
That saved me a lot of stress this summer! Secondly, my wonderful aunt and
uncle graciously opened up their home to me and therefore I did not have to
brave the notorious flat hunt. Sometimes I wish I was living with my friends,
but they’ve all assured me that I am always welcome in their flats, and
sometimes it’s nice to escape the big city to a quiet, residential,
neighborhood with family! On that subject, I am very lucky in that I have the
advantage of family close by. With both of my sisters living in or near the
city, and all of my cousins littered throughout the countryside, I know that
I’m only a tube, a bus, or a train away from a loving embrace! I’ve already
reassured my pals that if any of them are feeling homesick they can, of course,
share my family.
Anyway, we’ve done so much in such a short time! Last week after
everyone settled in, my friends and I headed to Tower Bridge to take a tour of
the Tower of London and see the Crown Jewels. My dad was still with me for the
first week, so we met up with him for a drink in the pub afterwards and he gave
my friends an insight into hidden British culture. My favorite day so far has
been our visit to the Queen’s Gardens. After touring the International Student
House (ISH: an organization we are members of because of our international
student status!) with Orla some of us walked to Regents’ Park. It was a
BEAUTIFUL day and it was so fun to look at all the sculptures and fountains.
From there we wandered into the Queen’s Gardens and spent the whole afternoon
admiring the greenery!
As for the nightlife, we went to see “Much Ado About Nothing” at
Shakepeare’s Globe on a beautiful night last week, and some friends and I went
to HEAVEN, a nightclub that many of my favorite celebrities frequent, so
needless to say I was buzzin’. As if being there wasn’t enough, halfway through
the night, Charli XCX, a famous British pop singer, took the stage for a five
song concert! It was definitely one of the best nights of my life.
On the days I’m not taking classes, or sightseeing, or seeing
impromptu concerts, I have an internship at Jackie Davidson Music Management, a
music management company in Putney. I never thought I would get so lucky with
my work placement, I have already learned so much in the time I’ve been there
and I’m doing the work of my dreams! I am so excited to see what this semester
has to offer and I can’t wait to take advantage of everything that London
offers!
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