The London Experience

Wow… My London trip has come to an end. I cannot believe two weeks has already passed. I remember entering my dorm for the first time and thinking, “I have a long time to be in London!” I learned so much, expanded my knowledge, and learned what it is like to be a local in London. My last day in London was also nothing but so special to me. I went to Dishoom, Regent’s Park, and went to a Wicked Show in West End.

For lunch on my last day, we went as a group to Dishoom, which is a fancy Indian restaurant. I’ve never tried Indian food before, so I was trying to go into an open mind. Also, I didn’t realize that it was a buffet style, so we had starters, a main dish, and desserts! I was blown away by the starters being so delicious. I was tasting another part of the world in London! I tried an Indian imported Coke Cola, which tasted flatter and sweeter, but I enjoyed it. It was called Thums Up which I thought was a funny name for a soda. The service was so fast, for a fancy multiple-dish restaurant, which is extremely surprising, and the fact this was in London! In London, most restaurant services aren’t super fast because people tend to relax more and savor their meals more, so I was blown away by the service. Overall, this restaurant was one of the best restaurants I have tried in London. It was also so great because I was with a group of girls that I started this trip with.

At Dishoom, we all sat together and bonded over everything we had done this whole trip and where everyone was going next this summer. At home, I don’t have a lot of friends and find it difficult to make genuine good friendships, so when I was coming on this trip, I wasn’t expecting to make many friends, but it was quite the opposite. I got to talk so much with some of the girls and even went out and explored London with some of them! I felt closer to some of them than I have to some people I’ve been friends with for a couple of months, which is crazy to say but it is true! Studying abroad with a small group that’s all girls felt like a vacation that made it out of the group chat! No one had drama with each other, and everyone liked each other which made the whole trip 10 times better. 

Later in the day, I went walking around Regent’s Park which is very close to our dorms. The size of Regent’s Park is no joke, and you could spend an entire day in this park if you wanted to. I came up from the tube and walked to the entrance, which was completely flat grass with huge trees surrounding the border. Children were

playing soccer on the grass, and so many people were lying on the grass enjoying the warm sun. I walked further towards the inner part of the park to Queen Mary’s Garden. It was so beautiful with a water fountain, a variety of flowers, and beautiful old trees! Lastly, to finish the day, I went to Wicked which was so amazing. When you think of a musical, Wicked was exactly this! 

I am going to miss London immensely! I have to come back and get a more local approach by visiting places only locals would know! I fell in love with London in a way I haven’t with any other city, and I want to potentially live here in the future! I am so blessed I got to do an amazing study abroad trip here and make lifelong memories that I will be able to tell anyone and everyone!

When I came to London, I experienced many different things such as food, culture shock, and how you transport around a city. I didn’t realize how different many things were because I thought that the things I was used to doing daily at home were normal. It was so normalized in my brain, which I am now realizing is a negative thing, but I’m glad I am getting to go out of my realm and explore new things! Some of the major things that were different were the traffic and pedestrian style, the fast-paced style of locals in London, and the variety of foods that all tasted amazing. 

With the traffic in London, the first and obvious difference is how it all goes in opposite directions. It scares me at times for the drivers because the drivers’ side in the cars and busses is switched, so it feels so much easier to have a head-on collision, and the chances of dying are so much higher. But one thing I do feel is more safer is how pedestrians can cross the road now. Instead of one yellow pedestrian warning sign, there are two flashing yellow lights and a small sign in the middle of the road to indicate people can cross here. Even though these are here, almost everyone illegally crosses the road. The lights at stop lights take forever to turn green for pedestrians, and people have to make their trains or buses. I have learned the patience of Londoners is very small also when it comes to getting places on time and making the right public transportation routes. 

  With little patience from Londoners, the super fast-paced lifestyle also comes into effect. Everyone walks so much faster, which I enjoy because people in the United States usually walk so slowly. Slow walkers agitate me and when I came to London, I surprisingly felt like I fit in because I was walking just as fast as the people next to me. Also, going into the tubes is so simple because you are supposed to stand on the right side and allow people on the left side to walk or run down the stairs so people can make their tubes. It makes the whole environment so much quicker since the tubes are fast too, it can be overstimulating sometimes, but my mind loves it because my mind is always moving and thinking about random stuff. When everyone is getting off of work, the men in suits walk so fast so they can beat the rush. It is kind of crazy how fast they move, but I am here for it to be honest. If you want to go at a slow pace, you can but people would get annoyed with you. 

I have so much to say about the foods I have had in London. I have tried more new foods than I have in my whole time in the United States. Even the chain restaurants here are so much better tasting and better quality than in the United States. I went to the Italian Restaurant in the neighborhood of Soho in London due to its surprisingly good prices and the amazing pictures I have been seeing. I walk in and it looks like a 5-star restaurant with dim lighting, fancy white table lining, and dark flooring. I sat at this tree that was in the middle of the restaurant, with a white counter wrapping around it. I ordered this pasta that was cheesy, creamy and tasted like heaven. I also had some Chinese food in Chinatown that was amazing. It was authentic and tasted like nothing I’ve had before. I am amazed at how every variety of food I tried was amazing.

The day started off spectacularly, with the sun shining, no clouds, and decent temperatures outside! I woke up and decided to knock a Taylor Swift destination in London off my bucket list! I went to The Black Dog in South London and it is a cool pub that does Sunday Roast. Later, I went to Notting Hill to see the well-known Portobello Market and colorful houses. Then at night, I decided to go with my friend to see The Tower Bridge and the London Downtown at night.

Since our day was completely free, I knew this was a perfect time to get as much done as possible. I have quite a few things on my itinerary checklist, so I had to make this day busy but productive. I also realized that this is the last weekend I will have in the United Kingdom, which made me really sad. I don’t know the next time I’ll have the chance to come across international waters and I’ve fallen in

love with this city. I’ve constantly listened to Taylor Swift’s London songs, such as So Long London, London Boy, and The Black Dog. Seeing The Black Dog in person connected so many dots in my brain, considering how the song is about her ex-boyfriend cheating on her with some other woman in this very restaurant. I found it fascinating and funny that the restaurant has taken full advantage of this and put some of Taylor Swift’s lyrics on the windows and were even selling Taylor Swift Merchandise! It was a short visit, then we made our transition to Notting Hill.

Notting Hill is this well known neighborhood in London due to its uniform beautiful homes and some of the streets has houses painted all different colors. It is as if they laid out the rainbow and applied it onto all the homes here. On one street, below these colorful homes had some of the coolest markets I’ve ever seen. It was called Portobello Market and is only open certain times of the year, but I was lucky to be here when it was open! They sold such unique stuff such as hand knitted airpod cases, purses, and of course Notting Hill Tote Bags. The color of the items inside these tents brought more than just a rainbow to this neighborhood, but an extravaganza of colors and beauty. Lastly, we went to the popular Notting Hill store where they filmed a movie Julia Roberts was in there! I bought a Notting Hill Tote Bag and went home to do some homework before night fell.

When night fell, me and my friend named Berkelee wanted to go out and explore the rest of London! We didn’t want to have any regrets on missing out on anything, so we thought the perfect way to prevent this was to go see the most popular spots of London at night. We finally got here after a long tube ride, but then I was looking at the one of the most famous landmarks in the world called The Tower Bridge!

It is tall, grand, and has blue metal connecting each end, and has history older than any human alive. I am standing, while leaning on a large cold stone wall on the South side of London at an area called The Queen’s Walk. Right as the lights at The Tower Bridge reach max brightness, the sky is barely completely dark, because of summer solstice. The blue and white lights from the bridge turn the dark black river into a colorful landscape. I turn my head and see the London Skyline touching The Tower of London. I am in awe how modern present-day architecture is touching thousands of year-old architecture. A boat passes by bringing waves as if the river turned into an ocean. The sounds of waves crashing the rocks below me induced such an awe that I’ve never had before. Seeing all this at night is an absolute must, no matter how tired you are at the end of the day!

In London, the number of museums there are is so high with different variations such as history, art, architecture, and much more! The three biggest ones are the British Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and The National Gallery. The British Museum is home to over 8 million objects earning the title of biggest museum in the world. The Victoria and Albert Museum is the largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts, and design. The National Gallery has artwork of some of the most famous artists in the world including but not limited to Monet, Bellini, and Van Gogh. 

This young lady is walking her way up to the entrance of the British Museum and is out of breath. Her mouth is as open and wide as the Grand Canyon due to the size and detail of the exterior building alone. She gets inside and sees parts of the world all in this museum. For example, she entered the Greece, Parthenon, and Roman Empire areas and felt she was nerdy out to extreme amounts. She saw Centaurs, gods, and goddesses from Greek Mythology, which reminded her of her childhood when she was obsessed with Greek Mythology and shows such as Percy Jackson.  Since she is majoring in Interior Design, seeing all the small details connected dots and felt as if she was finding the hidden treasure on the maps. Seeing jewelry and pottery that was older than any human or tree alive gave perspective into how small her life was, but felt so calming and fascinating that humans before her had created all this. 

Colors upon colors and mixtures that her eyes had never seen before her were in this place. The National Gallery holds all these gems that the world must see! It is free to get in to see the most famous art in the world. Since the girl is obsessed with Monet, she can see the styling from her art a mile away. She finds her body taking her instantly to it ignoring everything else on the sides. There is staring upon staring and she forgets that 10 minutes have gone by and she moves throughout the museum. She finds Leonardo da Vinci’s only surviving large-scale drawing which gave her so much awe. The museum taking proper measures with every painting gave her so much peace since some other museums have controversy if the objects are supposed to be there. She was squinting and squinting at some of the art in the distance because it looked as if they printed out a digital photo on a much larger scale. The fact humans have learned to capture photographs through paint and were being shown for her to see made this her favorite museum to visit! 

Once again, she felt as if she was visiting the entire globe all in one place at the Victoria and Albert Museum! She got to observe everything within about an hour which was great and relieving considering how much she felt she got to visit while here. The English furniture with vast influential details from other parts of the world fascinated her thinking that the merging of different ideas had led to one massive beautiful treasure. What she found random but still very interesting is that there was Frank Lloyd Wright furniture here, since he is technically in the modern era. There was also more modern stuff and a ton of pottery and porcelain, which makes this museum super unique in London! If there’s going to be any museums you’re going to visit, make sure you plan for all three of these because they are so worth the journey. 

Buns Buns, which right from the start sounds nice and unique. It is an Asian restaurant with lots of appetizers, main dishes, and desserts. Right when the lady walked in, it looked like it was taken straight out of a magazine with perfect decorations, color schemes, and gold finishes. Every day they open at 9 am and Monday through Thursday they close at 11:30. On Friday and Saturday they close at 12 am and on Sunday at 10:30 pm. The lady knew how to get there because she saw signs saying it was located in Covent Garden and that she had to go to the north entrance. She was amazed at how quick and convenient it was because it was right next to the entrance! There is no direct bathroom in the place, but the server told her about a code for a restroom she would be allowed to use located downstairs in Covent Garden.

This restaurant was a perfect place for her to relax after a ton of walking she did during the morning. The seats and floor had a cactus green tone to them topped with gold, which made her feel like she was in a 5-star restaurant that was located on a penthouse level! The service was amazing, fast, and relaxing enough so she could enjoy the environment around her and have comfort. She ordered a Spicy Tempura Shrimp starter which had a sauce that tasted like spicy cheese. To top off her food, she ordered the Crispy Chicken Buns which she overall liked. The soft, fluffy bun holding the chicken on it tasted like fresh pancakes her mom made for her as a kid for breakfast. The satay sauce topped with crushed peanuts was a taste of heaven. It was tangy, but creamy tasting at the same time! Overall, the lady enjoyed her stay here until the server for some odd reason began to grow a negative attitude on her!

For a delicious dessert, she headed outside of Covent Garden and headed in the direction of the National Gallery and Trafalgar Square. She couldn’t afford a high-priced dessert since lunch broke the bank for her! She landed at a place called Udderlicious which had gelato, shakes, brownies, and more. With the number of flavors there were, she found a gelato flavor for every color in the rainbow. She decided to get the chocolate brownie gelato which had the chewy soft brownies bit in it, and the milk chocolate heavenly taste. Since it was so small inside, she enjoyed her gelato outside and listened to the commotions and busy traffic noises of London streets.

For dinner, she went to this simple, quick, and inexpensive place called Zambrero. It is a chain restaurant in the United Kingdom, but she went to the Kentish Town location since it was so close to the Camden area. It is considered a Mexican restaurant but reminded her immensely of Chipotle. She ordered a regular-size chicken bowl, which cost about 8 pounds. The taste of the chicken was delicious, it was chopped, had some softness to it, and had a mild tang, which made it feel so authentically Mexican. The bowl was topped off with fresh lime juice, peppery white rice, lettuce, and delicious shredded cheese. The combination transported her to Mexico, where authentic greatness comes from! Her overall food journey for the day was spectacular, but the one thing she would warn other people about was the prices of the food in Covent Garden. She felt it was a tourist trap area, so if you go, she recommends just walking by Covent Garden.

I am going to share some of what I did yesterday and what I did today! After I explored King’s Cross and Regent’s Canal, I went into the British Library which had many people in it and galleries of history. Some documents date back to the 1200s. The next day, I went to Neil’s Yard, Covent Garden, and Leadenhall Market. These were all must-see places to go to while in London. 

I went to the British Library due to its proximity to where I left off on my journey. It is only a few minutes walk from King’s Cross Station, where the Harry Potter Platform 9 3/4 is. From the outside, the British Library looks like an ordinary building, but once you get inside, it is very open and has a modern slick look in my opinion. It was completely free to get into which is very nice. There was a gallery in here, that had historical documents, education sheets, old print art, and much more. They even had some of William Shakespeare’s work including the Second Folio and Later Folio editions. Even though there was glass protecting the work, I could imagine the smell of old paper. One work that amazed me was The Owl and the Nightingale, which was created around 1250-1299. Hundreds of years were in the palm of my hands. 

The next day, I decided I wanted to do more sightseeing and discover restaurants in London. I went to Covent Garden since I had heard this was a popular spot people

 go to and something any person should walk through. I got here and you are automatically welcomed by these metal arches in the roof and old vintage lighting hanging down, as if you were visiting this place when it was first created. It felt like a teleportation to back in the day when Covent Garden first opened. There were many shops and sit-down restaurants that had vibrancy and energy screaming from them. Many people were socializing, eating, and enjoying the surrounding environment around them, which was extremely nice to see in such a busy city where people don’t take in the environment around them.

I went to Neil’s Yard which was exactly how I expected it to be, full of color and beautiful. As small as it was, it was great to walk through because you felt like you had a small part of London that was hidden just for you. Neil’s Yard is a place that many people don’t know they should see when visiting London, so that makes it even more special for you if you go to see it!  For dinner, I went to Leadenhall Market and was in straight awe when I came up to the entrance. Also, to see it dated all the way back to the 1400s was absolutely crazy to me. I began distracted by the different amount of foods I was beginning to smell, the voices of people chatting at the pubs after a long day of work, and the warm lighting. Every restaurant or pub in this market is beautiful and has intricate old detailing, but it comes at a price. All the food here is fancy and delicious, but I recommend coming here for a date night instead of a grab-something-quick meal. I ate at Pizza Express and I got the Pello Pasta, which was delicious but ended up costing me in total of 27 pounds. Overall, every place I went to is definitely must sees in London!

  

This day was one of the most majestic and colorful areas I have seen in London so far! First what we did was start at King’s Cross and walked to Regent’s Canal. Next, we went to Word on the Water, which is on the canal next to the stairs down. We walked around Coal Drop, which has historic roots with dashes of modern shops and restaurants. Lastly, went around King’s Cross station to see all the interesting shops and the British Library. 

Regent’s Canal, one of the most charming scenic places I have seen so close within a city. When I first walk up the bridge overlooking the canal, the things I was seeing looked like they were straight out of a camera. The color balance was perfect, the lighting was amazing, and barely any people surrounding the area. The boats on the dock were a rainbow of colors and charm, that felt like a bunch of hidden treasures. I’ve seen many people post about the Regent’s Canal, but none described its beauty as well as they should have. The water was so smooth, you could see the outlines of the clouds reflecting on it, which made the dark green water to have what looked like painted white spots on it.

On the Regent’s Canal, there was a boat that stood out immensely. It was the only boat to be a business and a mini performing area on half of it. The greenery around it makes it blend in with nature around it. Once you enter, you atomically smell the fresh and new air. It is surrounding by wood shelves, rugs, and rows upon rows of books. The combination of wood and books is something very difficult to describe, but makes an environment feel historical and charming. Throughout the store, there was also windows to view the outside, and your head was almost on the same level as the water! I went right as the place was opening, so people were just starting to come, but it is something you should plan on walking through!

Around King’s Cross, I was distracted right away from the smells coming out of doors. The buildings were modern and innovative, but the ground, there was restaurants that allowed perfect relaxation. While sitting on the grass right in front of a food place, you could hear the traveling and ripples of a stream. It was perfect relaxation music, which combined perfectly was the sun beating down on you in this grass area. The way the sun was coming down showing amazing reflections from a building to a ground. The geometrical and perfect lines of squares that beated on the ground was definitely cool and satisfying to discover. It reflected on the wall across from it, and on the ground. The darkness became integrated with the light partially. 

After a good night’s sleep and catching up on jet lag, I began my journey through London! I started the day off with some breakfast at McDonald’s, then met up with the rest of my group. We went on the Tube together and landed in Westminster for a guided walking tour. On this guided walking tour, we went to many places such as Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Globe Theatre, and lastly, ended up at Borough Market. We also went to Saint Martin’s Theatre to see the Mouse Trap. I’m going to share my overall opinions of each place and if they’re worth seeing!

So first, I am going to start off with Westminster Abbey and Big Ben. When you walk by Westminster Abbey, you are amazed by the detailing in the architecture and how tall it will be. We only walked by Westminster Abbey on our tour, but I had to come back and go inside. The burials and memorials of some very important people in history lies under the grounds of it. While you are walking inside and out of breath by how beautiful it is, you are walking on history. To get inside, you do have to pay, but I promise you will be amazed at how beautiful it is, and it will take some time to get through everything, so you get your money’s worth in my opinion. Inside, there is also the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries which you pay extra to access, but it is so worth it. You get a view from the highest floor of Westminster Abbey and get to look down upon everyone walking. Out of a lot of attractions you will do, make sure to go inside Westminster Abbey.

Next, we went to Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, and Saint Paul’s Cathedral. When you think of London, Big Ben is one of the first things that comes to most peoples’ minds, so make sure to get there early enough to snag a few cute pictures. It is right next to Westminster Abbey and it is free to walk by and get up close. You can 

 go inside Big Ben but tickets get completely booked months in advance. In my opinion, walking around Big Ben is good enough since there is so much stuff surrounding it to do. Trafalgar Square is also great to walk around and see the outside of the National Gallery. It is a fairly busy square, so I would recommend being extra cautious for pickpocketers because they are very common in this area. Lastly, Saint Paul’s Cathedral is a must to see. Of course, it is free to walk past, but the inside does cost money. From pictures I have seen of the inside, I believe that paying to get in would be worth it. 

The last stops in our tour were the Globe Theatre and Borough Market. Did you know the Globe Theatre that we see today isn’t technically the original Globe Theatre! It was burned down in the 1600’s during a Shakespeare play and they rebuilt a new structure in a different spot. It is the only building in London with a thatched roof, which means it has straw on the top as a roof. Since this theatre was a bit more expensive, we went to another theatre that was well worth it. It was called Saint Martin’s Theatre which has so much charm and a classic look inside. We saw a performance of The Mousetrap and it was entertaining to watch, so I would definitely say if you want to watch some theatre, go to Saint Martin’s Theatre instead of the Globe Theatre.

Today is the travel day. My day started at 4:00 AM so I could make it in time for my 6:00 AM flight to New York City. I ended up running a little late, but ultimately made it in time for my flight. On the flight, there I got a window seat in the very last row, but the man in the middle kept extending his arms out so it felt like half the seat was being taken. Once I landed in New York, I had to make airport switches for the international part of my flying. I had two options which was take an Uber or take public transportation using the subway. Since I was alone and worrying about my safety, I went ahead and paid $75 to get an Uber. Once I got to John F Kennedy Airport, I was in no rush since I had a couple of hours to waste. The security lines were long, but once I got in, it was smooth sailing from there. Now all I had to do was board the plane.

My Virgin Airways plane was surprisingly nice since I had an economy seat. On the side of my seat, I had plenty of room to move my backpack out to the side so I could extend my legs throughout my flight. On-flight entertainment was good because of the number of options you had. There were at least 100 movies available to watch, and the plane tracking was cool. Before it got too late, they served our dinner to us. The two options were chicken curry or tomato pasta, but I chose the chicken curry. I was shocked by it actually being good and filled me up. In the morning, they served breakfast which was also good and gave me hot tea. I tried hot tea with milk for the first time and it did not disappoint. Hot tea and milk are common in the United Kingdom, so make sure to try it at least once!

Once we landed in London Heathrow Airport, I had to go through customs. It was one of the simplest and quickest customs I have ever been through. When I went to

Canada, it took about an hour to get through customs alone and in Jamaica it took 3 hours. In London, all you had to do was scan your passport and take a picture in front of a machine. Since I had all my luggage with me already, I walked toward the public transportation to get to the place I am staying at. The Elisabeth Line is the most affordable option, but it does take a little bit longer. But, once I got inside, I was surprised how nice and clean it was for a public transportation train. About an hour goes by, and I finally arrive at my destination.

The second I walk out of the tube; I am in shock. All the buildings on the street had charm and looked so elegant. Even the police station had an old exterior and character. I saw this one tavern immediately that I have been dying to see. It looks exactly like a true English pub, which I have been super excited to see for so long! It was called The Abbey Tavern, and there was another one called The Camden Head. While I was walking, there was so much energy around, and it made my first overall impression of London fantastic. If you visit London, make sure you see neighborhoods not in Central London to get a true experience of what it is like to live in London. 

Everything is packed! I thought I had everything successfully packed, but some changes came along. For a while, I knew it was going to be a little bit on the colder side, much colder than it is in Texas right now, but I felt at the time that I would be able to handle it since I usually like the cold and don’t get cold easily. As time went on, I began doubting that a little bit but continued to trust that it would be ok as long as I have a sweater. Since I am now checking one day before I get to London, the temperatures have lowered even more. The highest temperature for the entire trip is supposed to be 68 degrees, and the  lowest is now 49 degrees. The thought of it continuing to decrease is scaring me, so I have changed some of my outfit packing. I had some outfits with shorts and T-shirts, but now I am going to wear jeans for most days I am there.

Another thing that I didn’t realize about London is the weather always changes. Sometimes, it is completely sunny then very fast it changes to cloudy then raining. In June in London, the people I have spoken to said it is rainy, but when I checked the weather it said only 1 day it was supposed to rain. A couple of days ago, I checked the weather app and it showed half the days of my whole trip were going to be rainy. Now, 24 hours before my trip, it is showing no days having rain. In conclusion, the London weather is always changing and unpredictable at times. I am going to pack an umbrella and a poncho just in case it does start raining hard. With rain, there is usually wind which will make it feel colder outside than it is, so that is also another reason why I am changing the outfits I am packing. 

With the flight from New York to London being a little over 7 hours long, you may need more than you think. I have to think about many different things. How will I cleanse my face? How will I sleep comfortably at least for a couple hours of the flight? What will keep me from getting bored on my flight? In order to have a clean face and not break out with acne, I am going to bring my cleanser that can easily be applied. I am bringing a basic neck pillow. I have a window seat, but having a neck pillow will make my comfort level increase so much more! I am bringing a mini blanket in case it gets cold on the airplane. I am bringing a portable charger, airpods, and a book to read to pass the time. Lastly, an essential for me to get good sleep is an eye mask. My eye mask is black, so it blocks light out extremely well and bright lights turning on won’t be the thing that wakes me up. 

Since many factors can cause you to have bad sleep such as noise as one of the primary things, bringing my Air Pods is essential. They have a noise cancelling feature which makes it dead silent, and an adaption feature, which allows the noise cancelling to turn off if someone is speaking to you. I am putting all my items into my grey North Face backpack. North Face backpacks are good choices because they are comfortable to wear and have a lot of storage choices. Since I am studying abroad in London, I am bringing my laptop, which may be useful on the plane if I decide to connect to the Wi-Fi and do some school work. Lucky for me, my backpack has a laptop slip-in pocket so it will not get any damage. With all the items I am bringing, my trip should be the best it can be with my economy ticket!