London Arrival

I landed at London's Heathrow Airport on Thursday, September 25th ready to begin the adventure of a lifetime...but not before waiting in the long customs line and collecting my two large suitcases! I was thoroughly exhausted after having sat next to multiple large passengers on both my flights and wanting to catchup on sleep and get over my jetlag as quickly as possible.

I walked out to the arrivals gate to find Matt, who then helped me manage my suitcases and heavy backpack all the way back to his flat in Olympia/Kensington. The tube ride there wasn't too crowded, as it was only early afternoon. Sure enough, I fell asleep immediately after calling my parents to let them know of my safe arrival.

For the next few days, I attempted to change my sleeping schedule and prepare for what was to come. Matt brought me to the Japanese Gardens in a park by Kensington, which was beautiful and so separate from the look of the city. I tried to set up my English bank account. I was told that I would have to go to a specific branch to set up my account, as it would be an international account. A few hours later, we went to the "cinema" (movie theater to us Americans!) to see the movie, "The Duchess", which was very well done, but also quite sad.

I was to move in to "halls" (dorms) the next afternoon, so I went to bed early to get all my stuff together the next morning.