I have officially been a resident of Foggy London Town for a week now. Even though I have been preparing for months, it has been quite an adventure adapting to the culture of a country that, although uses the same language as me, is incredibly different. I thought I was prepared, but here are the 11 ways I have been proven wrong in the past seven days.
1. You will not sleep on the plane.
I booked a night flight to London so I would be able to sleep and be ready to greet the city when I landed. This was simply not meant to be. Due to excitement and the fact that my sleep schedule is so messed up, I spent the entire plane ride watching movies and playing Bejeweled. By the time I got to London, at 6:30 a.m., I was on track to be up for another fun-filled 12 hours. Oh, what a joy that was.
2. You will run on little to no sleep your first few days.
I was awake for 31 hours from the time I woke up the day of the flight to me going to bed my first night in London. Over the orientation period, I probably slept for 14 hours over the course of 4 days. As much fun as I had during that time, the best part was going to my nice twin bunk bed at the end of the day. I never thought I would be saying those words, but they are absolutely true.
3. You will most likely get sick.
I woke up on day 3 of London with a massive sinus infection and spent my entire day trying to get my body to expel the massive amounts of mucus. I am still attempting to recover despite the lack of sleep and food in my life. The stresses of the first few weeks are going to put a strain on your body and you need to be prepared to fight for your health.
4. You will be confused by the currency.
Being the book nerd that I am, I was expecting to get fancy coins like a crown or even a golden sovereign! Sadly, that currency died with Charles Dickens, and we have the famous GBP (Great British Pounds). However, I would soon realize the lowest denominations of the pound come in huge coins that weigh down your purse and jingle everywhere you go. Can't we just get a 1 pound note, put some monarch on it, and call it a day?
5. You will be even more confused by the brands.
In my many trips to the local Tesco (basically a Safeway or a Giant), there are so many varieties of British food to sample. However, if you are looking for something a little more like home, good luck trying to figure out what brand corresponds to the ones in the United States. While Doritos are still the same, there is a lovely thing called Marmite here that is apparently some sort of maple syrup. I don't even know and I am not going to touch it.
6. You will not be able to eat half of the food.
If you have a food allergy and a picky eater like me, you will be forced to try and navigate a city where everything has fancy toppings or ingredients you can't eat. I am allergic to eggs, which means I cannot eat mayonnaise as a topping. Guess what? EVERYTHING IN ENGLAND HAS MAYONNAISE IN IT! I guess I will just have to eat chicken forever.
7. You will walk more than you ever have in your life.
Having both my flat and school on one of London's most famous streets is both a blessing and a curse. It means I get to explore the beautiful area of Kensington every day, whether I am going to class or going to the grocery store. It also means I get to walk 3 miles every day to get to school. That does not include the flights of stairs that I climb to get to my flat, classrooms, and other amenities. #LondonBody2k16
8. You will be a genius at public transportation.
Having lived in a metropolitan city for two years, it was incredibly easy to slip into the new system of the tube, the trains and the double decker buses. With my Oyster card in hand, I can walk out of my apartment and pick up 6 different buses to a variety of locations. God bless transportation.
9. You will be hit by cars (if you're not careful).
Walking home today from the grocery store, I almost witnessed a pedestrian crossing the street get taken out by a bicycle turning. England is not as forgiving as the United States with letting pedestrians cross . They don't really care if you know what direction they are coming from. They are on a mission and god forbid that you get in the way.
10. You will still be delighted by all the accents.
There are few things in this world more delicious than a British accent. Listening to my teachers give us introductions to the courses we will be taking is very hard to take seriously when I cannot get over how beautiful they sound. Their penchant for using terms of endearment such as "dear hearts", "darlings", and "love" will also send your heart reeling.
11. You will somehow feel at home.
Even though I know that I am 3,000 miles away from home, I do not feel much different than when I was at school in DC. It is another big city with its own set of challenges and I am learning something new every day. I am sure that this city might someday overwhelm me, but for now, I am just enjoying the ride.
