Now that I am two weeks into my study abroad experience in London, I can say two things for certain: it rains a lot and pedestrians are willing to put their lives on the line to cross the street amidst oncoming traffic. Nonetheless, I find myself slowly adapting to the changes of living in a city, something that I have never experienced before now. For the next 18 weeks that I spend in London, I plan to keep a record of my adventures, so without further ado, here is the first installment of “Ari’s Adventures Abroad”!

Sunday, January 8, 2017

In the airport – The day of departure finally arrived and my friend Erin and I were sitting in Newark Liberty International Airport waiting for our 9:20 p.m. boarding. It was my first time flying without my parents, so I was a bit uneasy, but having a friend there helped ease that nervousness. However, it didn’t help that an alarm went off on two different occasions at our terminal and no one seemed to be in any rush to address the issue. I also may have neglected to mention that my uneasiness came less than two days following the Fort Lauderdale Airport shooting. As I sat there waiting for a reaction that never came, I felt like I was in a bizarre version of “What Would You Do?”

On the plane – After an hour delay, we were finally on the plane and learned that the cause of our delay was due to there not being enough meals prepared. I kid you not. I easily would have “sacrificed” a meal if it meant getting out of that airport. Then, as we continued to wait for departure, we learned that a plane was left on the runway behind us and all of the crew had left and had to return to move it. Again, I kid you not (the removal took another hour). After hearing the news, I turned to Erin and in my most serious voice said, “Will the owner of the large, white jet return to the runway? You’re double-parked.”

Monday, January 9, 2017

After a plane ride spent watching Bridget Jones’s Baby, episodes of “The Middle” and getting two to three hours of sleep at most, we arrived at Heathrow Airport. Navigating Heathrow would be the least of our concerns, though, as we would eventually take a cab to our residence because – as luck would have it – there was a tube strike in effect. First impressions aren’t everything, but sitting in a taxi for over an hour in a rainy, gridlocked city certainly doesn’t put you in a stellar mood, especially when you’re jet-lagged.

After finally settling, Erin and I – we were roommates at Fairfield and decided to do the same here because we clearly can’t get enough of each other – dragged ourselves grocery shopping. The only problem? We had no idea where to go. After asking a receptionist in our residence for directions to a nearby store and then being spun in about 50 different directions by people who either had no idea where Tesco was or even what Tesco was … finally, a woman accompanied by her young boy gave us a clear route to take. I’m still convinced that she was our guardian angel.

Saturday, January 14, 2017

Tower of London – After two days of orientation and our first two days of classes, we elected to go on a program-organized trip to the Tower of London. There we saw the armory, the Crown Jewels and the Bloody Tower. All were incredibly rich with history and the jewels in particular were stunning. While there, we also enjoyed some hot chocolate and treats that the café offered, which was a nice reprieve from the rain and chill.

Tower Bridge – After exhausting the Tower of London, we went to Tower Bridge and walked across the glass floors that allowed us to see the road below us, as well as the Thames River. It was another spot in the city rich with history and believe it or not, it was intriguing to learn about the engineering that was involved in the bridge’s construction.

St. Paul’s Cathedral – Words cannot express the beauty of St. Paul’s. Words also cannot express the utter exhaustion that we felt after climbing 44 flights of stairs to reach the top of the cathedral. The view of the London skyline was incredible, though, and despite the heavy pollution, you could make out the London Eye in the distance.

The Tube – Throughout the day, we experienced the tube in various intervals. While Erin insists that it wasn’t a noteworthy experience, I couldn’t help but be amazed by the brilliant system and how, as a whole, it is much nicer than the New York City subway.

Sunday, January 15, 2017

Church – We went to Mass at noon at a church a little over a mile away, which was an interesting experience to say the least. It seems that children who misbehave in church aren’t exclusively an American phenomenon.

Argo’s – Don’t even get me started on Argo’s and how I felt like I plunged into an Orwellian plot. Erin and I both needed hampers, so after asking numerous people where we could find one, we came to the conclusion that they couldn’t all be wrong in telling us to go to Argo’s, which from the outside appears to be a technology store. After going inside and asking a worker, we learned that you have to place your order on a monitor, go check out and then they bring the items from the inventory in the back of the store. Erin can attest that I turned to her while we were waiting and, with a deadpan expression, said, “This will be our future when the computers have finally taken over.”

Nando’s – Our Fairfield New Student Leader, who studied in London last year, recommended Nando’s to us, and since it’s less than half a mile away, we decided to end the weekend by going out to dinner for the first time. It was strange paying before the meal and then getting up to leave when we finished with minimal service interaction, but the food was great and the atmosphere was relatively relaxing.

Those were the highlights of my first week in London! Stay tuned for the second installment, where I’ll discuss visiting Madame Tussauds and Baker Street!