Sketchy Chicken Curry and Umbrellas

Well, since Lia so lovingly set up this blog for me, I feel like I should contribute something to the blog world. Only my natural brilliance, naturally. So, London. That's where I am for the next semester. Since people (I think) like to hear about what happens on these sorts of things, I thought I would dedicate this blog to my exploration of this great city.

I left the great city of Oklahoma City at about 9 a.m. Thursday morning. I then flew to Denver, had a three hour layover, then flew to Newark. There we all met and finally, after many delays, flew to London-Heathrow. I apparently slept for most of the way (great ability to have, sleeping on planes or anywhere really) because I woke up and we were beginning our descent.

Eventually we all made it to the Highbury Centre, a charming guest house built in the 1850s. It creaks out the wazoo, but I love it. We aren't allowed to go anywhere barefoot. Fortunately, sock are okay. Whew, for me. Joia and I semi-moved into our room before a small group of us went to the ATM and Tesco (grocery store). Then we came back a galloped excitedly (not really) around the Centre until dinner. After dinner my memory goes funny. I'm pretty sure I fell into bed at 7:30.

And then I proceeded to sleep for 14 hours. Not good. I set my alarm clock wrong so the alarm didn't go off. Joia and I woke up at 9:58. We had a meeting at 10. After momentarily freaking out, we went to the meeting. After all that we went on a walking tour of London. We saw the exteriors of St. Paul's, Westminster, Big Ben, The Eye, Tate Modern, The Globe, Parliament, and The Horseguard's Palace. I just wandered around in wonder, unable to fully accept the fact that I was in London. Am in London. Still am. Still will be for quite a while. After we got back we had dinner and then I read some of our required reading.

I went to bed at 11:15, thinking I was tired. Little did I know that the clock inside my body would not agree so much with that idea. It decided to keep my up till 5 in the morning. Probably didn't help that I ate almonds and watched Persuasion with Joia in that time frame. Oh well. I had to wake up at 7:15 for church. So I think I got about 2 and half hours of sleep. Awesome!

I decided to attend Southwark Cathedral for church. Some of us arrived at 9:25 only to find that the service actually started at 11. So we decided to walk the Queen's Walk along the Thames from London Bridge to Tower Bridge. The walk was lovely in the morning light. The sky even decided to don a blue coat for us. After two replenishing donuts from Krispy Kremes, we attended the service. I very much enjoyed it and the choir sang beautifully. After church we had a spot of coffee or tea with the members of the congregation before setting back off for Highbury. Then lunch. Then coffee (for I couldn't sleep-- too much homework to nap extensively). But I did take a thirty minute nap. After that Joia and I went to a nice park and read for a bit.

So these play-by-plays are probably getting tiring. So on to the last eventful part of the day: dinner. Joia and I went to see if a lovely, little bakery was open. It wasn't. So we went to a little fastfoodish place close by and bought Chicken Curry. Let's just say it was some pretty sketchy curry. It didn't taste bad, but it sure looked gross. Separated grease and curry and chicken...yum.

Well, class officially starts tomorrow so I should answer the beckoning calls of the Hills of Bedfordshire. Let's hope that I will get a tidge more than 2 and half hours tonight.

I think I might be able to live in London. Only been here two days, and I am quite taken with it.