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Published: September 22nd 2008
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View From Dorm
I can actually see the London Eye from my dorm. It's the big ferris wheel on the left side. I finally have the internet set up! Now prepare yourself for a very long entry.
Chapter 1: The Flight to London and the Struggle to Reach the Hostel
I met Brian (a guy from Marquette) at O'Hare Wednesday afternoon. Before that, it took 3 airport employees to point me in the right direction. I swear I walked a mile from the terminal to the baggage claim. Our flight went well for the most part. We didn't get much sleep but the plane wasn't full so we each had a row to ourselves.
After landing in Heathrow we took the Heathrow Connect to Paddington Station. This is where things turned bad. Brian and I spent about 10 minutes looking of the Tube map and finding the way we needed to go. Even though Paddington is a very large station, there are no elevators or escalators. Brian and I turned a corner and saw a stair case of at least 30 stairs. With 2 suitcases and 100 lbs of luggage we looked at each other and literally at the same time said, "Oh my God!" We were running on 5 hours of sleep and this was going to be difficult. Luckily
View From Dorm
This is the main few from out my window. It mainly apartments and random buildings. two London men saw the desperation in my face and carried my bags for me! Poor Brian was left at the bottom of the stairs until someone else carried one bag and he carried the other. By then I was already laughing. We thought that going up the stairs meant we were on the platform. Wrong! We then had to go downstairs to the other side of the train. Brian and I thought the best way would be to just drag our suitcases behind us. He was in front and I was in the back. We are in this small hallway and our suitcases made the loudest "THUMP THUMP THUMP". The people in front of us obviously thought they are going to be run over. At the end of the stairs, we had to make a quick left turn. When Brian turned the corner, he swears that all of London was just staring at him. I come off the stairs cracking up because it was the funniest situation you could imagine. So already, I'm the obnoxious, loud American.
The story only gets better...We are waiting for the District line to take us to the Earl's Court tube stop. As
Me and the Boys
This is Anthony, Brian and I at Windsor Castle. On top of the Round Tower you can see the flag pole with the Royal Flag on it. the Circle train is pulling in, Brian says, "If we hurry we can get on this one." Being the gentleman that he is, he let me go first. Imagine running down the platform with 2 suitcases and trying not to hit anyone or knock someone over while throwing them up a good 1.5 feet onto the train. Not easy. I make it and I'm feeling pretty great until I see that the doors are shutting and Brian doesn't have time to get on. Again, as if we were on cue, we said "Oh Shit!!!" As the train pulls away I hear him yell, "Earl's Court. Go to Earl's Court!" About 20 seconds later I realize that my train is heading in the opposite direction of Earl's Court. Brian realized this too. I started laughing to myself in front of everyone on the train because that was the only thing I could think to do to avoid having a major breakdown. The situation was unbelievable and of course would happen to me. I got off at the next station. This station also only has stairs. (What were these people thinking when they designed this thing?) After dragging my suitcases up just
one step, 2 people carried them again for me. I sprinted to an employee who pointed me in the direction of the train that will take me to Earl's Court. I made it there in about 12 minutes. By then Brian and I had been separated for about half an hour. Oh let me make sure everyone is aware that we did not have cell phones. Thanks to Mom and Dad mine does make international calls but Brian's did not.
I got off at Earl's Court and walked up and down the platform looking for Brian. Turns out he got there before me. My phone started ringing and I realized that Brian had found a payphone. It took 2 phone calls until we had a good connection and I'm screaming "I'M AT EARL'S COURT! WHERE ARE YOU?!?!?!" He said he was at the entrance to the station. Earl's Court had elevators! I honestly felt blessed by God. I took the elevator up to the main level, thinking I would see Brian right away. Well, there's 3 entrances into Earl's Court and I can't find him anywhere. I was so tired of dragging these bags that by that time, had
been kicked, thrown and cursed at. I rested for about 5 minutes and tried to decide if I should call the police. But what could they possibly do for me? Then there was an announcement that "this and this train are running late." Well duh! I found security who took me to another office and 3 minutes later someone was yelling, "Brian Sara, your friend Abby is looking for you. Please come to entrance 1." Thirty seconds later I see Brian and if I had had the energy I probably would have down a back flip or something.
After our reunion we said forget the train, let's get in a taxi asap! Soon after, we were at our hostel, "The Globetrotter." And here's a big shocker - we had to carry our bags up and down stairs. The Globetrotter was actually very nice and after settling in we needed lunch/dinner. We wanted to go to a pub, do the whole fish'n'chips thing and order our first pint. We did order the fish'n'chips but were so tired we thought putting alcohol in our system probably wasn't the best idea. We would have passed out right there on the table.
Chapter
The Round Tower
Here's the Round Tower and the garden below is where the moat used to be. 2: My Dorm and Windsor Castle
We moved into our dorms Friday afternoon. They're a little sketch. There is a sink in every room which is nice, but instead of a dresser there is just a bookcase so that everyone who walks in can see my clothes. And I wasn't given a desk chair until today. Weird. Campus is a five minute walk away. We don't start orientation until tomorrow so not all that much has gone on.
Brian, Anthony (another Marquette boy) and I took a day trip yesterday. We went to Windsor Castle and Eton College (the high school that Princes William and Harry went to). It's pretty fancy. Windsor Castle is considered the Royal Family's "vacation home" even though there's something like 98 rooms. The Royal Flag was up which meant that the Queen was actually there which was very cool. Obviously we didn't see her. There's so much to tell about the castle. It was built 900 years ago and is the oldest residence in the world. At one time it was the main fortress of England. It's way up on a steep hill and had a moat, making it nearly impossible to attack. Even
Guest Entrance
This is the entrance where super fancy and powerful leaders and guests arrive before being escorted into the castle. though they don't have elevators in the Tube, the English do know how to do some things.
My fingers are aching so this is the end. Oh, but Anthony, Brian and I did find our local pub. We had to look through 3 tourist books to do so but we made it. It's called The Slaughtered Lamb. A gross name but it's just a little nook on a corner with live music a few times a week and beer we can actually afford. I'll write again soon!
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Cindy Mense
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Have fun
Well, hopefully the rest of your adventure is not as adventurous. Have fun! Love, Cindy