Balls and the British Museum

I guess I’m surrounded by a bunch of undedicated Americans. Not one person stayed up with me to watch the end of the Super Bowl? Honestly I’m just disappointed. Well, at the least, I’m glad that I stayed up. It was so nice that they paired a great game with the halftime show. How thoughtful.

Running on 5 hours of sleep, I was in for my longest day of classes on Monday. In my first class, we visited the Tate Modern, a museum filled with abstract art. Although it’s not my style, I’m sure it’s someone’s. However, I didn’t have much time to look around, because I had another class in an hour upon arrival. I perused quickly, looking for specific pieces I needed to find for my class, and then left to go to my second class. We had a guest speaker from the BBC who was the editor the night Princess Diana died. If you’re interested, you can read some of my homework assignments on this blog. I’m sure everyone wants nothing more than to read my homework.

Monday was Valentine’s Day too. Although Abby was not here to celebrate, I had a replacement date, my friend Adam (sorry Abby). We went to a nice area (Soho) and had some nice food (ramen). We failed to make a reservation for our bromantic dinner, so we were forced to sit at the counter. Hey, it made for an unforgettable Valentine’s dinner though. If you’re ever in London, Tonkotsu has some phenomenal ramen. I hope you’re good with chopsticks.

In my Tuesday class, we visited Craven Cottage, the stadium of Fulham FC. Fulham comfortably sits at the top of the table in the EFL Championship; the last 5 years, they have been in the Premier League every alternating year. Maybe next year they break the trend of relegation after immediate promotion. I’ll be rooting for them.

Craven Cottage was quite the unique stadium. It is deemed an English heritage site, meaning that parts of the stadium cannot legally be changed. The entrance doors and turnstiles are absolutely tiny- many people have to use the entrance for disabled persons. Yet the doors cannot be altered because they are legally protected. However, some other unique aspects of the stadium are as follows: wooden chairs, a literal cottage with a balcony overlooking the field in one corner, and seats that sit right next to the field. However, they are building a modern stand on the side directly next to the Thames River, which will include an apartment in one corner, a rooftop bar, and a pundit (analyst). The stadium is unlike any other I’ve been to (it’s got nothing on Fenway though).

The remainder of Tuesday I spent browsing Camden market for a pair of black boots, because the rain finally came. However, I quickly found out that I should have bought them in the United States. Who would’ve guessed the same boots here would be about 10x cheaper in the States. Perhaps a lot of people would have but its too late now. I ended up settling on a peaky blinders, or newsies (whichever you prefer), hat instead.

One of the surprisingly fun parts of the tube is reading the newspaper. There are two free newspapers handed out on weekdays: the Metro (morning) and the Evening Standard (you guessed it- evening). Reading these and watching the BBC has actually kept me up to date on current events. I guess that’s the benefit of free stuff.

On Wednesday, I walked to Primrose Hill, a 15 minute walk from my housing. The spot gives a beautiful view of the London skyline, and it was popping at 10 am on a Wednesday. The surrounding area was beautiful too; it’s definitely worth a look into.

In the afternoon, I learned about the British Monarchy in class. My favorite part was when someone compared them to the Kardashians. I mean, there definitely are parallels. But although I have never been too interested in the Monarchy, I enjoyed the class. It is fascinating to learn about the powers (in theory, not often in practice) that the Queen has.

On Thursday I finally visited the [anything but] British Museum. It has the Rosetta Stone, Lewis Chessmen, Parthenon sculptures, medieval armor, Easter Island statues, Egyptian mummies, and 8 million more artefacts in their collection. It was honestly overwhelming- I felt like I was taking so much in that I was in fact taking in nothing at all. It’s like when a teacher tries to stuff too much information into one PowerPoint and you simply can’t catch up. I think I’d have to spend my entire three months to take it all in. Oh well.

The last highlight of the week came on Friday. I went to a bar with a big group called Ballie Ballerson. It has (you guessed it again) balls. You had to sign up for a 2 hour time slot for the ball pit, which was so fun (and gross, but I chose to ignore those thoughts). My friends and I got in a lighthearted dodgeball match with some strangers. It was a blast.

Dad was disappointed I have not yet mentioned the double decker bus. I’ve ridden it probably 4 or 5 times now. Now you can truly picture how British I’ve become.

I’m currently on my way to Brighton. I was supposed to leave yesterday, but the mini English hurricane (with winds up to 110 mph) cancelled all travel. London didn’t have it that bad, but southwest parts of England and Wales had trampolines flying. Thankfully we were able to get on the train today, with big plans ahead. I am seeing the Brighton Royal Pavilion and a Premier League game today, along with playing some glow in the dark mini golf. I’ll tell you more about it next time.

But that’s about it. Another week has come and gone and it’s all happening so fast.

Oh, and I bought Alice in Wonderland.

Cheers