London Weekend

For my final trip I decided to take a trip to London. This trip was different than any other trip that I took all year. First off I did this on by myself. I stayed with a friend who was studying in London and I was able to use a train to get to the airport in both Rome (Fiumicino) and London (Gatwick). While trying to get to the airport in Rome I was told that the trains had very large delays and it really got me worried. Luckily, after an hour wait (which should have been 15 minutes) a train came and brought me to the airport in plenty of time for my flight. I'm happy that this delay happened though because it allowed me to meet a couple from London that was actually on my flight. I helped them with the trains, even though neither one of us could understand the announcements, (if you think English conductors are hard to understand try it in a foreign language) I was able to look at the departure board and it said that a train was coming soon.

Big Ben from the London Eye

After the train fiasco the trip was pretty easy from the Gatwick airport to Victoria Station using their railway system. London was amazing overall. I was expecting for it to be rainy and cold the entire weekend but it was actually about 40 degrees and barely ever rained. I arrived Thursday night around 1am so we just hung out at her school. My friend in London studies at a school in Regents Park, completely opposite from me in Rome she lives in dorms and does not need to leave campus to get to class and also had a dining hall. Honestly I prefer living in apartments in Rome, it has allowed me to completely adapt to Roman and Italian culture by having to deal with the sporadic buses and store closures just like all the local residents.

Friday I was a tourist. First stop? CHIPOTLE! Italian food is amazing but it can be very repetitive. The thing that struck me most about London Chipotle happened when they ran out of rice. For those that eat chipotle, chipotle without rice isn't at all worth it but all the locals behind me had not problem getting it with extra beans, my friends and I decided to wait it out like normal Americans. Later that day I saw the London Bridge, did the London Eye and saw Big Ben. It was really cool to see things that I've seen in movies for years. Later that night we went out in Camden area at a bar with 90's music and good beer. It felt like a higher end college bar which was really cool.

Tower Bridge

Saturday was my favorite day. We went to a soccer game: West ham United v Fulham. For those that have seen the move Green Street Hooligans West ham United is the team that the main characters are supporters of. This was my third soccer game in Europe (Barcelona and Rome being the others). It was really cool because even though these teams in particular aren't the top of the league, they are still in the Premier League in England which is a top league in the world. West ham United won 3-0 in a packed stadium. European soccer is really fun to attend, constant cheering and loyal fan support.






Overall London was a great experience and I would return in a second.

West Ham United v Fulham