Somehow I Made It Here Alive :)

Move-in day is always hectic – but not at this magnitude! Arriving in London did not start off on the right foot: my plane was delayed for forty-five minutes due to a gas leak. Then, when we finally pulled up to the gate approximately an hour and a half late, the bridgeway could not be connected, which necessitated exiting the aircraft’s rear door via staircase. Let me just say, attempting to wobble down a flimsy staircase swaying in the wind with an overweight backpack and bulky carry-on is not an easy task.


Finally, after about another forty-five minutes (bringing the grand total of tardiness to two and a half hours), I cleared the UK Border Patrol and set about looking for my study abroad group to no avail. After fruitlessly searching for ten minutes, I dejectedly headed towards the Tube, where – shockingly enough – I encounter two other girls bound for my same study abroad group breathlessly striving to find them. We determined that since we had been left behind and we each had two large bags apiece, we would split a cab. On our way to taxi line, another girl who had overheard our conversation and was in the same boat asked to tag along. We readily agreed; after all, four splitting a bill is better than three! The cab ride was ludicrous in physicality: the last girl to join us had so much luggage wedged under her, her feet were about level with her heart, the front seat was jammed full with even more, and the rest of us had backpacks spread out across our laps. Needless to say, there was absolutely no room to move. In spite of this, I enjoyed the ride, exhilarated by the fact that at long last I was in London.

Upon arriving at the main building for check-in, we discover ed that our group had, in fact, waited for us and thus we were keyless. Undaunted, we found a way into our dorms and separated for the ordeal of unpacking. Hauling my bags up the rickety flight of stairs to my apartment was an arduous affair I could have sooner have done without. I was rewarded by the sight of my three new roommates lounging with their bags, tossing around ideas of what to do next. We settled on going to the administrative building to complete check-in by turning in copies of our passports, signing up for a walking tour and receiving the last of our paperwork. Afterwards, we beelined back to the main building, hoping my keys were there, only to discover Father Soukop had kindly tried to drop them off at our room. He decided to leave the keys with my other apartment-mate whilst the rest of us raced off to chow down. Unfortunately, we had no time left before our walking tour so we speed-walked back, pausing only to pick up a nice bottle of Chilean pinot noir to relax over after dinner at a quintessential English pub. Along the way, we bumped into the rest of our walking tour – also late. It was thoroughly enjoyable (if a bit dry) even though it was ground we had just tumbled our way through.

At the conclusion of our tour, we headed to the phone store to purchase phones – or in my case, simply a SIM card. It took about twenty minutes of walking, a couple of sickeningly worrisome moments of being lost, and a group of about thirty college students to get there. Once there, we debated (and bickered) amongst ourselves and with the representatives about the various merits and drawbacks of each phone and pay-as-you-go plans until all of settled on something. A very trying affair, all said and done. On the up side, we chanced past several promising-looking restaurants and shops, some of which a couple of us returned to try later.

The next decision entailed walking even more: groceries and necessities such as toiletries (mainly due to that pesky three-ounce limit in airplanes). After about fifteen minutes of walking, a detour into Boots (the British version of CVS or Walgreen’s), a serious dent in my available cash – all purchases were necessary of course – some serious sharing to cut down on costs, we arrived at Sainsbury’s to purchase towels for Amanda and me, fruit for Maggie, and coffee. Then we high-tailed it back to the dorm for our 6:00pm “welcome to London but here are some ground rules” Santa Clara meeting.

Once there, the traditional “act responsibly and use some common sense” rules were outlined, we were free to go. Trudging up the narrow stairs, Amanda, Maggie, Kat and I lamented our exhaustion after so much walking. Once safely ensconced in our dorm-apartment hybrid, Maggie took a shower and three of us did some serious damage unpacking. In Amanda’s and my case, finished completely; in Maggie’s and Kat’s just about done.

Then our growling stomachs finally forced us to concede to their might. Abandoning our projects, we – Amanda, Kat and I for Maggie went out with other friends – ventured out to find that ideal English pub. Several minutes and about five city blocks later, we found in and it was worth the search. Yum! Then off for some delicious gelato spotted on our phone hunt earlier, a quick stop to grab some granola for breakfast and viola! Home safe and sound for some much-needed shower time and relaxation. Regrettably, exhaustion claimed us before we ever could break out that wine…