Moving In

Well, here I am. I made it to Byng Place safely and with all my luggage! Both of my flights were delayed due to weather, but at least I didn’t miss my connecting flight. The first plane I was on was super tiny. I guess that made the big plane feel even more comfortable.

I got through the Chicago airport no problems, and I didn’t have a problem getting through Heathrow either. Immigration, on the other hand, was another story all together. The guy was nice he was just doing his job, and he was all confused as to why I had a visa in there for a trip I haven’t gone on yet. After a torrent of questions he finally let me through.

I found my way to baggage reclaim and the underground. It was really hot in the airport. Everyone was sweating buckets. I bought a day pass for the tube from the self-serve machine and I caught the first train to Cockfosters. The ride was very nice. A lot of it was above ground once we got away from the airport so I got to see a lot of little neighbourhoods between the airport and Bloomsbury. It was interesting to see the different people getting on in different places. At one of the stops it was all Middle Eastern people, at another it was all Hispanic and so on. The tricky part of my journey came when they announced that the Russell Square station would be closed for the duration of the weekend for maintenance. I had to leap off the subway at Holbourn and then walk to Byng, which is easier said than done.

All the directions I was given were from Russell Square, but luckily I had a small map that helped me wiggle my way through the side streets. I tried to look for big things I knew like the British Museum and Russell Square. Once I found those, I was pretty much set. My back and shoulders are soar though from lugging around my backpack and suitcase. I was wandering around, semi-lost, for about half an hour if not more. The weather here is beautiful, just not when you’re wearing a black turtleneck and lugging bags equivalent to half your total body weight.

The dorm is a rather typical dorm. I have pictures on my online photo album if you’d like to see them. I am in room 309, which is really the fourth floor since the first floor is the ground floor. I’ll definitely get my workout climbing up and down the stairs all day long.

The view is really nice from my room. It looks out over the main road, a small park is slightly to the left, a pretty brick building to the right, a beautiful cathedral, and a set of red phone booths and weathered wood benches.

I guess a lot of students were having trouble with their flights being delayed so not many people ended up going to Coven Garden. We’ll do that another weekend. I actually preferred it this way. I had time to get settled in and all organized. Then I took a short 40 minute power nap. I only got about 2 hours sleep on the plane, so I’m rather tired.

Around 7:30 we all met up in the common room downstairs to go to these two pubs. The first we went to was called College Arms. It was a nice little pub if you wanted to take in a soccer game. That pub didn’t serve food, at least not at night, so we headed over to the Museum Tavern. There people ordered food and more drinks. The tavern is located right across the street from the British Museum. It has a lot of dark wood and a very warm feeling but I think it usually attracts an older crowd than our group.

Then a group of us walked back and missed the turn to Byng so we found Euston station. We just overshot the dorm by a block. It was a nice walkl though. A group of us did a little exploring around the dorm and found a few computers and a small kitchenette on the first floor.

That’s about it for today. All in all it was a rather smooth journey, minus the long hot walk from Holburn to Byng. Even that I think was a good thing. It made me a bit more familiar with the roads around here.

Well, I think I’m going to get ready for bed. I’m tired from traveling and we have a long day of walking and adventures tomorrow. We are going on a scavenger hunt from 11-5 in randomly assigned groups. Hopefully I won’t get too lost with my group, and hopefully I’ll make some good new friends.