That's How Much...?

Well, we officially made it through the first full week in London, and I can honestly say it has yet to disappoint. With so much to do and so much time, the possibilities this city has seems to be endless. We all came to find a glitch in our limitless possibilities though, the money…

We all had an extreme culture shock when we came to find that the conversion rate of dollars to pounds is actually awful, and that everything is twice to three times more expensive here. We have all resorted to buying groceries and making our own meals about every day. With such restraint, we were all pleasantly happy to accept a free Sunday night traditional pub dinner from our program, and I think we were all licking our plates by the end of it.

We have been able to accomplish many things in the short time since my last post. Here are some highlights:

We took an afternoon trip and visited the lovely Kensington Palace where we babysat Prince George for an afternoon!  But actually we got there and saw the tour price and decided to just view it from the outside.  I have also decided that I am going to have these type of gates outside of my house.

Since we had some extra time to kill, we also decided to take some extra touristy pics of places around our flats so that you can get a feel for the area we are living in. You might recognize a few of the landmarks.

Also, Ben and I are best friends now. Big Ben and Lil Elyse!

For one of my classes, we visited the National Gallery for the second time and the Tate Modern, which are both absolutely amazing. The view from the Tate Modern alone is enough to knock your socks off. 

Also, ten points for whoever can name the movie that bridge is featured in. (Hint: it involves wizards!)

Lauren and I made a trip to our new favorite store, Harrods, where we bought absolutely nothing at (besides a delicious lunch), but we enjoyed it just the same! Also, we have been driving around all of London in our new car, well we wish…! (Of course, found outside of Harrods)

I enjoyed one of the best lunches that I’ve ever had at a local street fair featuring some of the best Indian food you can get anywhere. I know it looks kind of weird, but this chicken curry put me in literal food heaven.

One feature of London we are loving is seeing all the kids in their cute little uniforms and hats. I can’t get enough of the little Madeline look-a-likes running around everywhere, like this group.

We also had the pleasure of viewing a random fireworks show on the Thames River two nights ago, which we ran to after hearing the first ones go off from our flats.

A very large part of our week has been planning the trips we are going to be taking on the weekends while we are here. This has proven to be the biggest stress in the world, with our eyes being opened to the sheer hassle and costs of booking everything ourselves. But we completed it all and are super excited about what we came up with. (Just for everyone’s future knowledge though, I will never be a travel agent.)

Here’s the itinerary for the weeks to come:

This weekend of the 23^rd: Edinburgh, Scotland

June 5-9: Milan, Italy. Lake Como, Italy. Cinque Terre, Italy. Florence, Italy.

June 14-15: Paris, France

Well that’s it for now, but I will update after the weekend in Scotland! We promise to stay safe and keep killing it as always:

Cheers,

Elyse