Yesterday morning I left for London! I woke up crazy early, both because I was nervous and because I had to get to the airport. My great friend Josh took me to the airport and it was so nice to have someone to chat with on the way. The flight was fairly uneventful. They served us two meals. The first was nondescript, but the second was chips, m&m’s and a cheeseburger! A cheeseburger! It made me laugh. Was this my last American meal?
Throughout the flight I was excited and ready to arrive, but once I landed I was filled with fear. First, I live here now. This is where we live! This is real. It hit me all at once. And second, I got scared that maybe I wouldn’t be able to find Ryan at the airport. I know that seems small, but we had a rough go at an airport before. I had flashbacks to seven years earlier when Ryan and I were supposed to meet in Madrid. Weather had gotten in the way, things went horribly wrong, and we did not meet each other. Luckily, Ryan and I saw each other immediately and I had no reason to be afraid. He had gotten there early and was ready and waiting to meet me. Everything is going to be all right. We took the tube home to our new flat, it was pleasant and easy. And that was that, I now live in London.
Our current flat is cute but very tiny. Here’s a picture of the temporary home of cooking is messy. It has a sink, a refrigerator (bottom right cabinet) and two burners. Oh and of course, an electric kettle. I am in England after all. The kitchen also came with a knife block, some dishes, cups, and utensils. In one of my giant suitcases, I brought some additional kitchen items like oven mitts, spatulas, and cookbooks. With all that, I think I’ll be able to make at least a few things for the blog. We’re going to try spaghetti today, but I’ll work on being fancier in the future. But I can’t get too crazy, there’s a little sign that says there’s a £200 fine for setting the fire alarm off for “heavy cooking.” Eep. So I better be careful.
In general news, Ryan and I spent the day walking around our area of London. We bought breakfast at a local shop then ate in a park. We went to King’s Cross where I got to push the cart at Platform 9 3/4. I love Harry Potter and was really excited for this! We also went to lunch in a pub where we had what we knew to be traditional pub food. Each of us had a pint, Ryan had fish and chips, and I had bangers & mash. I gotta say, I’m no Brit because one pint at 2:00pm made me flushed. But it was all a really tasty meal. We then walked around the British Museum until we were overheated and exhausted. All in all, a great first day in London.
