An American
Student in London
Down the Rabbit Hole and Across the Pond Story and photographs by Stephanie Keats
hat happens when you take a 20 year old sorority girl without any sense
of direction and put her in a foreign country? Well we're about to find
out. My name is Stephanie and I'm a LA Girl, born and raised, who's
about to embark on a 5+month adventure to study abroad in London. I'm
leaving behind comfortable Los Angeles for a world of rain, potatoes,
and strange words that are supposedly "English." But that's
kinda the point, to do something uncomfortable. So join me as I travel
London, the UK, and Europe. And maybe do a bit of studying too. Travel
savvy facts: I get lost with GPS. I have never been outside the US (except
for that one time to Mexico but that doesn't really count). I still
have to Google the word "foreign" to spell it correctly. I
can count the number of times I've ridden public transportation on one
hand. I have never been away from home for more than a month. I have
never lived more than 45 minutes away from my parents. Humidity is a
pet peeve of mine. I am scared shitless.
I have been accepted to Queen Mary University in
London for the spring semester. Yes, I am going to study Theatre, but
it is so much more than that. This is my chance to really see the world.
I have never been to Europe and I want to see everything. And I mean
EVERYTHING. I plan to do lots and lots of traveling in my free time.
I've decided I am only making one resolution this year: TAKE ADVANTAGE.
Of everything. Never in my life will I have the same opportunities that
I do now, and my goal is to make the most of it. I am going all out
with no looking back.
A statue outside the Tower
of London. The apple was there when we arrived; we just took
advantage of the photo op.
I would like to start off by making a comment on the London crosswalk
system. It is very strange and time consuming. First off, no one
actually pays attention to it. If there are no cars coming you walk.
If there are, you don't. It's kind of like New York. However, the
one major difference is that in New York, if you accidently walk
when a car is coming, it'll generally stop. Here it's not the case.
You're dead. And instead of a white man and a red hand telling you
where to go, it's a red man and a green man. Which actually makes
more sense since green generally means go and red generally means
stop. Getting a green man is very exciting and you better take advantage
if it, because crossing the street takes FOREVER. Every street has
a center divider, so it's actually like crossing 2 streets. You
cross over one side, wait in the middle, and then cross over the
other. And should you need to cross both horizontally and vertically?
Watch out, it could take you a good 10 minutes. It's like crossing
4 roadsinstead of 2. Add an extra 15 minutes to your journey in
case there are lots of cars and you hit red men.
Tower Bridge
If you couldn't tell, I do a lot of walking here. The tube is great,
but you have to walk to and from the tube. And it doesn't go everywhere.
But that’s not about to stop me or the other Americans. We’re
determined to do EVERYTHING. Last Monday we went to the London Tower.
It’s less of a tower and more of a castle. Monarchs used to
live there when London was little more than a mile of businesses.
It was also where prisoners were held and we got to see some of
thechambers that held people such as Jane Gray and Anne Boleyn.
You could pretty explore the whole fortress and there were lots
of interactive exhibits. The tower also contains the crown jewels,
which are gorgeous. The largest diamond in the world (the Africa
Diamond) is on the scepter, which I saw. It was amazing. Have I
mentioned I love diamonds? I love diamonds. After the tower we made
our way to Tower Bridge, which is one of the most famous bridges
in the world because of its unique build. We got to walk through
the top of the bridge, which had an amazing view. We also got to
see the inner workings of the bridge and what makes it rise and
fall. Super educational.
Messing around at the Tower
of London. (photographer unknown)
Saturday was my friend Natalie’s 20th birthday. She is the
youngest of the group, but the first of us to have a birthday while
abroad. The bar on campus offered her free entry for all of her
friends and a bottle of champagne Friday night, so of course we
went. On Fridays they turn it into a club type of thing, so we danced
and drank our way into her birthday. Saturday we headed to the Portobello
Market in Notting Hill. I had already gone with Katherine a couple
weeks ago, but it is so gorgeous and there is so much to see that
I had no problem going again. This time we got crêpes and
I LOVE crêpes. Nutella with strawberries and whipped cream
is my favorite. That night we went to dinner at this Italian place
in Bethnal Green, which was surprisingly delicious. We were all
pretty wiped out from the day and night before, so we just spent
the rest of the evening watching the Two Towers (not my choice of
a birthday movie, but hey it was her birthday) and eating crap.
The Tate Britain
Another thing I’ve done recently was visit
the Tate Britain. MUCH better than the Tate Modern. Sure it had
its fair share of weird shit, but not nearly as much. The premise
of the museum is that every work in it was created by a British
artist. It ranges from the earliest days of the country back up
to modern art. I had to go for a class, but I didn’t mind
so much about this one.
Sunday was the Super Bowl, and while I am not
the hugest pro football fan, it was a lot of fun to watch. Queen
Mary organized it to be shown at a pub down the street so there
were a bunch of abroad students. They had cheap drinks and nachos.
I was of course rooting for the Saints because of Reggie Bush,
who deserves support for a) going to USC and b) dating Kim Kardashian.
One of my guy friends was so confident that the colts were going
to win that we made a bet. If he won, I had to do his laundry.
If I won, he had to cook me dinner. Good thing Reggie pulled through
because I HATE doing laundry. I try to do my own as little as
possible, let alone someone else’s. Dinner was actually surprisingly
good, though I didn’t really have high hopes. He fed me,
Sam, and Natalie with pork chops and mac and cheese. Like not
from a box or frozen. Not as good as my mom’s of course,
but close.
Kensington
Palace
The last Monday Crew outing we went on was to Kensington Palace
and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Despite the fact that it was
freezing and snowing, the palace was actually really fun. We couldn’t
spend too much time in the gardens because it was so cold, but we
plan to go back and do them sometime when it is warmer. The palace,
though, is gorgeous. It is famous because most of the monarchs have
lived there and it was also the last place Princess Diana lived.
There was a whole bunch of stuff about her and her life… but
mostly her taste in clothing. Not to be blasphemous or anything,
but I didn’t think it was all that great. It looked typically
90’s. Maybe I’m missing something. You also got to see
some of the rooms that the monarchs lived in (the State Apartments).
There was also a big section on Debutant Balls. Let me tell you,
I SO should have been born back then. I would have loved to be a
debutant. Sure it cost the equivalent of $250,000 per year, but
what's a couple hundred grand when you get to wear pretty dresses
and dance all night? After the palace we headed to the Victoria
and Albert Museum. It is a pretty cool place with lots of exhibits.
They were doing construction so a bunch were closed, which was annoying.
However we did get to see the fashion exhibit and the jewelry exhibit,
which are my favorites in any museum. Who doesn’t love designer
dresses and million dollar diamonds?
Kensington Gardens
Tuesday I wrote my first essay here. Sure it was
only 500 words, but hey, I did work, and that’s a start.
I have another one to do this weekend, but that’s not going
to stop me from going to Cambridge with Sam tomorrow. We are going
to spend the night there with her friend and then head back Sunday
afternoon. Just in time to be home for Valentine’s Day. Awesome.
That was sarcastic by the way.
We played pub golf again this Thursday. I tried
to participate in this one, but I have to admit that I failed.
At around hole five I had to give up. Not from the alcohol content,
because I was doing ok on that. But gawd was I full. Do you know
how much liquid a pint is? Well ya it’s a pint, but that’s
a lot. Especially after 5. I threw in the towel but it was still
a lot of fun. We took the tube to different pubs and got a whole
lot of strange looks. But that’s half the fun.
Anyway, I should probably get going on that essay
thing if I want to go tomorrow. Though I think I might also go
out tonight. After all, it is a Friday…
Stay tuned for Part 2 of "An American
Student in London"
FEEDBACK FOR JULIO
The way I read this article, you stayed at the "Breeze
and Waves". Do you have any pictures of the cottages, and would you recommend
to some first time visitors to Caramoan?
--- Richard Simons, Stockton, CA
Hi Richard,
Breeze and Waves was still under construction when I stayed
there in Feb. 2010. It should be finished by now. You
can see pictures of the resort on this page. We got to stay in one of the
small cottages in the picture. I'll recommend it to budget travelers but you
might want to look at other options. We chose it because of its location right
by the beach. You can try other resorts in the Caramoan town proper (you have
to get a ride to take you to the beach and the jump-off point to go island-hopping
but it's a relatively short distance). There are also two higher end resorts
located on a cove and very near the islands: Gota Village Resort (unfortunately
there is something wrong with their website right now) and its twin resort Hunongan
Cove. Caramoan is a relatively new tourism development so resorts are just now
being built.
I should add that it might be good to go to Caramoan (and
almost anywhere in the Philippines) during the dry season in December to May.
June to November are the typhoon months and sometimes typhoons will still come
during early December.
Julio
* * * * *
Hi, I'm planning to go to Caramoan this coming May. Would you
know the number of Breeze and Waves Cottages? Thanks!
--- Ann, Manila, Philippines
Hi Ann,
Breeze and Waves' phone number is 0908-2911072. Look for
Freddie. Hope you have a grand time at Caramoan!
Julio
FEEDBACK FOR NINO
I enjoyed Nino's contribution, since we all read about the frightening
terrorist attack. Having travelled somewhat through India years ago, I am continually
impressed with this country and the gentle spiritual aspects of this nation.
Some day I look forward to going back. Nino has encouraged me. Thank you!
--- Yoka Y., Westlake Village, CA
FEEDBACK
FOR RUSH & CHUCK
Dear Mr.s/counselors Brown and Koro,
Thank you for a very informed and succinct article on motorcycle
accidents and the law. It inspired me to think about getting a motorcycle, but
not have an accident. But, if I do I am now well informed with the basics of
what to do providing I do not perish in the accident. Any tips about that too?
--- Unnamed
Dear Rush and Chuck,
I wish I had read your article before our camping trip the Friday
prior to President's Day.
My wife and I were in a car accident on our way to a camp ground.
We were "rear-ended" and the impact caused our car to crash into the
car in front of us. The contents of the truck that we were riding scattered
onto several lanes. It's a miracle our two dogs decided to stay inside the car.
My wife and I were shaken up badly but despite the mess, I was still able to
walk out of the car. I got the license plate of the driver in front of me but,
to my surprise, after reviewing the little damage on his car, he then sped off.
I didn't know you could do that! The driver who hit me from behind gave me his
information and then he too left the scene without saying good 'bye.
When the police arrived all I had to go by was the little information I had
jotted down which I hope was truthful. What if it was bogus? What if I had written
the plate number incorrectly? How would that affect my insurance? What if we
were unconscious, who would have written down all that information?
I do have one suggestion if you are injured in an accident.
The police asked if my wife wanted an ambulance to bring her to the hospital
but we declined the offer. I remembered when I rode an ambulance years ago that
it was not a comfortable ride. I was strapped to the stretcher and there were
all sorts of medical equipment dangling noisily above me. As long as you are
able, it is a more relaxful ride inside a car. Besides, isn't there a fee for
ambulance service?
hat happens when you take a 20 year old sorority girl without any sense
of direction and put her in a foreign country? Well we're about to find
out. My name is Stephanie and I'm a LA Girl, born and raised, who's
about to embark on a 5+month adventure to study abroad in London. I'm
leaving behind comfortable Los Angeles for a world of rain, potatoes,
and strange words that are supposedly "English." But that's
kinda the point, to do something uncomfortable. So join me as I travel
London, the UK, and Europe. And maybe do a bit of studying too. Travel
savvy facts: I get lost with GPS. I have never been outside the US (except
for that one time to Mexico but that doesn't really count). I still
have to Google the word "foreign" to spell it correctly. I
can count the number of times I've ridden public transportation on one
hand. I have never been away from home for more than a month. I have
never lived more than 45 minutes away from my parents. Humidity is a
pet peeve of mine. I am scared shitless.
