Adjusting to the United Kingdom has been a rollercoaster. Between settling in with classes and meeting new friends, my time in Harlaxton has been fun – despite being sick the second week I arrived and having to navigate to the nearest clinic. During my time, I’ve traveled to Edinburgh, Wales, Nottingham, London, and many more fantastic places with friends. Before traveling for Spring Break, my friend Kacey and I decided to take a quick weekend trip to London.

            Our three-day adventure began on Thursday, February 15th, after lunch. After we ate, we had to take a street car (another term for taxi) to the Grantham train station. We boarded our train and went on our way to London. The train ride lasted about two hours, which gave us some time to finish any assignments we had and prepare for midterms.

            After arriving in London, Kacey and I took the tube to the neighborhood of our Airbnb so we could get a taste of the authentic Londoner experience. It was exciting to quickly adapt to a different culture and experience the everyday lives of the people around us. Even though I have ridden subways before in many cities, the London tubes were different. I noticed that the commuters were usually very quiet. Despite that, boarding and departing the tubes is always hectic – there’s a rush of a crowd stepping off or coming on at every station.

            We arrived at our Airbnb and, after dropping our bags off, decided to return to the city by Uber. We found our favorite stores on the streets of London, Urban Outfitters and Brandy Melville, and spent time shopping at them. While navigating to the stores, we stopped to take pictures at The Butterfly Trail, a museum based on virtual reality. After spending our day shopping, we stopped for Italian food at a restaurant called Isolabella.

            We walked around London a bit more after our meal, and ended up meeting a group of girls our age. We exchanged social media accounts, and they invited us to go out with them to a club called Rumba. Excited to experience clubbing in London, Kacey and I again took the tube back to our Airbnb and readied ourselves for a night out with new friends.