Thursday, September 30, 2010

We're Gonna Dance All Night Because We Say So

So, after being sick for pretty much the entirety of Monday and Tuesday, I was getting really antsy to go out and do something yesterday, but it seemed like most people were going to the Freshers events which, due to a combination of my inability to do anything, such as purchase tickets, this week and the ridiculous cost of the events, I was not going to. Plus, the people that I normally hang out with weren't around last night for some reason. So, I ended up having dinner with a different group of girls last night, which actually turned out to be the best idea ever!

One of the girls, Mishaal, had a ticket for this concert at Koko, and was going with another girl from the building and one of her guy friends from another dorm. And guess who the band was? 3oh!3 !!!! And the concert wasn't sold out! Seriously?! (In case you don't know who they are, their two most famous songs are Don't Trust Me and My First Kiss). So I went back to my room, ordered a ticket and about an hour later, Mishaal, her friend Emily, and I were heading out to Koko to meet up with their friend Matt for the concert.

On the way there it started downpouring, so that we looked like drowned rats by the time we got to the line, which was two blocks long. Instead of waiting there for hours, we decided to go into the pub next door and have a few drinks and watch a bit of the game while we were waiting. We got ourselves cleaned up so that we looked presentable again, and after awhile got back in line.

Eventually, we made it into Koko, got our tickets, and attempted to find a spot. Fortunately, I had brought heels, so I could see over people's heads (the heels lasted just long enough to be able to see 3Oh!3, and then I wanted to dance, so they came off and I was in my roll-up, sparkly flats for the rest of the night). It was an amazing concert! I didn't know a whole lot of their songs, but I am definitely buying some now. There was so much energy and everyone was dancing all night long!

If you ever get the chance to see them in concert, I highly recommend it! I almost think they sound better live, and they are amazing performers. Now I'm exhausted, but that is alright with me, because last night was 100% worth it.

Random lyrics for you from I Can Do Anything

I can do anything, anything, anything I want,
anything, anything, anything I want,
anything, anything, anything I want,
It’s golden now
Why would I slow down?

Love,
Emily

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

How I Spent my Sunday Night

Alright, I know this has taken me a long time to post, but I kind of forgot about posting it until now.

So, I met this guy, Zubair (Zab)at a club last Friday and ended up dancing with him for about 4 hours. We exchanged phone numbers and made a date for Sunday night. I had an escape plan in case it turned out that he was super creepy. My friend Susey texted me at 9:30 telling me that she needed help, so I could say I needed to go if need be. Fortunately, it turned out that I didn't need to use that.

We met at the Camden Town tube station at 8PM and went to a Chinese restaurant. It was a really confusing place and it took us awhile to figure out how to order, but that was alright because it gave us some time to talk. He is a 24-year-old grad student at Metropolitan studying finance and accounting, although his real interest is in IT. He was born in Saudi Arabia and lived there through most of grammar school, then moved to India for 10 years. He now lives and studies in London.

This may seem off topic, but I promise it ties back in. Apparently someone felt that it was a good idea to bring their dog into the restaurant and let it off its leash, so towards the end of our meal, a dog suddenly jumped up and put his paws on our table, trying to get at our food. It was hysterical and we both ended up laughing about it for about the next hour. Afterward, I decided that the situation was actually a really good way to judge his character, as he could have easily freaked out. instead, he found it just as funny as I did.

After dinner, we found a pub and got some beers. However, the pub closed really early (around 11:30), which was very weird, so we left and then he asked if I'd be interested in going to his favorite bar, which is located in Covent Garden. Of course, I said sure, since I hadn't been to Covent Garden and I wasn't quite ready for the date to end, so we took the tube out there. It turns out that the last Sunday night of every month is a Flair Competition. In case you don't know, Flair is the really crazy bartending tricks, where they flip bottles in the air and juggle glasses, etc... So we ended up getting to watch almost the entire competition (except for the one guy who went before we got there) and it was amazing!We also danced a bit, obviously.

We ended up leaving around 2 in the morning, and making our way back to my dorm, which was a feat in and of itself, as I have the worst sense of direction known to man. We kissed, and I went into my dorm while he went home.

We're seeing each other again tomorrow night (going to Brick Lane for some Indian food; everyone keeps telling me it's amazing), so there will definitely be updates then!

Monday, September 27, 2010

I have made it through my first week

As it is now Monday, I have officially been in London for a week and a day. So far, I love it! Although I have yet to do touristy things. I think that will be my goal for this week, as I have recently found out that I have yet another week before we actually start going to classes and being productive around here. Number one on my list of things to do (okay, I suppose it's actually a tie for #1), find Sylvia Plath's hosue, and go to Westminster Abbey.

What I've actually been doing- I've managed to go out to pubs quite a few nights. The people on my floor are great, and we all tend to hang out together. I have also met people outside of the dorm. On Friday night, Susey (who lives on my floor with me) and Molly (another English student) went with me to this club called Koko. It's a really famous club in London and there was actually a Freshman event there last night, but it was a lot cheaper for us just to go on our own. It was amazing! There was an enormous disco ball in the center of the room and lots of flashing, colorful lights. I'm easily distracted, as you may know. Anyway, this really awesome band was playing, although I have no idea who they were, so I can't actually find their music :'( I met this guy and ended up dancing with him for about 4 hours, until finally Molly and Susey decided to cut in and let me know that it was 4 in the morning and we needed to get back to our dorm.

We ended up taking the bus back since the Underground stops running a little after midnight. We missed our stop and had to walk quite a ways, but we did eventually get back, and so all is well.

In other news, I am sick. I have been a little melodramatic all day, telling people that I am dying, but seriously, my head hurts really badly and my glands are swollen and I'm pretty congested. I've basically locked myself in my room and slept all day, so I'm starting to feel better, but I am not enjoying this one bit. If I don't feel better tomorrow, I'll have to suck it up and walk to the pharmacy to get some cold medicine. And maybe find some honey and lemon. I feel like that would help a lot. I think the illness is just a combination of travelling, rapid temperature changes, and trying to do way too much. I'll be fine, and hopefully I'll update the blog in a few days with something interesting.

Love y'all!
Princess Emily

Thursday, September 23, 2010

I have made it to London!

Hey!

I know it's been almost a week and I haven't updated the blog yet, so there may be a lot more information in this post than you actually care about, so just bear with me.

I left Chicago on Sunday and began my LONG trip to London. The problem with the flight was that I left at 6:15 Chicago time and arrived in Dublin at 1:20 Chicago time, so I was not able to fall asleep at all on the plane, as I don't normally go to bed until 1 or 2 in the morning anyway. So, I got to Dublin about 20 minutes early and raced to the gate for my flight to London. On that flight, I managed to fall asleep for about 30 minutes. Then, when we arrived in London, it was about noon London time, or 6AM Chicago time, so I was exhausted and getting a little loopy. Combine that with trying to lug two enormous suitcases around a very confusing airport, and being unable to find the taxis, after asking 2 or 3 people, and it was a very dramatic first hour in London. I eventually found the taxi and was just coherent enough to give him my address. He was very friendly and got me to my dorm, where I had to register and figure out how to get to my room (it's really confusing, even now).

As for my dorm, there are four wings, each labeled with a different world city (London, Paris, Rome, and New York). I live in New York. My floor is pretty awesome, and I like everyone that I've met here. There are usually people around and most of the time, they keep their doors open, so it's easy to just pop in and out of people's rooms. My room is a little bare and depressing, but I am planning on making a wall of postcards and letters, so if anyone wants to send me some, I'd really appreciate it!

What I have done so far since getting to London...Monday night, a few of the people from my floor and I went to a bar to watch a soccer game. After that, we came back to the dorm for a little while, and then the guys and I and a few different girls went to another, American themed, bar where they play American sports on the televisions. It was really fun, and I met some British guys who offered to buy me drinks. We got back to the dorms at about 1:30AM, which is apparently late for London. Then yesterday, we had the meetins with our departments and I have chosen my classes! I'll be taking Chaucer, Modern English Language, Modern Period I, and London in Literature. I also met some people who are also in the English department and are here for the entire year, so I won't be totally alone next semester!

Last night, a few of the girls from the floor and I went out to Soho to get dinner, and we ran across the London premiere of Eat, Pray, Love. We couldn't quite see, but we were SOOO close to Julia Roberts! It was insane, in the best possible way. Once all the celebrities went inside the theater, we left and found an Italian place where I come some amazing tortellini. We then returned to the dorm and I was apparently way more exhausted than I thought, because I fell asleep almost immediately and slept for 10 hours.

Today, I went to a talk on Living in London, which seems like it's going to be very helpful. I then made my first international friend, a girl named Janna from Germany, who I'll be hanging out with tomorrow on the London bus tour. I also signed up for a Jack the Ripper walking tour, and meant to sign up for one of the club outings, until I realized I didn't have enough cash on me at the time, so I'll just have to go back tomorrow and do that.

That's about it for now. London is awesome and I'm so glad I decided to come. There will hopefully be more updates in the near future, so until then!

Love,
Emily

Friday, September 10, 2010

Yes, I gave in.

So, despite my protestations that there was no way in hell I was going to start a blog about my study abroad trip (something about "everyone does it" and "I am way too lazy for that"), I gave up and made one. Can't guarantee you'll find this interesting, but at least I'll entertain myself!

Background,
I am a junior at Tulane University, located in New Orleans, LA. I am majoring in English and Gender and Seuxality Studies, although I will be focusing on the English half this year.

I will be spending the entirety of my junior year at University College London (UCL). I leave on September 19th and, aside from a brief return for winter break, will remain there until June. I cannot believe I have allowed myself to be deprived of bread pudding, jambalaya, jazz street musicians, and NOLA in general for an entire year, but alas, I have briefly gone insane and decided that this would be a good idea. Don't get me wrong, I am definitely excited for British accents and fish and chips! I have just realized that it would be a great help if there could be two of me, or if I could learn to time travel.

I will be updating this blog as frequently as I can (aka, as often as I remember that it exists), but in case you can't wait that long to hear from me, I can be reached by e-mail, by text, or by skype.

Love you all!
Emily, aka Princess of All the World