Many, MANY hours in the park, and some of the most stunning architecture I’ve ever seen…
For the entire first week living in Samford’s Daniel House in South Kensington, every moment not spent taking notes during one of our orientation sessions was spent out exploring the new place I found myself in. For the past few days, I would say there have been two types of adventures: the organized groups trips, and spontaneous solos.
As I said, many hours in parks….(from left to right) Marlo, Ellie, and Cat on a walk with me, standing before a great tree we dubbed ‘Clive’
The organized group trips were built into our orientation schedule and jam-packed with information. Walking to each location was one of the best ways to find someone new to talk to, getting to know the other girls in the house as we strolled through parks or waited for the next train at the tube station. Tom took us on a walking tour our first day, blowing my mind with how close so many of my bucket list locations were. We only walked around three miles, and still managed to see Kensington Gardens, the V+A, Kensington Palace, the Natural History Museum, and more than a few red telephone booths. The next day, our group was introduced to dart-throwing at Flight Club, where my competitive side was revealed (but not my hidden dart throwing skills).
My first (and only) bullseye!!
The next day, Tom did his very best to teach us how to play cricket in the park. For about fifteen minutes, we shouted questions like “does bowling mean the same thing as pitching in baseball?” and “how many strikes till you’re out?” until we had no choice but to jump right in and try to learn on the fly. We lost count of the score and spent most of our time chasing the ball bouncing on the drought-scorched grass. Eventually we got to a point where we didn’t have to shout a question every time we were up to bat and some of us even managed to hit a few balls (myself included, though I was struck out instantly because Tom decided to step in out of the blue and catch my ball).
Stella capturing a few pictures while Tom bowls to Margaret
The largest “organized group trip” was to the House of Parliament. Despite my best research of London and the surrounding cities, I still have a poor map inside my head of where every huge landmark is, so I was completely taken by surprise when I walked out of the tube station to instantly be greeted with Big Ben towering over the sidewalk I stood on. We went on an immense tour of the House of Parliament, starting off in Westminster Hall (built in 1099), going through the various rooms steeped in rich history, political drama, and various forms of visual art. After the tour, we sat in on a service of Evensong at Westminster Abbey, one of the top events on my bucket list.
MY FIRST TIME SEEING BIG BEN!!!! (taken seconds after one of the most dramatic gasps I think I’ve ever gasped in my life when I first caught sight of it)
Apart from the planned group excursions, some of the best moments I’ve found on this trip have been on the random “spontaneous solos” I’ve taken. Sometimes, I find the energy for more extravagant adventures, but often, the only excitement I need can be found in a cappuccino from Blank Street before getting on the tube. A notable escapade took place last Thursday, when I ventured out with my dear friend Cat to visit The Space, a small local theatre where she is interning at this semester. We went to see a show, Eigengrau, put on by a small traveling theatre company, venturing out almost an hour away and treating ourselves to some fantastic burgers afterwards.
We slayed giants (aka stupid gps directions) to find these burgers. Worth it.
Another time, I visited the famous Borough market with a group of girls, where I purchased the most fabulous loaf of rosemary bread I’ve ever seen (it was gone in two days). I’ve enjoyed the morning runs I’ve taken in Kensington gardens, late night Gelato quests, and all the hundreds of conversations I’ve overheard on the tube. With the long weekend we got from Monday’s bank holiday, I had plenty of time to embark on all sorts of extravagant sight-seeing mini-trips, but I also found the time to enjoy an evening in, playing “Just Dance” with the girls in the house. The most important thing I learned this week was to treasure the small moments. Not just the big weekend getaways, but the little bits as well, like the drizzle of London rain on the walk back from the Italian gardens, or a late-night conversation with Gabbie and Ruthie in the kitchen; the moments when I can pause and remember where I am, and how lucky I am to be here.
Leave a comment