Some good things about our travel day(s):
- Salt Lick for breakfast
- Starbuck’s and the awesome Samsung Lounge for our 5 hour lay-over in DFW
- Pappasito’s for a farewell to TX meal
- Daniel & I catching the eye of a stranger across the terminal and laughing together at the pronunciation of a name over the loud speaker
- An empty middle seat on the plane to London
- The decision to take a cab (though expensive) from the airport to our temporary housing at Imperial College with our 7 bags in tow. (The Tube was our other option.)
I didn’t sleep the night before our flight, but I ended up in a very relaxed, happy mood all day, because I was able to accomplish everything I wanted to accomplish before we left. All the details of our trip went smoothly, until we arrived at Imperial College at 9am, only to realize that we couldn’t check into our room until 2pm. At that point, I started to cry. Yes, cry. It was only the promise of a bed and a nap that had kept me going as we stood in line for an hour for immigration. I was just so tired. It was funny and sad. As always, Daniel was a sweetheart and helped me feel better.
Once I pulled myself together, we walked a few blocks from the dorm to get some brunch. Along the way, we commented and laughed about how wrong it feels to “Look Right” before starting to cross the road. We walked past the Pepperdine campus, the British Natural History Museum, and the Science Museum. Both museums boast free entry, and are just a short walk away, so I think we’ll probably go check them out during our stay in the dorms this week. We ended up at a little French café, eating outside alongside the noise of traffic and road construction and street sweeping. Unlikely as it may seem, the noises, sites & smells all blended to create the perfect ‘welcome to London’ experience. We watched deliveries being delivered and restaurant owners sweeping their patios to greet the first customers of the day. It was a gray morning, and quite chilly on the sidewalk – even in sweaters, the breeze had us shivering. We were euphoric, feeling that we’d jumped straight into the middle of fall. Adios Texas summer! Our food was really nice as well. My fresh squeezed limeade with mint couldn’t have tasted better, and Daniel was delighted with his soup-bowl sized Americano. Of course I had to make fun of him for ordering an Americano at a French café in London.
After lingering at the café, we wandered to the Pepperdine house at 56 Prince’s Gate. We buzzed in and got the tour of the facilities. It’s a very tall “house” with lots of stairs. It doesn’t really feel like a college campus at all. Perhaps that will change when the students arrive. Today the place was quite empty, though we did meet a few of Daniel’s classmates. Eventually 1:45 arrived, and we headed to check in at the temporary housing. We dragged our 7 bags to our very decent room and 3 hours of truly beautiful sleep ensued. Waking up to head out for dinner and cell phone shopping was torturous – until I stepped outside and realized our gray day was gone and a sunny, golden late afternoon had taken its place. We walked a block in the opposite direction from our morning jaunt, and found ourselves facing an entrance to Hyde Park. I couldn’t stop stopping, snapping iPhone photos of all the trees and buildings and just sheer London-ness everywhere we turned.
Cell phone shopping wasn’t lovely, but we did find a lovely shopping district. And once the shops closed – soon after our arrival – we found ourselves another sidewalk café for dinner. It was perfect. I’m so thrilled to be able to eat outside again. Post dinner, we wandered down a street that looked quaint, and just meandered our way back toward Imperial College. Though our map wasn’t great, we managed to find our way without too many wrong turns. We loved getting to walk and soak in the neighborhood together. When we found a little food shop, we stopped for our essential supplies: bottled water and chocolate. We’re already feeling so blessed to have 4 whole months here. It’s a luxury to be free to wander and explore on a whim, and to know that we can revisit interesting places we find along the way on a later date.
Now, it’s barely past 10 pm and Daniel’s already crashed out for the night. My eyes are drooping as I type. I don’t think either one of us will have a problem getting a full night’s sleep tonight, and we’ll be ready for more adventure tomorrow. Finding a place to stay while we’re here is featured on our agenda.
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