Week 1 of London: Orientation

As soon as the group exited the plane, we all craved coffee, and headed towards the airport coffee shop. What first jumped out at me were the prices for coffee, the size of the cups, and the types of pastries they had. At first it surprised me that a cup of coffee could be 1.10, but it actually comes out to be around two dollars after the pound conversion.

Once I stepped off the plane and exited Heathrow airport, the first thing I noticed was the immediate need to throw on a jacket! The weather, unfortunately, reminded me somewhat of the terrible winter we had in Boston, but I was so excited to have finally arrived that I almost became numb to the crisp air. We took a long bus ride from Heathrow toward Central London where we would have our first meal. As we hit heavy traffic on Oxford street, the equivalent the to Newbury St. back in Boston, the two businesses that caught my eye were pubs and casinos. On almost every block there was a pub with customers happily drinking inside, and each casino, while open, was not as festive. Most clothing stores were identical to those on commercial avenues in the United States: Uni Qlo, H&M, Nike, Forever 21, etc. The usual small business that I saw was cheap haircuts stores.

Our orientation really began as soon as we landed, and we started a walking tour right after eating. Although it was pouring, we were able to see St. James Park and other local sites such as Trafalgar Square and Big Ben. My favorite sight was seeing the home of Queen Elizabeth, Buckingham Palace. While we were not able to get close to he building, the grand stature did not disappoint. We also visited fields constructed for the Olympic games back in 2012, the famous London Bridge, and the National Gallery. The entire place our orientation was the next day after we landed. Our orientation leaders, led by Tony, gave us our subway cards, a map of London, and a list of popular sights around town. At orientation we learned to come to AIFS if there is an emergency and what to expect our first few days in terms of moving around and food prices. They emphasized exploring the local areas like Hyde Park and Piccadilly Circus, and to not hesitate if we had any questions or requests for tickets to a soccer game, a show, or how to organize traveling accommodations for a weekend trip to either Dublin or Scotland. The orientation was short, but it definitely gave me the confidence to come back if I had any troubles on the trip.