Well here I am, starting off my first blog post for the Study Abroad program in London. I am really excited to be here and allow for people to see what I have and will be doing over the course of the 10 Days. The day started off with arriving at Logan Airport around 7:30pm on June 3rd. The flight didn’t board until 10pm, which allowed for myself to become comfortable with knowing I wouldn’t have to rush through security and get to my flight. After boarding the flight, I was able to find my seat and recognize my surroundings. When looking at the TV on the back of the seat that was in front of me, I was able to figure out that I could not just watch some movies that were provided by British Airways, but I could also watch some episodes of TV shows that I enjoy, as well as retro games I could play such as Tetris and Pac-Man. Not allowing for the opportunity to slip, I tried my best to use all of the technology that was in front of me to enjoy the long flight that was ahead of me. My time on the flight included watching Beauty and the Beast (2017), catching up on the TV show Big Bang Theory, and trying to understand how to use the controller provided to play the retro video games.

After the almost 7-hour flight, it was now morning and my day has just now begun. After getting off the plane it was time to go to the UK boarder patrol. When arriving at the UK boarder patrol (coming off from a short tram ride) it was time to wait in line to get to the front. Well, this line wasn’t very friendly and we had to wait a while to get to the front. After weaving through the stanchions, we were finally able to get to the front. After this, the true exploration was about to begin. After everyone grabbed their luggage we went on to find the drivers who were supposed to drive us to the hotel we would be staying at. When Ingrid was able to locate the two drivers, we were finally on our way to see how the streets of London really looked with our own eyes. When getting on the road, it was crazy to experience how different people in the UK drive. With having the driver seat on the side where the passenger seat would be on a US vehicle to driving on the opposite side of the road, it was great to finally see how it all worked after only seeing it from movies or TV shows. The driver of the van that I was in was very professional and was able to take us on our own little tour of London while we were driving to the hotel. Even though he didn’t have to do this, I greatly appreciate it and believe it added a little bit to the trip as I was able to see so many wonderful things before we even got to the hotel!

After arriving to the hotel, we all signed into our rooms and my roommate and I started to unpack our luggage and become familiar with the room. When my unpacking was complete I was able to lay down and take a quick nap before the group dinner that was taking place at The Dickens Inn. After taking the short walk to The Dickens Inn, we were able to look at all of the fascinating typography that the restaurant had inside.  After eating a fantastic meal and having a group meeting, we all walked back to the hotel where we were able to see more examples of typography that we could use for our projects. This allowed us to take many pictures when walking back to the hotel. This is where the first day of my London experience would come to an end and I would be let free to do what I want before the next day would begin.  When looking at how my first day in London went, I would say it went great! Even though I have stayed up for 26 hours from the start of yesterday, I would say that the whole travel from Logan Airport to London and my first full day here has gone by fast. I’m just hoping that the rest of the trip doesn’t follow suit. I would rate the first day a 10/10.