Week 3: Sunshine in London

So this is our fourth week in London! It is hard to believe that so much time has gone by. It seems like it was just yesterday that we were trying to fight off jet lag and stay awake until 8 PM, the ideal time to recover from jet lag. And I’m sure you’ve heard, but that is hard to do, especially when your body is saying that you haven’t slept for over 24 hours, but it’s still sunny outside. Which brings me to my next point: London is not nearly as foggy or rainy as everyone makes it out to be. We have had two days of rain in the almost 28 days we have been in London. Not only that, but it has been downright warm, much warmer than in the States. (That’s how you can tell we are becoming immersed in British culture…America is now “the States”). I’ve also learned a few things about London culture:

1. Mind the gap. I swear, there really is a huge space between the train and the platform. If you’re not careful, you may lose a shoe.
2. Pants=underwear
3. Dodgy=sketchy
4. The One and Only=British American Idol, but as an impersonation of an already famous star. It is a competition to see who the best impersonator is, and the winner gets to headline a show in Las Vegas. I’m rooting for Cher (If I Could Turn Back Time)

This past weekend was definitely a key part of the trip. On Saturday, all of the girls (Sandy, Lauren, Sarah, and me, as well as my friend, Julie) went to St. James’ Park. It is a beautiful park right outside of Buckingham Palace. We saw some awesome swans, and even made a swan dance based off of what we were lucky enough to observe. The day was gorgeous, probably about 60˚ F and so sunny. (Again, not typical London weather) We saw Buckingham Palace, the flag was raised and the guards had machine guns. That means that the Queen was there when we were! I like to think I saw a glimpse of her in the window, but I don’t really think I did. It was great to be able to be outdoors and see some of the sights of London. On Friday, Julie and I went to the National Portrait Gallery. It turned out to be a pretty sweet place. Not only are there portraits of famous British figures, but a history is given from the Elizabethan period up until Queen Elizabeth II. The facts explaining British history were absolutely fascinating, like the fact that women were involved in the progress of the arts in early British history. But, I digress. Back to Saturday. After the park, we came back and made dinner. We of course watched One and Only, but we have discovered that in order to see which act gets kicked off for the week, Casualty must be watched. Now, the first week we saw this, we thought maybe it was a British version of Scrubs. We had no idea the show was called Casualty and that clearly people would die. We have now learned that Casualty is not a funny, or really fun, show, but simply a chance to chat in between the exciting show. Julie really enjoyed it…

As for the internships, everyone seems to be having a little bit different experiences. It is definitely exciting to be truly immersed into the British culture through the internships. I think that is something everyone can agree on. It is hard to not get excited about the internship when you get to experience such a cool thing four days a week. Only working four days a week, as I’m sure you’ve all figured out by now, leaves the weekends free for travel. Really, the only two who have traveled on the weekends so far have been Ted and Danielle. It seems like the weekend trips are starting this week, so that will be a whole new level of experience. We’ll have to keep that on watch.

That seems to be all for now. Feel free to look at the pictures, in a mini-photo diary of what has happened in London since last week.

Cheers!
Emily