Just Peeess on the FLORREE Mayyyte

Ok I wanted to update this like every night but I don't have internet yet...so I'm going to try and remember my past three days in full detail right now.

My parents dropped me off at Newark Airport and it was over, there is no turning back now. As they walked away I felt a little alone, and I knew that the trip had just begun. Once I cleared all the security checkpoints and all that jazz, I wandered aimlessly through the airport until, with an hour still until my plane boards, I found an airport bar. This is where my trip begins of course.
As I sit drinking my Guiness , I looked around and realized that English football was on the T.V and everyone around me was English. Naturally, they would be on my flight. I laughed a little to myself as they tried to count out American money to pay for their beers, studying each coin like it was complicated math. Little did I know, that in about twelve hours i'd be doing the same thing everywhere I go.

The plane ride was fine...I hate planes so I focused on some happy thoughts. They have this new thing now on the planes where you have a T.V like in your seat...so I got to watch The Office and and movies, and listen to like any album I wanted on this touch screen database. That passed the time. I sat next to two old people who didn't say anything to me.

I landed and laughed because I was in Europe. Long story short I breezed through customs (they barely even looked at my passport) and i walked out into the London. I had to take the London tube, with all my luggage, and find my way to where my taxi would be picking me up. It was on the tube that I realized I was foreign, because when I asked for directions or talked to someone on the train they asked me..."are you from Canada?"

I met up with my CEA group, a bunch of really nice people from Montclair, and two British girls who were our tourguides for the day. As we drove through London in stop and go traffic i was feeling strange. I sat in the front seat, which to me was the drivers seat, and enjoyed the city passing by. The British taxi driver had like three cell phones and two GPS systems, and he was just using technology the entire time he was driving. I noticed that Kings of Leon was playing on the radio and i laughed because, a. I can't believe they are popular in England, and b. It reminded me of Caliendo's house.

So we finally get to our dorms. We are greeted by British people. (I'm finally getting used to everyone being British). A japanese kid walks me to my room. He sounds like an American so I ask him where he is from and he tells me from Japan, but now he's living here. Everyone is so diverse everyone has a different story.

My flat is more or less a dorm. I have my own room and shower, and there is a big hallway with everyone else's rooms. We all share a kitchen. None of us have pots, pans, forks, knives, or food. Actually, now that i think about it, I haven't ate anything besides sandwiches and dry cereal that I prepared myself since I left...well besides this dinner we had. My roomates are mostly American girls, but there are a few guys, one from Dallas, and one from Chicago. For some reason we didn't get any British kids, but all the other floors do.

So feeling tired i explore New Cross a little Bit. New Cross is a neat little hipster city 15 minutes by overground train outside of central London. The bars and nightlife are amazing. It is my new home. There is a bar by room called the HOBGOBLIN. I haven't gone yet, but my friends have and they say it's a big deal. Maybe Ill check it out tonight.

So long story short later that night me and my friends from my flat wanted to go out drinking. The Student Union at Goldsmiths said they were hosting a party, so we all agreed to check that out later on. First, we heard the church down the street was hosting a free buffet dinner, and we were all starving so we went.
I loved the food. As I eat at different places in England, I feel that nothing tastes liek what it looks like. For example, they had what appeared to be pizza, but when you bite into it the flavor was more sour and bitter. The food generally has the same appearence that I'm used to, but then just tastes different. I helped myself to lots of pasta and chicken with currey spices all over it. Currey is huge in England. It's actually the most traditional British spice. In the Church, they were serving tall cans of Carlsberg as the drink, so we all started getting drunk at Church and realized maybe it was time to go to the Student Union Party.
Feeling buzzed, I was in the mood to meet people. The Student center at Goldsmiths has a bar in it. Thats where everyone was. I got myself a pint of Carlsberg (i find I like this british beer the best), and started yapping with more British people then I can count. Everyone was really interested in me "whats your accent...canadian?"...."No, I'm American".."Oh Ya don't say maytee where aboutss?".... "New Jersey""..."oh great great great...wheres that?". Is usually how the conversation goes. My new British friends here seem really interested in American life. Most of them lived in small suburbs of England, and this is also their first time in a big city.
I met a girl that night from Norway and we started talking about the global recession. She kind of laughed at me when i brought up Barack Obama, saying ..."ohhh you mean suppperman?" in a sarcastic tone. She spoke Dutch, but English fluently. I told her how I was suprised at how British, Norweigan, Italian, Japanese, no matter what students i meet from here, they are usually Bilingual. It's shocking how much our American education system fails us globally. After her I met a kid who was also from Norway, and he was absolutely fascinated with "wawa".

I went to a British kid drunkenly and said "dude wheres the bathroom". He started laughing. I realized that this means "wheres the shower' around here. I re prashed myself and said "where's the lieu?" He said, "oHHHHH CMoon then Mayttee i'll tayykee you therrree right right right goooood fun". So i followed this overly enthusiastic bathroom guy to the lieu. When we walked in all I saw was a toilet, and a wall. No urinals. Then, the British kid just started pissing on the walls. I said, "what is this, what is this?". He said, "Just Peees on the FLOORREE Mayytee". I then realized that there was like some sort of drainage system on the floor. So I pissed on the walls and to quote my new British friend "it's sort of grattifying".

The next morning we woke up early and took the bus to Central London. We talk a walking tour of Picadilly Circus, which is a really famous area in London. All high class shops, and its near Oxford street, which was like the height of the beatnik hang outs in the 60s. The Beatles, the clash, and people who were just yano, into it hung around there. The shops are amazing there are so many to count. Some shops have royal symbols over them, and that is where the royal family gets their stuff. I saw the guards at Buckingham palace, but you couldn't get close enough to fuck with them. We walked to Big Ben, The House of Parliament, which also has the house of Lords. I am starting to understand how the British government works. The two houses, Parliament, which are elected democratically, and lords, who inherited their seat, debate reguarly. They vote by being in the same building, so if someone is not there, their vote does not get counted. So all the pubs by Charing Cross by Westminister Abbey have bells in them for when it's time to vote in case the official is a pub having a pint. I saw Big Ben, which was overwhelmingly impressive, and Westminister Abbey, which literally took my breath away.

We saw palaces that have been around for 1500 years, places where famous kings and queens were buried, who certain famous people slept before they were hung by the masses. There is so much history here...everything is old and beautiful and scary. Everything has a presence about it. I looked like a total tourist all gawk-eyed wandering around London. The Churchs are beautiful. Everything is great. It's so clean too, clean and old looking. Beautiful.

Later we took the overground train from Charing Cross to New Cross. I want to go back over by Charing Cross because the pubs looked EXCELLENT. It is such a happening place to be/

Oh i forgot to mention we walked through a bunch of beautiful parks, which they have just placed in the middle of crowded London.

Got home that night, made a ramen noodle dinner, and went out again. I met a British kid at the bar whose name actually escapes me right now, and me and him drank and talked about differences in our cultures all night. We talked about everything from politics to girls, to school, to parents.. He even stopped at one point and pointed out a girl and said, "do you think that girls pretty?" I said "no". He told me "well here she is considered really really hot". I said "that sucks for you" and we both started laughing. I told him how I was fascinated with how British news covers issues from all over the world. I explained how in America, we only hear about at home. Everyone I meet here knows all about American issues and politics, I am slowly learning the reverse. He was telling me about the parties in England when Obama won the election. I don't recall going to any parties when the Prime Minister changed in England last year..

So I'm having fun, traveling around, meeting people. I'm experiencing a bit of culture shock, still not used to subtle differences in just about EVERYTHING. But I am enjoying myself. I do miss Nick's porch though...

This week i just have orientations but this sunday I'm going to OXFORD. Woot woot. Also on Wed i'm going to a proper British Creme tea party and a restaurant in central, So i'll pretty excited for that. Until later. I love you all.\

Cheers
Andrew