Behold! My heart still beateth

So I have arrived! Due to an unfortunate lack of internet in my dorm until today, I haven't been able to update you on my first week of being a little fish in a large, smoggy, beer-drinking pond, but I shall do so now.

Things I like about London so far:

- Sinks seem to come standard in the dorm rooms here. I am grateful to any building designer who takes into account my dislike of stumbling bleary-eyed into a communal bathroom and making small talk through my toothpaste about how sleep deprived I am. Abating awkwardness is always a plus.

- I have my own bathroom. I don't think I need to elaborate on this.

- The toilet holes are HUGE and properly accomodating the occasional bout of constipation is crucial to my appreciation for a place.

- I found a cute little Quaker coffeeshop with free wi-fi which I am hoping to frequent if they have decent coffee. I have never achieved that elusive title of "a regular" in any establishment other than my college dining hall, so I have made it my mission to discover London's Central Perk and hang out there all the time.

- Obviously people have accents and obviously I am obsessed with these accents so obviously even the most ordinary errands become Adventures in I'm Sorry, Would You Say That Again Please?

- The Gangs of London Posters in the Tube. I'm sorry, the old dude just cracks me up.

Things I have to get used to:

- No internet for a week = internet cafes = possible disease contracted from keyboard.

- Black snots are something I had only experienced after breathing exhaust directly from the back of a diesel pickup, i.e. never. Until now.

- As fabulous as my British accent is, I keep saying "dollar" instead of "pound" which rats me out every time.

- I have yet to find a decent cup of coffee, which is understandable in a nation of tea drinkers. But I'm really suffering here. How come there can be five Dunkin Donuts within a half-mile radius of any point on campus at home, but none here? There are plenty of Starbucks, however, which kills me because Starbucks' coffee is, in a word, disgusting. All I want is my medium french vanilla coffee regular!

- Does the British school system hand out cigarettes with afternoon snack? Because I'm pretty sure the average Brit's fondness for smoking in all manner of enclosed and outdoor spaces rivals my fondness for juice boxes and oreo cookies. There's this thing, and it's called secondhand smoke, and it's kind of a drag on this end (ha), so why don't we call it a win-win situation and swap out the cancer sticks for a nice pack of nicorette?

- Drunk British students yelling in the streets on Saturday night are just as obnoxious as drunk American students yelling in the streets, but the British manage to sound a lot classier while doing so.

Things that confuse me about London:

- My UK cell phone plan is 5p per minute to the US, but 15p per minute to any UK number. Also 7p to text a UK number. Coming off of Verizon, I'm also completely thrown that I don't pay for calls or texts I receive. The cell phone salesman declared my insanity for having had a contract plan in the US and I'm beginning to agree with him.

posted by limeywannabe @ 12:24 AM