London is Like a Painting

Questions of the Day: what is brownish and in liquid form?

My immediate response would be coffee. But the right answer today is the Thames. Yes the longest river in England, running from Thames Head to the sea, is a faint color of brown. But don’t let this turn you off. When you are actually on the Thames you don’t really care what color the water is, it could be yellow for all you know. You will be more occupied by what you see on the river than anything else.

With LUIP we went on the Thames Jet. A 50 minutes RIB ride along the Thames. My hair was flying in the wind, there was a secret mission, and we got to go fast!

I have been in London for a 8 months now and have done a night time cruise along the Thames, gone to almost all the touristy places, but this quick ride was a great summary of all I had seen. A different perspective and a different appreciation.

And so I have determined London is like a painting. You must look at it from afar to grasp the full intention of the artist but you must also look at it close up to discover the details and intimacy the artist uncovers within the painting. The same is for London. You need to look at it close up and in order to see all the wonderful and beautiful details, there is so much to be found. But you also need to step back and see it from afar to appreciate it’s full richness. This ride was me looking at it from a far. There are not many words that can summarize it, besides you should just try it for yourself.

 

Plus you get to wear this awesome blue jacket!

 

 

A Blog Revamp

There once was a time when I committed to blogging for LUIP. And then there came a time when my life was consumed by moving around in a dance studio or sitting at my computer. But now I am back. I have 5 weeks left for my course and hopefully 3 months left in the UK. It is my attempt to blog every week or even twice a week. It could be short, long, or just pictures. So I guess you will need to come back and visit all the time.

Print from etsy.com

 

Chinese New Year

One of the best parts of studying in London is being able to experience what the term ‘cultural diversity’ really means. London really embraces each culture and celebrates what makes people different. And they go all out! Chinese New Year is  celebrated all over the world but in London it’s pretty extravagant.

The last time I remember celebrating Chinese New year is in elementary school. So I have London to thanks and LUIP for bringing this time of year back into my life.

For this LUIP event we went out to lunch a traditional Chinese restaurant, well as traditional as you ca get in London. Some soup, tea (found out I like jasmine tea, who knew?), that amazing sticky rice, and dish after dish. A little spice here and a little tofu there.

The meal was delish. Best Chinese food I have ever had. Sorry America.

 

Umbrella’s Under Pressure

There was a time when I thought it would be really nice to have an official tour of London. One where I could see all the sights and gain a quick knowledge of the city’s History. And if you have ever watched the movie Winning London you will believe it can all be done in one day. Mark-Kate and Ashley did it, so why can’t I? The fact is London is massive. If you want to do it respectful justice you need days.

After 2.5 months here and speed tour/ scavenger hunt provided by Insider London, I would say I have seen a quarter of London. The tour hosted by LUIP and guided by Insider London took us to various places in London where we had to find things, take pictures/ videos, and do some great tasks. Despite the constant drizzle and umbrella bumping we managed to get 35 high fives on Millennium Bridge, act like Big Ben, find the most Complicated way to get from Angle to Old Street (only one stop away on the Northern line), snap some sweet pics of street art on Brick Lane, and so much more. After a quick breeze through Brick lane market to find something nice, something old, something tasty, something blue, an something ugly (the best was the picture of the old man) we made our way to get Indian food or curry.

The winning team was to win a free tour with Insider London, who offer a variety of really neat tours of London. Sadly team green, my team, we were not the winners. But I can tell you where the smallest police station in is London, so at least I learned some cool things. I do look forward to doing another tour with Insider London, hopefully in the near future!

Coming soon, the Lingo of London Part 1!

The Beginnings of a Brilliant Blog

Welcome to the beginnings of my oh so cheerful blog! I plan to rehash all my London/ England experiences in hopes to brighten your day and allow you to experience London from afar… or close by.

After trading in my pearls and cowboy boots for a pair Wellies (rainboots) and some gigantic scarves I landed in this lovely city and started to unfold my new life. I have heard a fair amount of people say ya’ll but apparently deep frying everything is unheard of. Beans and toast is a staple. A not very delicious staple, in my humble opinion. And men dress properly. More to come on that topic in a later blog.

The starting point of this blog is London Universities International Partnership (LUIP). It is LUIP goal to bring attention to London as a study destination. LUIP works with universities in the London area to select Study Ambassadors from 15 universities to aid in this initiative. Through students blogging about their experiences and life in London they hope draw more attention to London as a hub for academia. I am honored to be Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance’s first London Study Ambassador(LSA). I look forward to what I may discover and then share with you.

The introductory LUIP event in conjunction with London & Partners event was simply delightful. After a round of meeting the other ambassadors, drinks, and food we sat down for a formal introduction. I am excited to get to know all of the ambassadors and make connections with people from various parts of the world. We found out the expectations of our blog and what we are to produce and achieve, as well as an encouraging masterclass in blogging.

I say encouraging because blogging was never a high priority on my list of things to do in London but after this Blogging Masterclass I was hooked. I now understand professional bloggers. They get to experience things, make things, write about things, and then get paid for all these things. What’s not to love? I obviously will not be paid for this, but we all have to start somewhere.

In my blog I hope to prepare people who are coming to study in London and maybe even entice some other people to join in on the jolly good fun. Possibly clarify some not so clear points on the VISA application. Who knows, but stay tuned.

http://bowdowntomama.tumblr.com/post/20358195889