6-17-11 London!!!

I can't believe I am here! It was this mystical trip I was taking and it's finally real. This post will not be as long as I would like because I have been awake for over 24 hours and sleep awaits. I can't upload pictures yet, because I am waiting for the cords I left at the office.

The day started super early. I was up at 4:30am to jump in the shower for my 8am flight to San Francisco. I met Jim there, my counterpart at UNR. He likes to say 'we are here from the University of Nevada' when we check in places and I cringe a little every time.... :) I met Jim in San Francisco and we took the same direct flight to Heathrow. The flight was about 10 hours long...the longest I have ever been on. I was expecting more. The overhead bins were larger but the seats were pretty much the same. I had a window seat and there was only one seat next to me (2:5:2) and an attractive young man sat next to me. :) There are worse things in the world. He was from Austria. I know that because he told the flight attendant when she offered him the customs form.

The meals were ok. Lunch was a choice of beef or pasta. I chose pasta. I think it was a Lean Cuisine meal, no joke. It came with a little salad, roll, and brownie. Breakfast (yes, there was no dinner...)was a banana, yogurt, biscuit thing and a danish that was pretty gross. I stuck to the banana and yogurt. I tried to stay awake for the first few hours. I fell asleep after lunch for 2-3 hours. By the time hour #6 rolled around I was over it. I only got up one time (to pee) and that was before lunch. I was feeling cramped and my butt hurt from sitting so long. I'm only 5'1 so feeling cramped was quite a feat. Those snazzy first class cubicle things that recline to a full bed are worth it...one day, Dana...one day. :)

The landing was the quietest one I have ever experienced. I was really surprised with a plane that big. It took about an hour to go through customs and I got my stamp! I like the stamps. :) We took a cab from Heathrow and Jim has used this same driver for the last three years. His name is Bill, appropriately enough. Bill was funny. He told us about the 'pictures' he goes to with his daughter (movies) and how Osama bin Laden went to school in London and was an Arsenal fan so he couldn't have been all bad. I will pay the 40 pounds to have him take me back to the airport. My luggage is heavy and I don't walk in the rain and cold on purpose as it is, let along dragging two suitcases. It will be money well spent. I don't know how to make a 'pounds' sign on the laptop so I have to write it out every time. Using 'lbs' doesn't seem right, but I may have to adopt it because it's faster.

Once we arrived at the University of London at around 9am we checked in to College Hall, the residence hall we are staying in. Well, we tried to anyway. They held our bags because check in wasn't until 12noon. I thought I might collapse right then and there from exhaustion. Lol! Jim gave me a tour and we found the classroom where two of the classes will take place. We set up the classroom then took a little tour of the surrounding area. First we went to the Tube station and I got an Oyster card (like a Metro Card), then we ended up at the student union and I got a chocolate muffin. It is cold here! It was 105 when I left Vegas and the high today was like 60, cloudy, and now rainy. We killed about two hours then went back and they checked us in at 11:30am. I unpacked, got the laptop set up and emailed home that I made it safe and sound. I was nervous to use the adapters like they wouldn't work right and I would blow up the College of Business laptop...ok so far. :)

I took the most glorious nap of life today! I slept from 1:30-4pm and I could have slept all night. I met Jim around 5pm and we went downstairs to the refectory (dining hall) and met up with one of the professors and his wife. Dr. Mason will be teaching International Law. He was an entertainment lawyer for 20 years before he started teaching at UNR. They are originally from New York and my new friends. After a dinner of fish and chips (with tartar sauce and lemon) I am finally back up to my room and happy to be headed to bed momentarily. Tonight it is supposed to be heavy rain and tomorrow scattered thunderstorms and a high of 63. Jim and I are headed to the oldest farmers market in London at 10am. I'm pretty excited. Also on the agenda is finding a Barclay's ATM. They are affiliated with BofA and I don't get charged to take money out. It'll be worth the Tube ride.

I will try to add pictures to the posts as I go but if it's not possible, I will upload the pics in a separate post when I get back.

Cheers!