Do You Smell That?

So I have decided to jump on the blog bandwagon and made myself vulnerable to the inevitable comparison that will soon follow. After religiously following some of the best (Rayna Healy http://raynahealy.tumblr.com/, Hannah Parks http://hparkes.tumblr.com/, and Rachel Romero http://rayro92.tumblr.com/) I don't dare to pretend to bat in their league. Ladies, I tip my hat to you.

I began my journey at DIA with two delays...two customer service lines...and a Chicago style hot dog that was supposed to be an alligator entree. HA! I laughed in my plan's face. Or more accurately...I cried. A wise man one asked me, "what would we do if things were easy?" Which is one of the truest things I have heard in a while. If things were easy, I wouldn't know what to do with myself. But the good news is, I was successfully rerouted (2 hours late) and ended up in the London Heathrow Airport with time to spare! I met Grace and Aisling and we joyously shared an hour and a half shuttle ride with our never quiet driver, Mr. Mike.

Mr. Mike immediately educated us on how much it cost to live in different neighborhoods, what people were trustworthy to do business with, and made sure we knew that masters degrees were available in wine tasting and specialty retail. Yes please. He gave us just what we needed...a warm welcome.

I finally made it to my Hall of Residence (Alexander Flemming) and checked in with the one and only Angela. Angela is a sweetheart sent to live across the hall from me and accompany me on the three mile walk to meet Grace, Aisling, and the world traveler Katie Raff. Poor Angela did not know what she was getting herself into. We got the Maryleborne Hall in an hour only to find that the cell phone and bedding stores were closed. However, lucky for Angela, we were able to find bedding at the front desk of Maryleborne Hall where we received our second warm welcome.

Ms. Samantha Payne used to work at Alexander Flemming which she absolutely loved! She told us where her favorite restaurants and night life were and even thought it right to mention the strange sex shop on one of the corners...Angela and I finally knew what the bright pink building up a few blocks was. We also found all of her recommendations when we got lost coming home that night. ...we walked for about two hours and past our front door about four times while standing right in front contemplating where our next route should be. Needless to say...we learn from doing.

And speaking of learning from doing...cheers to Poundland! London's version of the dollar store. Needless to say..I'm living on a budget.

The same very wise man that was listed above once told me, when asked what he thought about the county fair, "there are a lot of sights, sounds, and smells to take in all at once." That basically sums up the past few days. This thought was reiterated by Angela saying...it smells so funny here. I agreed which is ironic coming from two people who raise cattle. Kindred souls!

But really. It smells different. I wouldn't have thought that smells would impact me so much, but when walking past McDonalds or KFC makes me happy...I know that means something. Everything smells different here and it's overwhelming. I can only wait until my senses adjust and before I know it, I wont be smelling anything other than the glorious smell of rain and adventure.

Cheers!