A Time for Reflections

Hello All,

I'm trying to fit in finishing the blog during my free time...since it has taken me this long it is hopefully obvious that I have no free time. Here is a post from my last week in London. I will try and get a post-studying/back in Denver post up at some point. Anyway, enjoy :)

Time for Reflections

Wednesday will mark two weeks until I arrive home, and it has made me somewhat speechless. I cannot believe that it has been forever…so quickly. I know that thought does not make much sense, and yet that seems to be the best way to explain how time has passed. It feels like ages since I have been home and yet the time has absolutely flown by. It’s an odd sort of ‘twilight zone’ that matches my jumble of feelings. Ahhh…feelings.

It’s somewhat random, but I have counted the weeks in many strange ways. Also, as I have just gotten out of my Urban Tourism class, here are a few numbers for you:

·         3-The number of times I have washed my clothes using machines (don’t freak out I washed them by hand the rest of the time…it’s not like I walked around smelling)

·         12-The number of Mondays I have driven or walked by ‘Touch’ hair salon realized that another week has gone by so quickly (Touch is closed on Mondays and gated so it is obvious and somewhat strange that a business on a busy street is closed on a week day)

·         9-About as many home-cooked dinners as Margaux, Desiree and I have had together at one another’s places

·         12-About as many cups of coffee I’ve gotten from Joe and the Juice on my way to class on Regent Street (It’s fabulous, as they are all good looking males and get paid to flirt with you)

·         30-About as many times as I’ve taken the 205 bus to or from Baker Street for class

·         2-the number of Advent Sunday’s that have passed with me not at home.

It is so interesting to me at how repetitive things can be. I have counted the weeks through bus trips, hair salons, and even washing my clothes. I cannot believe that I will never repeat those actions in the same way. I’m not sad to leave, and I am not happy either. I’m telling you…this in-between feeling is weird.

I am so excited to be with my family once again. I got to spend this past weekend in Saint Witz, France with Margaux and her amazing parents. They showed us how the French live and gave me a much needed break from the city and from a University residence hall.  They treated us very well and I cannot express my thanks to them enough. I also got to help them decorate for Christmas which meant a lot as I have missed that part of this festive season at my own home. I will be home for Christmas, and I cannot be more thrilled! Two weeks of Advent have gone past and it is as if it is my own personal count down. I still have two weeks abroad though, and I cannot be more excited!

I’ve been fitting in as much as I can and seeing everything that I haven’t gotten to see! A trip to Chelsea here…a trip to Westfield there…and a hunt for the perfect teapot is on! I should also be writing some essays...oops. But they’re getting there and will hopefully be mostly finished by the time I get home. With so much hustle and bustle this week and an amazing trip to Germany next week, I have to remember to smell the roses…or not smell the tube…something or other. I will miss this city very much. I will miss the people, and the food, and the ability to find so much diversity with just the swipe of my Oyster card. I will miss getting lost and walking until my feet bleed. I will miss the words queue and trousers, and I will miss the rain. Yes…you heard me…I will miss the bloody rain.

Sidenote: I love this weather and I always have. You know that amazing feeling of snuggling up by the fire while it’s raining or snowing? I get that here when I wake up in my bed to a refreshing rain. I take my umbrella and I march out into the weather to see how green it has made everything. It is cleansing and it is so different than anything I have lived through. Give me a few more months and yes, like all Britt’s I will probably hate it. Maybe it’s good to quit  while I’m ahead.

I will also miss my friends very much. Desiree and Margaux and my Westminster girls have been there from the very first day. We have laughed together and discovered the city together. Desiree and Margaux have more specifically made this place a home…and I thank you both for that.

BUT NEVER FEAR! This is not the end of my time in London.  I will be back to see how things have changed and how I have changed. I will come back to share it with others and to get them lost as well. I will come back to remember what real public transportation is like and where Primark bags tattoo every tourist.