English Tea in ENGLAND!

DAY 1 - Our Arrival

It's pretty surreal to finally be in Europe. Even after landing in Heathrow, I kept imagining stepping out of the plane and finding myself back in LAX. But, I'm here! And after having to lug my 30kg luggage (that's 70lbs for those still in America...hahaha) up several flights of stairs and walking in the London fog which later turned into a light drizzle, my three travel buddies and I finally made it to the house in Westminster, London, where we're staying at for the next five days.

So far, we've hit the Underground tube (subway), a couple corner groceries, The Abbey Studio (reference...The Beatles...pictures later), and a local Roman pizza place. We were too jet lagged and cold to do anything else.

Of course we've already sampled the ever-famous English tea, hence the title. Tomorrow's schedule (pronounced sheh-dule *ahem*) is still unknown, but it'll definitely be full of adventure and LOTS of picture-taking.

Please pray for me! Things here are different and though I'm not too homesick now, it seems quite inevitable. But as much as my heart longs to be where things are familiar and comfortable, I know that God has much to teach me.

I'll try to keep you updated with entries and pictures. I'll try not to get too philosophical, but it tends to happen from time to time. Hopefully the pictures will keep you interested...

For now, here are some pictures from today! Well, technically two days ago...I'm behind on my blogging...but I'll catch up...hopefully.

Courtney and I were feeling antsy during the 45min we were at a stand-still in Heathrow Airport, so we decided to pose for a picture.


After we got out of the plane, it was time to make our trek to the baggage reclaim and then to the tube (aka the Underground subway).


The blue and red symbol is for The Underground, which is the public transportation system everyone takes. You don't have to wait more than 5 minutes for a train at any given time of day and it's always on time...probably something we Californians should take note of, those clever Brits.


The tube is always bustling with travelers, businessmen, students, elderly, families, etc. For those who enjoy people watching, the tube station is a choice spot. :-)


We were slightly confused to how to get our oyster cards (for constant travel on the tube), but luckily Gabi, one of the other girls I'm traveling with, has been to London a couple times or else we'd be screwed...


And finally! We get ready to ride the tube, 50+ pounds of luggage and all!


Lugging 4 months of clothes, architecture supplies, etc. is a difficult thing to do, especially after a 10 hour flight. My friends and I were so grateful to get on the tube and rest a little. I should probably introduce you to my entourage. From left: Courtney, Arthur, and Gabi, the girl we'd be lost without.


Our ride on the subway was 1hr 15min with one stop in between. We were all tired and sick of standing by our 6th stop and since the beginning of our ride was above grade, I had to bust out my camera and document the city!


The British are quite polite...they don't just savagely say, "Please watch your step," like us Americans. They say, "mind the gap." I couldn't stop laughing when the automated voice said it at every stop.


We arrived in the City of Westminster in London around 3:30 and still had to walk a few blocks to the house. Man...50 pounds never weighed so much...


All the buildings are beautiful with age, here. It's all brick-clad, like USC, but it's actually authentic...take that Steve Sample...


Here's the little street we're living on for the next 5 days! It's very quaint...only a couple houses on this block. There's a small cafe right across the street and a corner grocery, too. All the houses in this neighborhood are pretty upscale...you can tell by the porsche chilling on the side of the road in the previous picture.


Each house is gated with a small patio in front. I haven't had a chance to take a picture of our awesome gate, but it shall be posted so time soon. The house is soooo gorgeous. The epitome of London-town living.


Here's the small seating area in front of the house. Right as we got to the house, it started drizzling...I guess they're not kidding when they say that London is gloomy.


There's the red gate.


So the house actually belongs to a family friend of Gabi's father and we lucked out since we're getting free housing! The house is two levels with two bedrooms on the ground floor (in Europe, the first floor is actually our second floor and our first floor is their ground floor), and with a small kitchen and living/dining on the second floor. The most awesome thing about this house? THE SEQUENCE OF ENTRY!!! So, you enter the house through a small, narrow-ish hallway...it's dark and pretty cozy with the bedrooms likewise.


Then you approach an even narrower staircase that is brightly lit from above, which suggests something grand at the top...and to your surprise...


A double-height first floor that takes your breath away. Here's the living area...we watch movies here on our laptops.


And then the dining area...each time I come up those steps, the grandeur of the space just takes my breath away. Now that's successful architecture, man...


Anyways, that's the end of my first post. Like I said, I'm pretty behind on my blogging, so my deepest apologies for that. I've already been to a slew of places and have hundreds of pictures. So, be prepared for the next post!