March 19 @ 8 am – listening to ‘London Calling’ by The Clash
Travel week two has arrived! For this whole week I would be traveling with my core course class, strategic communication, to London. I cannot tell you how excited I was. I had heard that London is pretty similar to NY & I was pumped to experience this world class city.
After popping over to the UK (& waiting in the long border control line) we settled into our hotel in Kensington before setting off to ride the London Eye.
*Just 3 days later the attack on Westminster happened. We were so lucky not to be near there at the time. It was shocking to hear from my friend who got a news notification on his phone. So sad to hear about these acts. Nowhere is safe, but I think London is a resilient city & they did not let this hinder their daily routines. The families affected are in my thoughts.
We then had dinner as a group at a Turkish restaurant – so yummy! Three others and I popped into a pub at night to embrace the English way.
Monday: Our first scheduled visit was to Wimbeldon. Seeing as I played tennis in high school and I’ve been to the US Open, I was beyond ready to see Wimbeldon. It was incredible hearing about growing the grass and their seating lottery. We also had a very funny guide. I got myself a strawberry mug (strawberries n cream hello!?) with a Wimbeldon logo on it – I couldn’t resist.
Afterwards, we got fish n chips (classic) and then went to The Guardian. It was awesome to hear about their analytics and coverage…so shoutout to The Guardian – I’ll need a job in a year, hit me up!
With the rest of the day free, some classmates & I hit up Topshop (their flagship store!) & Primark. My one friend and I also decided to test out the London night life. We had heard this place called Mahiki is lit on Mondays…little did we know Drake would be in the same club later! Crazy times guys.
Tuesday: We had the first half of the day to ourselves so three others and I had a long list of activities to cross off. We started off at Buckingham Palace, strolled through Hyde Park, popped over to Camden Market, visited Abbey Road, and then took pics at Harry Potter’s platform 9 & 3/4!
We then had to meet our class to participate in a public speaking workshop before seeing Les Mis! I had never seen it before, but I am glad I got to experience London’s theatre scene!
Wednesday: We had one activity in the morning. We talked to the Comms&Marketing department at QBE, an insurance company.
After that, though, we trekked through the rain to see the Tower of London! Once done with that, we walked over the London Bridge to eat lunch at Borough Market. The English are apparently big fans of markets…but hey I’m not complaining. They’re excellent!
The Tate Modern was really close so we went to check that modern art museum out. Plus, it is free!! Check it out if you can – very cool pieces.
Thursday: Off to Windsor Castle & Oxford we go! I think I enjoyed Oxford more than Windsor to be honest. It is a quaint town with lots of history. While there, I of course had to buy an Oxford University sweatshirt – pretending I’m a scholar, ya know.
For dinner, two friends and I traveled to Shoreditch once back in London. Box Park is another modern market where we got sushi and falafel. So. Good.
Our main goal though was to try a dessert place. A friend had found these AMAZING milkshakes on instagram, so we had to try them! Look at them! MASSIVE. We got chocolate, matcha, & strawberry. We also made some English friends who asked us about the Cheesecake Factory (too funny) & Trump (a true horror).
Check out Soft Serve Society if you’re in the area.
Friday: Our final day in London came all too quickly. We had two guest speakers talk to us. One worked in government communications which was fascinating to hear about, and the other speaker was a very inspiring author. Both amazing!
Our final activity was high tea at Fortnum & Mason. It was delicious not going to lie – I think I could live off scones & clotted cream. The server was not the best, though. In fact, he was quite rude & I did not appreciate the service. I did not want to stay, which was sad because he ruined a great experience!
Oh well. And with a blink of an eye, it was time to go back to Copenhagen.
Thank you, London! I had a wonderful time & I’ll be back 🙂 xo
-Chloe
Living the Good Life 